Land West of Polwell Lane – A Sustainable Urban Extension to

TRANSPORTATION

INTRODUCTION

5.1 Brookbanks Consulting have been appointed by the Developer to assess the potential effects of the proposed development of land west of Polwell Lane, Barton Seagrave on transportation. This Chapter reports on the assessment of the transportation impact of the development proposals as set out in the Development Framework Plan.

5.2 This section discusses transportation issues in the following sequence: • Public Transport • Rights of Way • Walking • Cycling • Private Vehicles

METHODOLOGY

5..3 The format of this section follows a standard pattern, by setting out an appraisal of the baseline conditions, followed by an identification of potential environmental impacts due to the proposed development. The importance of each issue and an assessment of each potential impact are then considered along with mitigation measures and recommendations for further investigations where necessary.

5.4 During the development of this report, the following statutory bodies and interested parties have been consulted regarding the proposals: • County Council • Highways Agency • Borough Council

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5.5 Published information has been obtained in the form of: • Guidance on Transport Assessment • Manual for Streets • Public transport routes and timetables • Rights of Way definitive map • Adopted highway boundary records • National Census

BASELINE CONDITIONS

5.6 The proposed development lies in the Barton Seagrave area of Kettering approximately 3km to the south east of Kettering town centre. The land is bounded by the existing urban fringe of Barton Seagrave to the east and the River Ise corridor to the west. To the north lie fields in agricultural use. A dismantled railway line, immediately north of the A14 trunk road, bounds the site to the south.

5.7 The greater part of the land is undeveloped and is currently in arable agricultural usage.

5.8 OS mapping has been obtained for the area of transportation impact. This mapping covers the area west and south of the A6003 from A14 Junction 10 to the River Ise bridge and areas either side of Polwell Lane and St Botolph’s Road in Barton Seagrave and .

5.9 The mapping shows that the site is within easy walking and cycling distance of Barton Seagrave Primary School, Latimer Community College and a day nursery. The primary school and day nursery are located on Belvoir Drive, the school being approximately 450m from the site and the day nursery 650 m from the site. The Community College is on Castle Way and is 350 m from the site.

5.10 The closest medical centre to the site is the Ise Medical Centre1.5km away in French Drive north of Barton Road, the nearest hospital is St Mary’s 2km to the

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northwest and the main Kettering hospital is 4km to the north west. The existing pedestrian and cycle links to the Ise medical centre are good with a Toucan crossing of Barton Road. The pedestrian and cycle route proposed from the site to Barton Road and the enhanced ‘A’ ‘express’ bus service will improve the linkages to both hospitals.

5.11 Accessibility to employment is good with the ‘A’ bus service providing ‘express’ services to the main sites of jobs in the town centre 3km from the site and in Burton Latimer 2 km from the site. The improvements proposed at Barton Road/ St Botolph’s Road and at Barton Road / Woodland Avenue will improve journey times and reliability of services to both Kettering and Burton Latimer.

5.12 The nearest local shops are the post office and general store on St Botolph’s Road 500m north of the site and a small Budgen store 600 m south of the site on the corner of Hilltop Avenue and Gotch Road. Both of these are easily accessible by bicycle or by walking. There is a wide range of shops in Kettering town centre that is 3km north west of the site and is accessible using the ‘express A’ bus service or by bicycle using the proposed link to Barton Road near the River Ise bridge. The Kettering Retail Centre is approximately 1.3km west of the site and will be accessible for pedestrians along a potential footpath link through Wicksteed Park.

5.13 Leisure centre facilities are available at the Kettering community centre and swimming pool 3km from the site on Road south of Kettering town centre accessible either using the ‘A express bus service or by bicycle using the proposed cycle route onto Barton Road near the River Ise bridge. Wicksteed Park is an important leisure attraction located 600 m west of the site and is accessible either along the proposed right of way through Wicksteed Park or by the pedestrian and cycle route onto Barton Road and along Barton Road to the main entrance. There is also a fitness centre at Kettering Business Park 2km to the east of the site that is accessible using the proposed pedestrian right of way across Wicksteed Park.

