Roads that are intended to function as bus routes within new development should be at least 6m wide (subject to tracking assessment) and be reasonably straight. A more generous swept path is also likely to be required to take account of where vehicles might park on-street, for example. See the Road Types Section for further information.
Horizontal speed-control features, including 90-degree bends and horizontal traffic calming measures such as chicanes, should be designed to accommodate the swept path of the largest rigid bus size permitted. Design details should be agreed jointly with the council and the bus operators. Tracking assessments of vehicle swept paths must demonstrate that proposals will work in practice.
Use of Speed Humps
When speed humps are used on bus routes, it may not be appropriate to locate them close to bus stops, as buses going over the humps could jolt standing passengers sufficiently to cause them to fall. Speed cushions are an alternative form of vertical deflection device that are intended to cause less interference than road humps to larger vehicles and should be considered.
Where vertical speed control features are required on a bus route the following measures should be employed:
- use round-top humps, 5m long with a sinusoidal profile as described in Transport Research Laboratory information note 417 (and possibly 377);
- build any tables to a minimum length of 9m with 1:13 maximum ramp slopes;
- keep humps or tables no higher than 75mm. Bus companies prefer lower heights and the council will consider these on a site-by-site basis, as long as any reduction in height does not significantly affect speed control in the development; and
Note: Please see the council’s standard drawings for junction tables, speed cushions and road humps.