Sustainable transport and active travel

What to Consider

Depending on the scale of development and land use type, consideration should be given to the following: 

• The vision-led approach;
• ATE Planning Application Assessment Toolkit: Checklist User Manual;
• If the site is well located in terms of existing or planned pedestrian and cycle routes and how far the walking and cycling distances are from such routes;
• Any public footpaths or any other public rights of way such as 
  bridleways, which may be affected by the development;
• How well the site is served by an accessible and frequent public-transport service offering a choice of destinations, the location of and routes to any bus stops and any facilities such as shelters;
• For new residential developments in particular:
• How near shops, community or leisure centres, employment areas and so on are located (the Manual for Streets sets out that ‘walkable’ neighbourhoods typically have a range of every-day facilities within 10 minutes walking time – up to 800m);
• The standard of the routes between the development and these facilities, particularly for walking and cycling, how safe, direct high-quality routes can best be provided, and how far the walking and cycling distances are from the facilities;
• The schools that children are likely to attend;
• The standard of routes to the schools, particularly for walking and cycling;
• Any ‘safe routes to school’ proposals; and
• Are the schools able to accommodate more children, for example, what is the existing traffic and parking situation and is there enough classroom capacity. 
• What are the likely main destinations for vehicles, pedestrians and cyclists travelling from or to the site, where are they likely to have come from and what routes are available to them?

Will a new bus service be needed to run through the site, or will existing services running past it need improving?