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PUBLIC TRANSPORT

Buses 5.14 The existing bus service that is convenient for the site, Stagecoach service A, runs at 10 minutes frequency each way along Polwell Lane and Grosvenor Road/ Woodland Avenue on route between Kettering town centre and Burton Latimer between 06.30 and 19.00 and at 20 minute frequency between 05.50 and 06.30 and between 19.00 and 20.30 Monday to Saturday. The Kettering bus route map and service details are at Appendix E of Appendix 5A.

5.15 The locations of the three bus stops on each side of Polwell Lane that would serve the development are shown on the drawing at Appendix C of Appendix 5A.

5.16 The buses and bus stops are well used in peak hours particularly those bus stops that serve the Latimer Community College on the east side of Polwell Lane.

5.17 The infrastructure at the bus stops on Polwell Lane includes raised footways and kerbs to ensure ease of access for passengers.

Rail 5.18 Rail services are available from Kettering station to London and with a peak hour frequency of 15 minutes and an off peak frequency of 30 minutes each way and with travel times of 60 minutes and 25 minutes to/from London and Leicester respectively. Kettering railway station is located close to the town centre and can easily be reached by bus service A or by bicycle.

RIGHTS OF WAY

5.19 There are existing public footpaths (Rights of Way) in the vicinity of the site as indicated at Appendix F of Appendix 5A and as follows:

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• Along a former railway line on the south edge of the site (HL10) and then to the south (VD44). • Along a former railway line from Polwell Lane to the south of the existing residential area along Gotch Road then northwards along the east edge of the site for 150 m with connections to Gotch Road and Brington Drive in the existing residential area (HL9). • From Sherwood Drive in the existing residential area, northwards through the site, then along the west edge of the allotments and north onto Barton Road (HL4). • From Polwell Lane to the north of the site along the south edge of the allotments (HL5).

Walking

5.20 Existing pedestrian desire lines in the vicinity of the site have been identified as: • Between the Gotch Road residential area to the west of Polwell Lane and the community college and primary school to the east of Polwell Lane using Hilltop Avenue and an existing pedestrian link from Henley Close to Polwell Lane that is adopted highway. • Between the residential areas on either side of Polwell Lane and the shop in Gotch Road near to Hilltop Avenue. • Between the residential areas on either side of Polwell Lane and the bus stops on Polwell Lane.

5.21 The existing pedestrian footway facilities on Polwell Lane and within the residential areas off Polwell Lane are generally 1.8m wide on both sides of the carriageway. There is a section of Barton Road at the River Ise bridge on the route from the site to Kettering town centre where there is no footway on the south side of the road.

5.22 There is an existing zebra crossing of Polwell Lane near the pedestrian link to Henley Close.

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5.23 There are no local improvements to pedestrian facilities proposed by Northamptonshire County Council for the highways or public rights of way in the vicinity of the site.

5.24 The traffic counts undertaken in 2006 indicate that the pedestrian flows at the junctions counted are relatively low with the highest hourly flow being 73 at the Polwell Lane junction with Grosvenor Road and Hilltop Avenue.

5.25 There are significant flows of pedestrians along the rights of way between Polwell Lane and both the community college and primary school.

Cycling

5.26 There are existing cycle route facilities close to the site on A6003 Barton Road where there is a shared use footway/ cycleway for 50 m east from the junction of with St Botolph’s Road and a Toucan crossing of Barton Road. There is also a shared use footway / cycleway across the western slip road arms of the A14 at the roundabout at Junction 10.

5.27 Other cycle route facilities are available in Kettering. Northamptonshire County Council has plans to improve facilities for cyclists in Kettering. The existing cycle facilities in Kettering are shown at Appendix C of Appendix 5A.

