SHERFIELD ON LODDON NON-MOTORISED USER CONTEXT ASSESSMENT Project Name : Land North of Goddards Lane, Sherfield on Loddon Job No. : 18-240 Note Title : Non-Motorised User Context Assessment Author : TDM Approved : BM Date : February 2019 1.0 INTRODUCTION This Non-Motorised User (NMU) Context Assessment has been prepared in response to comments provided by Hampshire County Council (HCC) highways as statutory consultees to a Outline Planning Application (Ref 18/03486/OUT) for the residential development of up to 90 dwellings on land located north of Goddards Lane in Sherfield-on-Loddon . The Objective of this NMU assessment is to review the existing NMU provision and to identify any opportunities to improve conditions for pedestrians, disabled people, cyclists and where appropriate, equestrians. In lieu of guidance for this planning stage, and as agreed with HCC (see correspondence contained in Appendix A), this report has been prepared with reference to HCC guidance, Section 278 (S278) Technical Submission Requirements Appendix I Non-Motorised User Assessment. 2.0 SCHEME DESCRIPTION AND OBJECTIVES The development proposals are for the erection of up to 90 residential dwellings with a new access being taken from Bow Drive. The proposed site access is shown on Drawing 18-240/001A. As part of the access arrangement, a dropped kerb crossing with tactile paving is to be provided within the bell mouth to aid NMU’s. The access scheme will allow for suitable radii within the bell- mouth, as well as a safe means of access for NMU’s. 3.0 EXISTING NMU INFRASTRUCTURE TDM/tdm/18-240-03 1 LAND NORTH OF GODDARDS LANE, SHERFIELD ON LODDON NON-MOTORISED USER CONTEXT ASSESSMENT The following section reviews the existing NMU network and describes how the site will become incorporated within the existing setting. This adds additional detail to the information already provided in the Transport Assessment (Report No. 18-240-02B). Site Location The development site is located on the western edge of Sherfield-on-Loddon, a village c.8km northeast of Basingstoke. The development site’s location in the context of the wider area is shown on Figure 1. Existing Garage Court, Towards Bow Drive Existing Garage Court, From Bow Drive Existing residential development forms the eastern boundary of the site while Goddards Lane runs along its boundary to the south from which the existing access to the site, a field gate at the western end of Goddard Lane, is taken. To the north and west are open fields for agricultural use. The proposed access is currently a garage court and hard standing are as shown in the images below. Pedestrians The existing local footway network is extensive and allows for full permeability of the existing built environment. Figure 1 illustrates the existing footway network. Pedestrians are well catered for by way of lit footways along both sides of Goddard Close, south of the proposed access and Bow Drive / Bow Grove to the north. The footways available generally feature a width of c.1.5m – 2.0m, with an absolute minimum width of 1.0m in one location c.65m TDM/tdm/18-240-03 2 LAND NORTH OF GODDARDS LANE, SHERFIELD ON LODDON NON-MOTORISED USER CONTEXT ASSESSMENT south of the proposed access, within a bell mouth to a cul de sac on the eastern side of Goddard Close, There are numerous driveways located along both sides of the carriageway, along Goddard Close, which results in an undulating surface; however, the surface is relatively new and of good quality. Goddards Close, Southbound to Goddards Lane Goddards Close, Southbound from Bow Drive The footways along both sides Bow Drive and Bow Grove are generally level with older surfacing that vary in quality; however, it is considered that these footways are fully usable by able bodied pedestrians as well as users of wheelchairs, mobility scooters and the visually impaired. Bow Grove, Southbound from Bramley Road The nearest bus stops are located within a 180m walk of the centre of the site on Bow Drive, while the village centre is located within a 600m (7-minute) walk following the existing footways along Goddard Close and Goddard Lane. This allows for access to several local facilities off Reading Road such as the village shop, public houses and the village hall. TDM/tdm/18-240-03 3 LAND NORTH OF GODDARDS LANE, SHERFIELD ON LODDON NON-MOTORISED USER CONTEXT ASSESSMENT To the north of the site, Bow Grove joins with Bramley Road, which features 1.8m – 2.0m footway of good and consistent quality for its entire length along its northern edge, leading directly into the village centre. It is noted that no formal crossing facilities are provided from Bow Grove to the footway along the northern side of Bramley Road, however there isfootpath on the southern side of the road heading