Transport Statement
Project No. 13-045 March 2014 PARAPET HOUSE, LENHAM KENT
Transport Statement
C&A Consulting Engineers Office 17 Wealden Place Bradbourne Vale Road Sevenoaks Kent TN13 3QQ Tel: 01732 448120 Fax: 01732 465026 [email protected]
Project No. 13-045 March 2014 PARAPET HOUSE, LENHAM, KENT 13/045-001
Transport Statement March 2014
DOCUMENT CONTROL SHEET
REV ISSUE PURPOSE AUTHOR CHECKED REVIEWED APPROVED DATE
- Draft JO JBW JO JBW Mar ‘14
- Final Issue JO JBW JO JBW Mar ‘14
JDO/jo/Reports/13-045-001 (i) PARAPET HOUSE, LENHAM, KENT 13/045-001
Transport Statement March 2014
CONTENTS Page
1.0 Introduction 1
2.0 Existing Conditions & Planning History 2
3.0 Policy Considerations 4
4.0 Sustainable Accessibility 6
5.0 Proposed Development & Access 8
6.0 Summary & Conclusions 11
FIGURES
Figure 1 – Site Accessibility Plan
DRAWINGS
13-045-001 – Site Access
APPENDICES
Appendix A Crash Data
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Transport Statement March 2014
1.0 INTRODUCTION
1.1 This report has been prepared by Charles & Associates Consulting Engineers, as instructed by Hume Planning Consultancy Ltd, in support of the proposed residential development of land at Parapet House, Lenham. The location of the site is presented on Figure 1.
1.2 This report has been prepared in accordance with the current guidance on the preparation of Transport Statements provided by the Department for Transport (DfT).
1.3 In accordance with DfT guidance this statement and the proposed development, have given due consideration to prevailing government policy on transport as set out in the National Planning Policy Framework. The site is located in Lenham, Kent and therefore at a regional level, policy contained with the Kent Local Transport Plan has been considered. Similarly at a local level, policy contained within the Maidstone Borough Council Emerging & Adopted Local Plans have informed this report.
1.4 The following section of the report will set out the existing transport conditions at the site and detail the site’s planning history.
1.5 Section 3.0 considers the relevant transport policy pertaining to the proposed development of the site. Following on from this, Section 4.0 presents the sustainable accessibility.
1.6 Section 5.0 describes the development proposals including the access arrangements. Finally Section 6.0 provides summary and conclusions.
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Transport Statement March 2014
2.0 EXISTING CONDITIONS & PLANNING HISTORY
2.1 The proposed development site is located to the rear of Parapet house, with a site area of 0.6Ha.
2.2 The site is bordered by sports fields to the west and south, by Parapet House to the north and by existing residential to the east.
Local Highway Network
2.3 As shown on Figure 1, the site is located behind Parapet House, set back from the Maidstone Road.
2.4 To the west Maidstone Road leads to A20 Ashford Road, where it forms a ghost island priority junction. The A20 continues through Harrietsham and towards Maidstone. Access to the M20 motorway can be achieved via the A20 and Junction 8 of the M20, for destinations in north Kent and London.
2.5 To the east Maidstone Road leads into the centre of the village of Lenham, just 300m from the site, where various local amenities are located. The square which Maidstone Road leads onto links through the High Street, which itself continues towards the south of the village. To the north, Faversham Road again links with the A20 Ashford Road. This route, in conjunction with route on Old Ashford Road, provide the primary connections to the A20 for traffic in an eastbound direction, including to Ashford.
2.6 Parking restrictions are in place along the Maidstone Road running east from the site towards the village centre. These prevent parking on one side of the road, with double yellow lines providing restrictions at all times.
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Transport Statement March 2014
Planning History
2.7 The site has historically been the subject of planning applications. Although it is beyond the scope of this report to summarise the full history, consideration has been given to the most recent application which was subject to a planning appeal.
2.8 In the context of this transport statement, the most relevant aspect of the planning history would be the Highway Authority and Inspectors position on the suitability of the access. This is discussed later.
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Transport Statement March 2014
3.0 POLICY CONSIDERATIONS
3.1 The proposed development would be subject to the policies set out in the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF). This presents the overreaching policy to be applied when assessing development proposals. In regard to transport the framework focuses on sustainability and encouraging non-car travel for new developments.