5.28 The traffic counts undertaken in 2006 indicate that cycle flows at the junctions counted are low with the highest flow being 30 per hour between 16.00 and 17.00 at the Polwell Lane, Grosvenor Road, Hilltop Avenue junction, this being 4.4% of the total flow in that hour.

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Private Vehicles

Highway Infrastructure

5.29 The main access to the land is currently from Polwell Lane between numbers 46 and 48. There are also secondary accesses off Barton Road, Polwell Lane, Denford Drive, Sherwood Drive and Blackwell Road. The access from Barton Road is located just east of the River Ise bridge. The secondary access from Polwell Lane is to a field that has a 65 m long frontage onto Polwell Lane between numbers 24 and 38 Polwell Lane. The accesses from Denford Drive and Blackwell Road are off the ends of each of these cul de sac roads within the existing residential area. There are not therefore any significant constraints on access to the site for the proposed development. All the points of access to the existing site are shown on the drawing at Appendix C of Appendix 5A.

5.30 Polwell Lane, and its continuation northwards St Botolph’s Road, are single carriageway with 30 mph speed limit, street lighting, footways and, in places, grass verges. The route is a distributor road that runs between Burton Latimer and the A6003 Barton Road in Barton Seagrave. The drawings at Appendix D of Appendix 5A show the layouts of the junctions of Polwell Lane with Hilltop Avenue/ Grosvenor Road, Altendiez Way and Station Road/ Bridle Road and the junction of St Botolph’s Road with A6003 Barton Road, all of which are priority junctions.

5.31 A6003 Barton Road is a single carriageway road that runs north from the A14, then north-west to Kettering town centre. The section of the A6003 between the A14 and the River Ise bridge to the west of St Botolph’s Road has street lighting and footways. The section of Barton Road from just north of the A14 J10 interchange to 200 m west of Lane has a 30 mph speed limit. The section of Barton Road from 200 m west of Warkton Lane to 800m west of St Botolph’s Road has a 40 mph speed limit. The Barton Road/ Cranford Road junction has traffic signals and there are priority junctions on Barton Road with Woodland Avenue, Warkton Lane and St Botolph’s Road. There is a staggered

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pelican crossing of A6003 40m east of the St Botolph’s Road junction. The layouts of the A6003 junctions with Woodland Avenue, Warkton Lane and St Botolph’s Road are shown on drawings at Appendix D of Appendix 5A.

5.32 The A14 trunk road is a strategic trunk road that runs approximately east west between the port of in Suffolk and the M1 at the M6 interchange at Catthorpe in Leicestershire. In the Kettering area, the A14 is a high standard dual carriageway with grade separated interchanges. The closest interchange to the site, junction 10, is located approximately 1.5 km south east of the site and is a grade separated 5 arm roundabout. The junction 10 roundabout is with the A6 Bedford road, A6003 Barton Road and Kettering Road, Burton Latimer. The layout of the interchange is shown on the drawing at Appendix D of Appendix 5A.

5.33 The A6 is a principal road that runs south east from the A14 junction 10 interchange to Bedford. Kettering Road is an unclassified road that connects the A14 junction 10 interchange roundabout with Burton Latimer to the south.

Vehicle traffic counts

5.34 Traffic count and queue survey information for the local highway network has been obtained during 2006 for the following junctions. • A14 / A6 Bedford Road / A6003 Barton Road / Kettering Road roundabout. • A6003 Barton Road junction with Woodland Avenue. • A6003 Barton Road junction with Linnet Drive. • A6003 Barton Road junction with St Botolph’s Road. • Polwell Lane junction with Castle Way. • Polwell Lane junction with Grosvenor Road and Hilltop Avenue. • Polwell Lane junction with Altendiez Way in Burton Latimer. • Polwell Lane junction with Station Road and Bridle Road in Burton Latimer. • Woodland Avenue junction with Belvoir Drive.