towards the village, which ends c.100m from the Junction with Bow Grove; Tt is most likely that NMU’s will access the village centre via Goddard Lane to the south as this is the shortest and most convenient unbroken route (c.750m walk compared to 1.3km along Bramley Road). Provision of new crossing facilities at Bramley Road is therefore not considered necessary. To the south of the site, Goddard Lane features a 1.5m – 2.0m footway along its northern edge for its entire length from Goddard Close heading eastwards to Reading Road in the village centre. The footway provided is unlit but of good and consistent quality with only a few dropped kerbs for driveway access at its western end. Goddards Lane, Eastbound Reading Road, Northbound Through Village Reading Road serves as the main access through the village centre and features 1.5m – 1.8m footways along both sides of the carriageway for much of its length. It connects with both Bramley Road to the north and Goddards Lane to the south and provides access to many of the local facilities located in Sherfield-on-Loddon. Goddards Lane continues westwards, beyond Goddards Close, along the southern boundary of the development site to the Sherfield Village Brewery. The lane is very quiet, is lightly trafficked and features no footway along either side of the carriageway. TDM/tdm/18-240-03 4 LAND NORTH OF GODDARDS LANE, SHERFIELD ON LODDON NON-MOTORISED USER CONTEXT ASSESSMENT Goddards Lane, Eastbound towards Goddard Close Goddards Lane, Westbound along Southern Site Boundary Goddards Lane also provides access to Public Rights of Way (PRoW), Footpath (FP) 22, FP 23 and FP 503; these routes head southwards to the A33 (c.1km from the site), as shown on Figure 1 and the HCC PRoW map contained in Appendix B. These PRoW comprise muddy tracks and appear to be well used for leisure purposes such as dog walking and running. The southernmost section of FP23 it passes through the grounds of the St Leonards Church cemetery where it then emerges from the main church access onto the A33 adjacent to Wildmoor Lane. Footpath 22, South from Goddards Lane Footpath 23, Southbound, Access to St Leonards Cemetery Bus stops with shelters are available on both sides of the A33 carriageway within c.60m of the church access. The footway continues northeast along the northern side of the A33 where it joins with Reading Road at the southern end of the village. TDM/tdm/18-240-03 5 LAND NORTH OF GODDARDS LANE, SHERFIELD ON LODDON NON-MOTORISED USER CONTEXT ASSESSMENT A33, Eastbound from St Leonard’s Church Access A33, Westbound from St Leonard's Church Access Bus Stop on Southern Side of A33, near St Leonards Access Footpath 22, Northbound from A33 In addition, FP21 provides a direct connection between FP22 and a private residential road to the east, on the western edge of the village cricket pitch. Footpath 21, Eastbound to Sherfield on Loddon Village Green and Cricket Pitch TDM/tdm/18-240-03 6 LAND NORTH OF GODDARDS LANE, SHERFIELD ON LODDON NON-MOTORISED USER CONTEXT ASSESSMENT In addition to these links, a paved footway (Figure 1 refers) is also provided from Bow Drive c.50m northeast of Carpenters Close heading southeast along the northern edge of the allotments towards the village green. This paved footway continues over the village green and emerges adjacent to the Bramley Road car park, west of reading road. Cyclists There is no existing local infrastructure provided specifically for cyclists within the village; however, Goddards Lane, Goddards Close, Bow Lane and Bow Grove are all quiet, lightly trafficked residential streets and are suitable for on-road cycling to and from the village centre. Further afield, National Cycle Route 23 (NCR23), see Appendix C for full details provided by Sustrans, is accessible via Sherfield Road a c.3.5km cycle ride to the northwest of the site; as shown on Figure 1. For more experienced cyclists, travel along Sherfield Road is feasible for access to Bramley railway station (c.3.3km ride from the site) as well as using NCR23 which provides a safer route for sustainable commuter travel to the Hampshire Industrial Park (8.5km ride), Chineham Business Park (9km ride) and Basingstoke town centre (13km ride), especially with the aid of electrically assisted bicycles which can significantly increase the acceptable range of bicycle journeys. Equestrians There are existing equestrian facilities (paddocks) located south of Goddards Lane c.400m southwest of the site. There are no PRoWs across the development site, and there is no access through it to any other routes suitable for equestrian use. Given no access to the site is to be taken from Goddards Lane it is considered that there is very little chance of conflicts between road users from the development and riders.