3.2 Paragraph 32 of the NPPF gives reference to Transport Statements and the plans and decisions to be taken from them. “All developments that generate significant amounts of movement should be supported by a Transport Statement or Transport Assessment. Plans and decisions should take account of whether:
• The opportunities for sustainable transport modes have been take up depending on the nature and location of the site to reduce the need for major transport infrastructure; • safe and suitable access to the site can be achieved for all the people; and • improvements can be undertaken within the transport network that cost effectively limit the significant impacts of the development. Development should only be prevented or refused where the residual cumulative impacts of development are severe.”
3.3 Manual for Streets (MfS) produced by the Department for Transport is a document to be used for the design, construction, adoption and maintenance of new residential streets.
3.4 Within MfS Chapter 7, it details the visibility requirements for junctions. In addition to this, MfS section 6.6 discusses how highway design should cater for emergency and service vehicles.
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Transport Statement March 2014
Regional Policy
3.5 The regional policy that is applicable to the site is provided by Kent County Council in the form of the Kent Local Transport Plan (LTP) 2011-2016.
3.4 The LTP details the aims and objectives of the transport strategy within the County. The document describes the desired shift towards sustainable transport and gives a platform to local Councils to implement this strategy via the formation of policy.
Local Policy
3.6 Local Policy for the site is presented in the form of the Maidstone Borough Council Local Plan (LP) 2000. This is the currently adopted framework for the area and details the policy and context for new developments.
3.7 Consideration has also been given to the emerging local plan for Maidstone, due to be published in 2014. The emerging policies encourage use of sustainable modes of transport and detail the strategy for the local area.
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Transport Statement March 2014
4.0 SUSTAINABLE ACCESSIBILITY
4.1 The proposed development site is appropriately located to take advantage of sustainable modes of travel. This is shown graphically on Figure 1 and this section of the report discusses the accessibility of the site by these sustainable means of travel.
Local Accessibility
4.2 The site is well situated in relation to key local facilities. Within 400m walk of the site are various local amenities such as Lenham Primary School, Swadelands School & Sixth Form, a Doctors and a Dental surgery.
4.3 The centre of the village of Lenham provides access to a Post Office, Local Store, Bank and Pharmacy and various public houses and other retail outlets.
4.11 Footways run along both sides of the majority of Maidstone Road leading into Lenham village. The width of the footways vary but they are generally wide, narrowing on approach to the village. Around the village centre there is a good pedestrian environment, with wide, well lit footways.
4.12 To the west of the site footways run along one side of Maidstone Road and there are footways on both sides in parts up to the junction with the A20, where the road makes the transition from village to countryside.
4.4 It is apparent that the site is ideally located for immediate local, sustainable access to key services, often without the need to travel beyond the village. Nonetheless, there are remain numerous options for sustainable travel to the wider area, where this is necessary, as detailed below.
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Transport Statement March 2014
Bus Services
4.5 Two bus stops are located in the village square within Lenham village centre, under 400m from the site. This is shown graphically on Figure 1. Services from the stops provide direct access from the site to Ashford and Maidstone town centres.
4.6 The 10X Service is the main service that operates locally, between Maidstone and Ashford town centres stopping at the settlements of Harrietsham, Hollingborne and Beartsted along the way. This service runs at a frequency of one bus per hour.
Rail Services
4.7 Lenham railway station is a 1.1km or an 11 minute walk from the site, as shown graphically on Figure 1.
4.8 Rail services operate from Lenham station to London Victoria heading north-westerly and to Ashford International to the southeast. Services run at a frequency of two trains per hour during peak periods and at one train per hour off-peak.
4.9 The journey to London Victoria takes on average one hour and twenty five minutes and also calls at Maidstone East and Bromley South offering direct access to retail, leisure and employment areas in these locations.
4.10 The journey to Ashford International takes 14 minutes and passengers can change here for services to the south Kent coast and international services via Eurostar. Ashford also provides opportunities for employment and leisure and retail facilities are available.
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Transport Statement March 2014
5.0 PROPOSED DEVELOPMENT & ACCESS
5.1 The development is proposed to take the form of five residential properties within the area highlighted on Figure 1.
5.2 This Transport Statement is to form part of an outline application with all matters reserved apart from access.
Access
5.3 Access is proposed to be consistent with the access already serving the site from Maidstone Road. The current private drive will be extended back to the main area for development towards the rear of Parapet House.