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5.35 The traffic counts have been analysed to ascertain the peak hours of traffic on the network and these are a weekday morning peak of 08.00 to 09.00 and a weekday evening peak of 17.00 to 18.00. The count results are summarised on the traffic flow diagrams at Appendix G of Appendix 5A.

Capacity Assessments

5.36 Analysis of the traffic count data has been undertaken using the appropriate software, Arcady for the A14 interchange roundabout and Picady for the other junctions. A summary of the results of the analysis are in Tables 3.1 and 3.2 of Appendix 5A and the full results are at Appendix H of Appendix 5A.

5.37 The results in Tables 3.1 and 3.2 of Appendix 5A show that the following junctions have substantial reserve capacity in both peak periods: • A14 J10 interchange roundabout • Polwell Lane / Grosvenor Road/ Hilltop Avenue. • Polwell Lane / Altendiez Way. • Polwell Lane / Station Road/ Bridle Road. • Barton Road/ St Botolph’s Road.

5.38 The results in Tables 3.1 and 3.2 of Appendix 5A also show the following: • The Barton Road / Woodland Avenue junction is close to capacity in the morning peak and has substantial reserve capacity in the evening peak. • The Barton Road / Warkton Lane junction is over capacity in both peaks.

Highway Safety

5.39 Records of personal injury accidents (PIAs) on the local highway network in the vicinity of the development site for the latest five-year period have been obtained from Northamptonshire County Council. A map marked to show the location and severity of the accidents together with an analysis and details of the accidents are attached at Appendix I of Appendix 5A.

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5.40 The accident records analysis shows that a total of 59 accidents were reported including one that resulted in fatal injury and six that resulted in serious injury. The accidents were spread throughout the area with only two notable clusters, defined as sites experiencing an average of one or more personal injury accident per year.

5.41 The first of these clusters is on Barton Road approximately 0.4km west of its junction with St Botolph’s Road, in the vicinity of the bend and bridge over the River Ise. Five accidents occurred here including a fatal crash involving a single vehicle losing control and hitting the bridge parapet. The two serious accidents both involved pedal cyclists. Four of the five accidents involved vehicles losing control, three of these on the bend. Other common factors were that three of the accidents occurred during the hours of darkness, three involved single vehicles, and three involved two-wheeled vehicles. Although the number of accidents occurring at this location is not particularly high, the severity of the injuries received were worse than normal. The presence of the bridge and the bend are clearly significant.

5.42 The second cluster of accidents is at the busy A14/ A6/ A6003 Junction 10 interchange roundabout where 18 PIAs were reported. None of these involved serious or fatal injury. The average of 3.6 PIAs per annum is consistent with the expected 3.5 per annum described in the COBA section of DMRB for a typical junction of this layout and traffic volume. The accidents at J10 were concentrated on the approaches and entries to the roundabout with none being reported on the circulatory carriageway. A prevalent characteristic was that 11 or 61% of the accidents involved rear end shunts on the approaches to the junction. This is not atypical at this type of junction but it was noted that 5 of the 10 accidents that occurred on the A14 eastbound exit slip road were of this type. Three of the others occurred at the entry to the roundabout with vehicles on the slip road failing to give way to vulnerable road users: one motorcyclist passing the entry, a pedal cyclist doing the same and an elderly pedestrian crossing the slip road itself.

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Summary of Baseline Conditions

5.43 The existing bus service on Polwell Lane serves Kettering town centre and Burton Latimer with adequate frequency when in operation and is well used at peak times. The existing rail services to and from Kettering station serve London to the south and Leicester to the north and stations in between at a satisfactory frequency and are well used particularly at peak times.

5.44 There are significant numbers of pedestrian movements across and along Polwell Lane and on segregated pedestrian only links to schools, shops and bus stops and smaller numbers of pedestrians use the pedestrian rights of way.

