In-depth guidance for highways development

Walking, cycling, public transport and other sustainable modes of transport have a range of benefits for people, the economy and the environment.

They can provide a convenient and healthy alternative to using a car and reduce traffic congestion.

Measures to encourage more sustainable travel can have big benefits and be very cost effective.

This is shown in the Department for Transport’s review of the value for money of transport investments ‘Soft Measures – Hard Facts’.

Increasing their use has big benefits for Buckinghamshire.

From the very beginning (and certainly from the first design stages), developers should consider the best ways to encourage people to walk, cycle and use public transport.

Travelling by foot and by bike should be encouraged by providing direct and high quality facilities.

Bus stops must be provided within walking distance of new homes and businesses The CIHT4 guidance demonstrates how this should link to street design but also contains the following recommendations.

Developers may design a sustainable site by:

• i) Minimising travel distance between dwellings, businesses and key destinations
• ii) Making walking and cycling the most convenient, desirable and attractive way to travel
• iii) Utilising or providing a high quality public transport services. Where appropriate, bus services should be accommodated within the site, to ensure that new dwellings are within walking distance
• iv) Making provision for the operation and charging of electric vehicles and for car clubs where appropriate. Paragraph 35 of the National Planning Policy Framework (and paragraph 110 of the 2018 draft revision) states that developments should “incorporate facilities for charging plug-in and other ultra-low emission vehicles, where practical”; and
• v) Travel planning

Public rights of way are important in encouraging sustainable travel. They form an integral part of the walking and cycling network - in both urban and rural areas. They provide a key link between other walking and cycling routes, such as footways, cycleway and permissive routes. Developers must ensure Buckinghamshire’s existing rights of way are preserved and, where appropriate, enhanced.

Any new, improved or altered rights of way must be constructed to an appropriate and agreed specification. This should take into account the nature and location of the site, and future maintenance needs.

The Buckinghamshire rights of way Improvement Plan sets out aspirations and

priorities for the public rights of way network. Developments should support the rights of way Improvement Plan (and other related guidance developed by the Council) where appropriate, to ensure Rights of Way are properly developed.

Developers should engage in early discussions with the Council’s rights of way team7, which can provide information and guidance; as well as advice about the statutory process. Developers should consider rights of way from the earliest stages to ensure they form a positive part of the development. This will help to make this process easier for developers and produce better developments.

Access to a development must be safe and suitable for all users. This is a primary concern for any new accesses onto the highway, which are often required to enable a development. The location and type of a new access can be a key part of the design process, and can result in significant changes to the existing road network.

Developers should consider how their proposals will;

• i. minimise the impact of vehicle accesses onto the public highway, particularly on Strategic Route and Main Distributor road types;
• ii. maximise access for walking, cycling and public transport;
• iii. ensure safe and suitable access to the site can be achieved for all people, including people with reduced mobility;
• iv. provide appropriate emergency vehicle access;
• v. minimise impact on principal routes, in most cases this will mean developments should provide vehicular access to the lowest category road available;
• vi. provide extra vehicular accesses only where necessary; and
• vii. coordinate and rationalise access arrangements with nearby committed and planned developments.

Developers should ensure that any new highway junctions:

• i.meet any operational requirements;
• ii.take the most appropriate form (considering the level of demand andlocation);
• iii.prioritise pedestrians and people on bikes (considering the level ofdemand from pedestrians, people on bikes and vehicular traffic);
• iv.are consistent with the strategy on that link, where appropriate;
• v.avoid conflicting movements, taking into considerations other junctions and access points; and
• vi.provide appropriate visibility based on relevant guidance.

Developers are encouraged to begin discussions about access arrangements with the Council’s Highways Development Management team as soon as practicable. The team will be able to provide information on specifications for the type of access you will need.

The design of a development, from parking provision to road layout, plays an important role in making a great place. Good design will ensure it is safe for all users and reduce the impact on the surrounding road network. Designers should create a high quality built environment that enhances the public realm.

The National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) states (in Paragraph 35 – and in 110 of the 2018 draft) that:

“…developments should be located and designed where practical to… create safe and secure layouts which minimise conflicts between traffic and cyclists or pedestrians, avoiding street clutter and where appropriate establishing home zones…”

Since 1st April 2012, Buckinghamshire Council has applied Manual for Streets 18 and Manual for Streets 29 on an individual scheme basis. Developers should contact the Council’s Highways Development Management Team in the early stages, to ensure that the appropriate design guidance is used for developments to function appropriately in their local context.

Where streets are intended to bring wider community benefits through place making, then the Manual for Streets approach is deemed to be applicable, provided the design fits the local context. Where the predominant function of the road is the movement of vehicles it may be more appropriate to apply Design Manual for Roads and Bridges (DMRB)10 guidance in order to maximise junction and route capacity. The design will however need to recognise the ‘Manual for Streets’ approach.

Permeability, being able to move easily through the site, is an important feature of good design. Developers should ensure that sites are fully accessible to all modes of transport. This may include the use of filtered permeability (allowing sustainable transport modes to travel directly between destinations, while motorised traffic follows a longer route around buildings and green spaces) or providing bus priority.