5.4 Access in this form was a component of the most recent planning application for the site, which was subject to an Appeal. Although we understand the Appeal was ultimately dismissed, we understand that neither the original application nor the Appeal included highways or access as a basis for not granting permission. Accordingly it would appear that the principle of access has been historically accepted. Nonetheless, the technical merit of the access has been considered in the current local context, the prevailing guidance and the development proposals.
5.5 The current access achieves visibility to the right of 43m from a set back of 2.4m, consistent with the requirement for an access on a 30mph road as per Manual for Streets. This is shown on Drawing 13-045-001. Visibility to the left is also achieved within land that is understood to be within the control of the developer or the highway authority. The visibility is however currently constrained by overgrown foliage along the highway edge. This limits visibility to below the aforementioned specifications, with the extent of constraint dictated by the seasonal conditions and the growth of the foliage.
5.6 Observations at the site concluded that cars generally operated below 30mph along this road and therefore it would not be a necessity to achieve the MfS directive for 30mph of 43m x 2.4m as quoted above. Nonetheless, if the
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Transport Statement March 2014
Highway Authority perceived this to be an issue, then the full visibility could be achieved by maintaining the foliage currently acting as a constraint.
5.7 In considering whether such maintenance is necessary, it is worth noting that the access is already operational, although subject to lower traffic generation. The following paragraphs consider the accident history, which would highlight any existing safety issues with the access.
Crash Data Analysis
5.8 Crash Data was obtained by Kent County Council for the area in and around the site along Maidstone Road and the two junctions at each end of the road for the last five years, this data is included within Appendix A.
5.9 The crash data reveals only one reported accident, that was described as being “slight” in its severity. This incident was located away from the site access and was caused by a toddler running out into the road from behind a parked car.
5.10 There have been no accidents on or around the current site access and therefore no clusters nearby.
On-Site Layout
5.11 Given the scale of development at only five dwellings, the access route is proposed not to be put forward for adoption. Instead, the access road would take the form of a shared surface private driveway, of approximately 4m in width, leading from the access to the development area.
5.12 Although subject to determination at the reserved matters stage; the proposed access layout will provide ‘low-key’ highways infrastructure, minimising the hard standings. Consistent with the access, on-site highways will take the form of shared areas.
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Transport Statement March 2014
5.13 To accommodate servicing, provision for larger vehicle manoeuvring will likely need to be made. For the purposes of refuse collection, permeability of RCVs on to the site may need to be provided for. As a private road, this would need to take the form of an appropriate covenant.
Car Parking
5.14 Car parking is to be provided in accordance with Kent Interim Guidance Note 3. It is suggested that the site location is commensurate with the category ‘suburban edge/village/rural’. Based on the indicatively proposed units type, it is proposed that two independently accessibly and allocated parking spaces will be provided per dwelling a total of 10 spaces across the scheme.
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Transport Statement March 2014
6.0 SUMMARY & CONCLUSIONS
6.1 This report has been prepared by C&A Consulting Engineers on behalf of Hume Planning Consultancy to assess the impact of the proposed development on land at Parapet House, Lenham for residential use.
6.2 This statement has been prepared in accordance with the prevailing guidance and the proposals designed and appraised in the appropriate policy context. The development has been shown to be consistent with this prevailing and emerging policy.
6.3 The site location is appropriate to encourage sustainable modes of travel, through its proximity to the village centre of Lenham, local amenities and public transport services.
6.4 The access strategy has been designed after consideration of various options available. In respect of the access currently acting in a safe manner with no recent crashes recorded and visibility envelopes to each side being available in accordance with relevant policy, the junction is considered fit for purpose.