5.45 The numbers of cycle trips on Polwell Lane and on other roads in the area are relatively small.

5.46 There is some traffic congestion on the existing local highway network for short periods within peak hours particularly at the Barton Road junctions with Warkton Lane and St Botolph’s Road.

5.47 There are two significant road accident clusters at the A14 junction 10 interchange roundabout and on A6003 Barton Road at the River Ise bridge.

DEVELOPMENT PROPOSALS

5.48 The indicative layout of the proposed development, which consists of up to 500 residential dwellings at an average density of circa 40 dwellings per hectare together with associated community facilities and open space, is shown on the drawing at Appendix J of Appendix 5A.

5.49 To minimise the potential environmental effects of the proposals on transportation matters on the site and in the surrounding area, various measures are being proposed.

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PUBLIC TRANSPORT

5.50 Improvements to the existing ‘A’ bus service to meet Northamptonshire County Council (NCC) requirements as set out in NCC draft guidance of December 2006: • At a minimum of half hourly intervals in day time periods and hourly in the evenings and on Sundays. • From stops that are within a 5 minutes walk or 400 m of 90% of dwellings or within 600m of an ‘express’ service. • From inbound stops and key outbound stops that have bus shelters with power supply and timetable cases. • From stops that have special raised kerbs, litter bin, footway crossings and a bus stop clearway.

5.51 The existing ‘A’ bus service runs along Polwell Lane at 10 minute intervals in daytime periods and at 20 minute intervals in the evenings. The existing service therefore meets the NCC ‘express’ service requirements during the periods when it is running. The ‘A’ service presently terminates in the evenings at 20.30 and does not run on Sundays.

5.52 The improvements to the ‘A’ services proposed for a 5 year period are an hourly service in the evenings from 21.00 until 23.00 on weekdays and on Saturdays and from 09.00 to 19.00 on Sundays.

5.53 The draft NCC guidance requires that no dwelling should be located greater than a 600 m walk from a bus stop when the service complies with the NCC definition of ‘Express’. The proposed ‘A’ service would comply with this definition.

5.54 The existing bus stops on Polwell Lane, as shown at Appendix C of Appendix 5A, are at suitable locations to serve the development.

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5.55 The infrastructure at the existing inbound stop on Polwell Lane north of Grosvenor Road has a shelter, timetable case and special raised kerbs and so meets the NCC bus stop infrastructure requirements.

5.56 The infrastructure at the other existing bus stops will be improved so that all the stops fully meet the NCC infrastructure requirements.

Pedestrians and Cyclists

5.57 Two new 3m wide shared use pedestrian and cycle links between the site and Polwell Lane are proposed. These are: • Alongside the main vehicle access. • Along the existing Dales Lodge farm access. This will also be an emergency vehicle access.

5.58 A new zebra crossing of Polwell Lane is proposed at the main access to the development and the existing zebra crossing of Polwell Lane north of Hilltop Avenue is to remain.

5.59 A new cycle route is proposed along an existing pedestrian Right of Way (HL4) from the north-west corner of the site to Barton Road. The developer proposes to convert this to a 3m wide shared use pedestrian and cycle route. A Toucan crossing of Barton Road just to the west of the Right of Way connection onto Barton Road is also proposed to provide good connection to the footway on the north side of Barton Road as shown on the drawing at Appendix R of Appendix 5A

5.60 The existing pedestrian link between Polwell Lane and Henley Close in the existing residential area is an adopted public highway 3m wide and is signed as being banned to cyclists. This existing pedestrian only link could become a third pedestrian and cycle link between the site and Polwell Lane should NCC agree to the change in status.

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5.61 The existing pedestrian links from Polwell Lane along Hilltop Avenue and then along other existing roads in the residential area at Blackwell Road, Denford Drive and Sherwood Drive are proposed to remain for pedestrian use with cyclists using the existing carriageways as at present. These links provide access from the site to the existing small supermarket located on Gotch Road at the junction with Hilltop Avenue.