Designers should avoid the use of cul-de-sacs as they reduce permeability. In a case where cul-de sacs are unavoidable, developers should incorporate suitable turning areas for goods vehicles.

Parking is an important part of a development and needs to form a part of the design process from its earliest stages. Developers are encouraged to design the roads and surrounding development to create an effective self-controlling environment that prevents inappropriate parking and reduces the need for Traffic Regulation Orders.

Creating roads which naturally reduce traffic speed plays a crucial role in road safety. Traffic calming should form part of the overall design - it should not be achieved through isolated measures like ‘speed humps’. Designers should employ good design principles to ensure appropriate traffic speeds. Streets where ‘place’ functions dominate over ‘movement’ functions should be designed for a 20 mph speed limit. Designers should consider using traffic calming features such as:

• giving priority to pedestrians and people on bikes
• regular changes in direction
• variable carriageway widths
• well-designed squares
• materials that create a sense of ‘place’

Unnecessary road markings, signage and other ‘street clutter’ should be minimised on streets where ‘place’ functions dominate over ‘movement’ functions. This helps to create better places, a better pedestrian environment and encourages safer driving.

Developments should be designed to cater for the additional needs of the vehicles that may use them. This includes providing adequate space for goods, emergency and waste collection vehicles to manoeuvre easily. Appropriate road construction depths and materials should also be used.

The Highways Development Management team should be contacted for advice on vehicle sizes that should be used for swept path analysis to inform the design and layout.

Paragraph 163 of the 2018 draft NPPF states that

Major developments should incorporate sustainable drainage systems unless there is clear evidence that this would be inappropriate. The systems used should:

• a) take account of advice from the lead local flood authority;
• b) have appropriate proposed minimum operational standards;
• c) have maintenance arrangements in place to ensure an acceptable standard of operation for the lifetime of the development; and
• d) where possible, provide multifunctional benefits

Developers should refer to Buckinghamshire Council’s SUD Guidance. The Strategic Flood Team should be contacted for advice on the designing of SUDs within the development at an early stage.

Parking has a huge influence on Buckinghamshire’s people and places.

Too little parking could hold back our economy, or cause people to park inappropriately. Too many parking spaces take up space that could be used more productively and makes places difficult to get around.

Good provision for cyclists and motorcyclists is vital to encourage travel by these modes. Suitable and sufficient disabled parking for blue badge users is important to support mobility and independence. It is also important that people don’t park in the wrong places as inappropriate parking can cause congestion, compromise safety and threaten the beautiful places that make Buckinghamshire special.

Staying in parking spaces for longer than is permitted stops other people from accessing services and visiting Buckinghamshire’s businesses.

Making sure new developments provide appropriate parking will be vital to ensure Buckinghamshire grows, and stays a special place to live and work. Clear and appropriate guidance is required to help make sure developments provide the right level of parking. The Council has adopted the ‘Buckinghamshire Countywide Parking Guidance’11.

Evidence shows that the size of vehicles has increased over time. As a result, the size of parking spaces has been reviewed, and the size increased for both residential and non-residential parking, to better reflect the current size of vehicles. The Buckinghamshire Council Parking guidance sets out minimum bay sizes for cars in car parks and in parallel parking. Any local planning authority guidance should also be consulted, for example on the extent of garaging requirements.

Some district councils have also adopted their own parking guidance to address challenges faced in their areas. This should be considered by developers where appropriate.

Developments, redevelopments and conversions must demonstrate that they include parking provision according to the Buckinghamshire Countywide Parking Guidance. This includes providing the appropriate type and amount of parking in suitable locations for bicycles, motorcycles and cars (including provision for blue badge holders).

The Guidance provides flexibility for developers to provide the right amount of parking in situations where there is evidence that applying specific standards would not be appropriate. This flexibility acknowledges that different areas have different needs.

If a developer believes that the stated standard is not appropriate for a new development, the developer must produce sufficient evidence (for example, through their transport assessment and/or travel plan) that a different level of parking would be more appropriate. It will remain the responsibility of the Highway Authority (the Council) and relevant Local Planning Authority to decide whether the evidence is appropriate.

Equally, where the highway and/or planning authority believe the evidence suggests the standards would not be appropriate, they have the flexibility to request what parking is appropriate. For example, in town centres parking could be considered as a shared resource. By encouraging shared use parking between neighbouring developments or using public car parks, a different amount of parking may be appropriate in some places.

Many people with reduced mobility are dependent on cars for getting around. Therefore, blue badge parking should be a priority in developments. Buckinghamshire’s Countywide Parking Guidance explains how this should be provided. This includes the number, form and location of spaces.

New developments need to be ready for a growth in electric vehicles. The Buckinghamshire Countywide Parking Guidance and NPPF sets out how new developments should consider the needs and opportunities for incorporating vehicle charging points. Transport Assessments should include consideration of the demand that the development would generate and locate publically accessible charging points in the surrounding area.