6.5 Overall, the proposed development of the site is considered to be acceptable on highways and transport grounds.
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FIGURES
Key
Site Location - Railway Station - 3 Railway Line - Bus Stop - Buses to Maidstone Bus Route - Primary Education - 1 4 10X Secondary Education - 2 Employment - 3 Leisure - 4 Healthcare - 5 Retail - 6
2
Trains to London 1 4 5 3 5 3 4 6 10X 3 Buses to Ashford
3
Lenham Railway Station
Trains to Ashford
Rev Amendments Drn Chk App Date OFFICE 17 WEALDEN PLACE Job Title Client Scale Date Designed BRADBOURNE VALE ROAD NTS SEVENOAKS KENT Parapet House, Lenham Mar 14 JDO TN13 3QQ Drawn Checked Approved Hume Planning Consultancy JDO JBW JBW Drawing Title Telephone: 01732 488120 Job No Figure No Fax: 01732 465026 Site Accessibility Rev Email: [email protected] 13-045 Figure 1 - Web: www.c-a.uk.com
DRAWINGS
27
XX 10/10/.4 123.19 123.07
XX 12/11/.6 122.97
121.03 FOLIAGE LINE OVERLAPPING PATH OVERLAPPING LINE FOLIAGE
XX 10/8/.2 122.92 KERB
XX 14/10/.5 122.87
120.68 120.66
Email: [email protected] BWF 1.4m H 1.4m BWF BRADBOURNE VALE ROAD
Telephone: 01732 448120
Web: www.c-a.uk.com F/PATH TARMAC AH 13/6/.3 122.65 120.61 SEVENOAKS KENT
WEALDEN PLACE
Fax: 01732 465026 122.53
OFFICE 17 TN13 3QQ KERB
122.36 120.44
120.32
Drawing Title Job Title BWF 1.4m H 120.30
FOLIAGE LINE OVERLAPPING PATH OVERLAPPING LINE FOLIAGE 120.17
121.92 121.61 121.69
BKW 0.5m H KERB
120.13
Parapet House, Lenham 121.43 CLEARED WOODLAND
CBF 2.0m H BWF 1.4m H
120.08 119.94 120.08 Access Visibility
TARMAC F/PATH 120.73
120.90 GATE
120.36 1.3 PICKET PO PO
120.25 GATE KERB
120.47 GATE
GATE 119.82
GRAVEL
119.89
120.24 119.80
119.61 119.61
120.31 119.61
BWF 1.4m H 119.67
119.51 119.55
119.63 DROP KERB DROP
PO GATE
PO 119.47
No.39
119.34 TARMAC F/PATH TARMAC KERB
120.049 STN4
KERB 119.25
Client 118.88
Hume Planning Consultancy 118.92
with MfS Table 7.1: 2.4m x 43m. Visibility envelope in accordance
KERB
KERB
TARMAC F/PATH TARMAC
118.56
118.64 118.50
Rev 118.45 Amendments
118.42
118.24 TARMAC F/PATH TARMAC
118.44 KERB 1:250@A3 Job No Drawn Scale 13-045
JDO
118.29
118.21 118.07 Drawing No Checked Date 13-045-01 JBW Mar 14 Drn Chk Approved Designed App JDO JBW Date Rev -
APPENDIX A
Date: 19-March-2014 Time: 14:56:56
Title: Maidstone Road, Lenham
Requested output:D - Print Crash Report Date: 19-March-2014 Accident Date BETWEEN '01-Oct-2008' AND '30-Sep-2013'
There was 1 reported crash resulting in injury D-PRINT CRASH REPORT 19-Mar-2014 14:56:55 Maidstone Road, Lenham Accident Date BETWEEN '01-Oct-2008' AND '30-Sep-2013'
No Location Severity DateDay Time Street Road Surface Weather Pedestrian Factors Involved Lighting Direction 1 Road No C259 Grid 589425E 01/07/20116 09:30 L Dry Fine N S.VEH Section 001 Ref 152394N SLIGHT
Maidstone Road Junction with Swadelands Close, Lenham, Maidstone, Kent. Maidstone PED V1 Travelling Se Towards Lenham Square, a Toddler Ran out from Behind a Veh1, car, NW -> SE Casualties 1 Parked Car into Front N/S of Vehicle 1. no Further Details Obtained. Vehicles 1
Key Involved Street Lighting FACTORS Special Conditions PED Pedestrian L Daylight +VE Positive Breath Test ATS OUT Traffic Lights Not Working HGV Heavy Goods Vehicle R.TURN Right Turn Manoeuvre ATS DEF Traffic Lights Defective GV Goods Vehicle STL Street Lights O/TAKE Overtaking Manoeuvre SIGNS Road Signs Defective or Obscurred M/C Motor Cycle USL Street LIghts Unlit S.VEH Single Vehicle RD WRKS Road Works P/C Pedal Cycle NSL No Street Lights Surface Road Surface Defective PSV Bus/Coach STU Street Lights Unknown Page 2