5.62 In addition to the existing and proposed pedestrian links between the site and Polwell Lane, there are pedestrian links to the east of Polwell Lane to the Latimer Community College, which is located off the end of Castle Way, to Barton Seagrave Primary School, which is located off Belvoir Drive, and to the shops and public house, which are located on Belvoir Drive.

Rights of Way

5.63 The existing public footpaths (Rights of Way) in the vicinity of the site as shown at Appendix F of Appendix 5A and as described as follows, are to remain with minor modifications to routes as appropriate to the layout of the development: • The Right of Way VD44 along a former railway line on the south edge of the site (HL10) and then to the south will remain unchanged. • The Right of Way HL9 along a former railway line from Polwell Lane to the south of the existing residential area along Gotch Road will remain unchanged. The section of HL9 that presently runs along the east edge of the site for 150m with connections to Gotch Road and Brington Drive in the existing residential area will be diverted along the development roads. • The existing Right of Way HL4 from Sherwood Drive in the existing residential area, northwards through the site, then along the west edge of the allotments and north onto Barton Road will be diverted within the site along the development roads. From the north-west corner of the site to Barton Road the route of Right of Way HL4 is along a farm access track. The developer proposes to convert this to a 3m wide shared use pedestrian and cycle route.

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• The existing Right of Way HL5 from Polwell Lane to the north of the site along the south edge of the allotments will remain unchanged.

5.64 The network of existing and proposed pedestrian and cycle routes and Rights of Way described above and shown on the drawing at Appendix J of Appendix 5A demonstrates that the proposed development has a high level of accessibility for pedestrians and cyclists.

VEHICLES

Vehicle Access

5.65 The main vehicle access to the site is proposed to be from a new ghost island priority junction on Polwell Lane at a point approximately 500m south of A6003 Barton Road as shown on the drawing at Appendix K of Appendix 5A.

5.66 Secondary access will also be provided from the ends of the cul-de-sac of Sherwood Drive, Denford Drive and Blackwell Road within the existing residential area to the south of the main part of the site. These accesses will be continuations of the existing roads.

5.67 Emergency vehicle access will be provided as part of the proposed pedestrian and cycle route along the existing access to Dales Farm.

5.68 The access arrangements for the proposed development fully comply with NCC’s standards and requirements as set out in both the approved guidance of 2003 and the draft guidance of December 2006.

Development Vehicle Circulation Layout

5.69 The internal circulation layout, as shown on the development framework plan at Appendix J of Appendix 5A. consists of a main access, three secondary

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accesses and a series of interconnecting links to provide the required level of permeability to meet modern standards.

5.70 The development framework plan shows the main access extending 80m into the site from Polwell Lane where it splits into three at a proposed public space or square where there is an opportunity for mixed use development to form a local centre.

5.71 The secondary accesses off Sherwood Drive, Denford Drive and Blackwell Road are proposed to include width restrictions in the form of chicanes together with other measures to discourage their use.

5.72 The proposed secondary accesses provide emergency access to the existing 345 dwellings that are presently all accessed via Hilltop Avenue and do not comply with NCC standards.

Parking

5.73 Car parking will be provided to the NCC standards.

POTENTIAL EFFECTS

5.74 The potential transportation environmental effects of the development proposals relate to both the operation and construction phases of the development. The mechanisms are as follows:

Operational Effects

Public Transport

5.75 Bus and train services would not be operational at times when there is demand.

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5.76 There would be greater demand and this would result in buses and trains being over full.

Pedestrians

5.77 Pedestrians would have inadequate facilities to gain access safely and conveniently to local facilities such as schools, shops, workplaces, leisure facilities and bus stops.

Cyclists

5.78 Cyclists would have inadequate facilities to gain access safely and conveniently to local facilities such as schools, shops, workplaces and leisure facilities.

Rights of Way

5.79 There would be inadequate Rights of Way to provide satisfactory connections to schools, shops, workplaces and leisure facilities.

Vehicles

5.80 There would be inadequate capacity with long queues and delays to vehicles travelling to schools, shops, workplaces and leisure facilities.

5.81 There would be inadequate safety for vehicles travelling to schools, shops, workplaces and leisure facilities with additional personal injury accidents resulting.

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Construction Effects

Public Transport

5.82 Buses travelling along Polwell Lane and Barton Road would have additional conflicts with construction vehicles.

Pedestrians

5.83 Pedestrians crossing Polwell Lane and Barton Road would have additional conflicts with construction vehicles.

Cyclists

5.84 Cyclists travelling along Polwell Lane and Barton Road would have additional conflicts with construction vehicles.

Rights of Way

5.85 Pedestrians using rights of way through the site would have conflicts with construction vehicles.

Vehicles

5.86 Vehicles travelling along Polwell Lane and Barton Road would have additional conflicts with construction vehicles.

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ASSESSMENT & MITIGATION OF EFFECTS

Operational Effects

Public Transport

5.87 Additional bus services will be provided at times when there are no services and there is likely to be additional demand. The additional services will be hourly on weekday and Saturday evenings after the present end of services from 21.00 until 23.00 and on Sundays between 09.00 and 19.00.

5.88 The additional demand for bus travel in peak periods is not expected to be such that buses would be over full so there would be no need for additional bus services. Similarly the additional demand for train travel in peak periods is not expected to be significant such that trains would be only marginally further over full so there would be no need for additional train services

Pedestrians

5.89 The additional pedestrian facilities proposed would provide adequate facilities for safe and convenient movement to local facilities such as schools, shops, workplaces, leisure facilities and bus stops.

Cyclists

5.90 The additional cycle facilities proposed would provide adequate facilities for safe and convenient movement to local facilities such as schools, shops, workplaces and leisure facilities.

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Rights of Way

5.91 In additional pedestrian Right of Way is proposed between the site and the residential area to the west so there would be adequate Rights of Way to provide satisfactory connections to schools, shops, workplaces and leisure facilities.

Vehicles

5.92 The proposed ghost island junction on Polwell Lane at the main site access would provide adequate capacity in the design year with minimal queues and delays.

5.93 The existing priority junction on Polwell Lane at Hilltop Avenue that provides secondary access to the site would provide adequate capacity in the design year with minimal queues and delays.

5.94 The proposed Barton Road / St Botolph’s Road traffic signals junction would have a small amount of reserve capacity in the evening peak and a significant level of reserve capacity in the morning peak in the design year. The queues and delays would be much less than they would be at existing junction without the development.

5.95 The proposed Barton Road / Warkton Lane signalled junction would be close to capacity in the evening peak and have some reserve capacity in the morning peak in the design year. The queues and delays would be much less than they would be at existing junction without the development.

5.96 The proposed Barton Road / Woodland Avenue signalled junction would be at capacity in the evening peak and close to capacity in the morning peak. The queues and delays would be much less than they would be at the existing junction without the development.

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5.97 The improved and partially signalled A14 J10 interchange would be close to capacity in the evening peak and would have adequate reserve capacity in the morning peak. The queues and delays would be much less than they would be at existing junction without the development.

5.98 The existing Polwell Lane/ Altendiez Way junction has sufficient capacity in 2019 with the development so no improvement is necessary.

5.99 The existing Polwell Lane/ Station Road/ Bridle Road junction in Burton Latimer would be just over capacity for a short period of time in peak hours in 2019 with the development. The junction has not been identified as a key junction by Northamptonshire County Council so no improvement is proposed.

5.100 The analysis of road accident records shows that there are road safety issues at two locations, A14 J10 and A6003 Barton Road near the River Ise bridge.

5.101 The proposed signals at the A14 junction 10 interchange roundabout eastbound off slip road junction with the circulatory carriageway addresses and resolves the existing personal injury accident problem that would become worse as a result of the additional development traffic at the junction.

5.102 The proposed reduction in speed limit from 40 to 30 mph on A6003 Barton Road from west of the River Ise bridge to east of St Botolph’s Road and the proposed Toucan crossing near the River Ise bridge on Barton Road would address and resolve the existing personal injury accident problem that would become worse as a result of the additional development traffic on the section of Barton Road with an existing accident problem.

Travel Plan

5.103 A Travel Plan, which is a package of measures to improve the availability of travel choices and to promote practices and policies to reduce the need to travel, will be provided. The Plan will:

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• Be provided to residents to make them aware of the Plan and all the measures in it in order to minimise use of the private car for single occupancy journeys. • Ensure residents are provided with information on public transport facilities, services and special offers; • Ensure residents are provided with information on pedestrian and cycle facilities;

Construction Effects

Public Transport

5.104 The additional construction traffic that is expected to be generated of 70 vehicles a day is a small proportion of the existing traffic flow and the additional conflicts for buses travelling along Polwell Lane and Barton Road with construction vehicles would be small

Pedestrians

5.105 Construction is expected to generate 70 vehicles a day of which 30 will involve hgv’s. Pedestrians crossing Polwell Lane and Barton Road would have reduced additional conflicts with construction vehicles through the construction of the proposed zebra crossing of Polwell Lane at the site access.

Cyclists

5.106 The additional construction traffic that is expected to be generated of 70 vehicles a day is a small proportion of the existing traffic flow and the additional conflicts for cyclists travelling along Polwell Lane and Barton Road with construction vehicles would be small.

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Rights of Way

5.107 The rights of way through the site would be safeguarded so pedestrians would always have a satisfactory route through the site that minimises conflicts with construction vehicles.

Vehicles

5.108 The additional construction traffic that is expected to be generated of 70 vehicles a day is a small proportion of the existing traffic flow and the additional conflicts for vehicles travelling along Polwell Lane and Barton Road with construction vehicles would be small.

5.109 A Construction Environmental Management Plan (CEMP) will be produced to detail the effects of construction traffic within the site and external to it and to identify detailed mitigation measures. The CEMP will cover issues of traffic related noise, dust and vibration and will also identify routes and times that would be suitable for hgv operations. The CEMP will also contain a Travel Plan for the construction workforce and this will identify measures to minimise the impact of the travel needs of the workforce.

5.110 Construction traffic will have a short term minor adverse impact on the local highway network. A Construction Environmental Management Plan will be introduced to minimise this adverse impact on existing residents in the area and new residents on the site. This will include agreed access routes that minimise the impact of construction traffic on occupied dwellings and appropriate phasing of construction on development plots.

SUMMARY OF TRANSPORT EFFECTS

5.111 The widespread implementation of appropriate and sustainable measures, a holistic approach to site design and the implementation of appropriate mitigation

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will ensure that the development proposals do not result in a significant environmental effect during either the operational or construction phases.

5.112 Information gathered in relation to the baseline site conditions, when considered in the context of the development proposals and proposed mitigation, does not identify any significant environmental impact or constraint on development.

5.113 The following tables summarise the transport related impacts:

Table 5a: Matrix of Operational Impacts Operational Impacts None Low Moderate High -ve, neutral +ve impact

Public Transport ● +ve impact

Pedestrians ● +ve impact

Cyclists ● +ve impact

Rights of Way ● +ve impact

Vehicles ● +ve impact

Table 5b: Matrix of Construction Impacts Construction None Low Moderate High -ve, neutral +ve impact Impacts

Public Transport ● -ve impact

Pedestrians ● +ve impact

Cyclists ● -ve impact

Rights of Way ● -ve impact

Vehicles ● -ve impact

5.114 In summary, no significant environmental impact will result in relation to transport from the development proposed on land west of Polwell Lane, Barton Seagrave in Kettering.

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