Transport Strategy
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Ware Park Trust Proposed Residential Allocation HERT4 Ware Park Estate, Wadesmill Road, Hertford Transport Strategy May 2014 Contents 1 INTRODUCTION .......................................................................................................... 1 2 POLICY CONTEXT ........................................................................................................ 2 National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) ............................................................... 2 Local Plan .................................................................................................................. 3 Hertford and Ware Urban Transport Plan (November 2010) ........................................ 4 Background to Bengeo Study ............................................................................ 4 Bengeo Transport Model .................................................................................. 4 Proposed Improvement Works.......................................................................... 5 3 SITE LOCATION & NON-CAR ACCESSIBILITY ................................................................. 6 Site Location .............................................................................................................. 6 Local Highway Network .............................................................................................. 6 Wadesmill Road ................................................................................................ 7 Sacombe Road .................................................................................................. 7 Pedestrian/Cycle Facilities .......................................................................................... 7 Public Transport ......................................................................................................... 8 Proximity to Local Facilities ........................................................................................ 8 4 SITE ACCESS ............................................................................................................. 11 Residential Access .................................................................................................... 11 Minerals Site Application ......................................................................................... 12 5 HIGHWAY IMPACT ................................................................................................... 13 Traffic Generation .................................................................................................... 13 Housing Development .................................................................................... 13 Traffic Distribution ................................................................................................... 14 Census Data .................................................................................................... 15 Junction Capacity Testing ......................................................................................... 16 6 IMPROVEMENT STRATEGY ....................................................................................... 17 Travel Plan ............................................................................................................... 17 Pedestrians and Cyclists ........................................................................................... 17 Bus Services ............................................................................................................. 18 Offsite Highway Issues ............................................................................................. 18 Old Cross Junction .......................................................................................... 18 Rat Running .................................................................................................... 20 7 SUMMARY AND CONCLUSIONS ................................................................................ 22 i Figures Figure 1 Site in Relation to the Local Area Figure 2 Site in Relation to the Wider Road Network Figure 3 Local Facilities Plan Figure 4 Proximity of Local Schools Appendices Appendix A Proposed Access Drawings Appendix B Proposed Masterplan Appendix C TRICS Outputs Appendix D Census Data ii 1 INTRODUCTION 1.1 Vectos is retained by Ware Park Trust to prepare a Transport Strategy for the development of land on the northern edge of Hertford (HERT4). 1.2 The HERT4 site is in two parts. The larger part, which is in agricultural use, is owned by the Ware Park Trust. The remainder is in separate ownership and is occupied by Bengeo Nurseries. For the purposes of this report “the site” refers to the whole allocation. 1.3 The site is located to the immediate north of Bengeo, a residential suburb of Hertford. The site has been identified by East Herts Council within the Draft District Plan – Preferred Options Consultation 2014 as one of five Strategic Sites around Hertford which might prove suitable for the future growth of the town. 1.4 The development site is referred to as HERT4 within the preferred options document, which allocates the development of the site for 150 dwellings. EHDC conclude that HERT4 is a sustainable site, stating that “The close proximity of primary education and local retail facilities coupled with regular bus provision make this a good location for new residents to integrate with existing infrastructure.” 1.5 This Transport Strategy seeks to support an additional 150 residential dwellings, and establish whether unacceptable harm would arise from increasing the level of development within HERT4 from 150 to 300 dwellings. The Strategy sets out the key issues to be addressed, which include the location of the site and surrounding highway network before outlining the proposed access strategy for all modes of travel. 1.6 The remainder of this report is structured as follows: Section 2 – Policy context; Section 3 - Site location, including non-car accessibility; Section 4 - Vehicular access; Section 5 – Highway impact; Section 6 – Improvement Strategy; and Section 7 - Summary & conclusions. Ware Park Estate, Wadesmill Road, Hertford 1 X:\Projects\120000\120679 - Ware Park Estate\Word\R02-DM-ID-Transport Strategy 2014-05-16.docx May 2014 2 POLICY CONTEXT 2.1 This section of the Transport Strategy provides a review of relevant national and local planning policy guidance. National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) 2.1 The NPPF sets out the Government’s planning policies for England and how these are expected to be applied. 2.2 One of the 12 core land-use principles within the NPPF includes: “[to] actively manage patterns of growth to make the fullest possible use of public transport, walking and cycling, and focus significant development in locations which are or can be made sustainable.” 2.3 Paragraph 14 of the NPPF sets out the presumption in favour of sustainable development and that this should be seen as the “golden thread” that runs through plan making. Sustainable development should be allowed except where any adverse impact significantly outweighs the benefits. 2.4 The site is in a sustainable location on the edge of a large urban area and transport needs to be assessed within the context of this overarching consideration. 2.5 Section 4 of the NPPF deals with ‘Promoting sustainable transport.’ Paragraph 29 states that: “The transport systems need to be balanced in favour of sustainable transport modes, giving people a real choice about how they travel.” 2.6 Paragraph 32 sets out the transport issues which should be addressed within Development Plans and decisions. These are: “the opportunities for sustainable transport modes have been taken 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 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 Ware Park Estate, Wadesmill Road, Hertford 2 X:\Projects\120000\120679 - Ware Park Estate\Word\R02-DM-ID-Transport Strategy 2014-05-16.docx May 2014 refused on transport grounds where the residual cumulative impacts of development are severe.” 2.7 The following section of the strategy considers the accessibility of the site in relation to the sustainable modes of travel, including bus services as well as pedestrian links to local facilities. Local Plan 2.8 Chapter 7 of East Herts District Councils Draft District Plan Preferred Options Consultation (2014) sets out the rationale for the inclusion of the Land North of Hertford Site as follows: “In order to meet the District’s housing requirement and to provide for the housing needs of the town, development is proposed to the North of Hertford. The close proximity of primary education and local retail facilities coupled with regular bus provision make this a good location for new residents to integrate with existing infrastructure. However, constraints in relation to waste water and educational capacity, along with traffic congestion issues and protection of the Rib Valley, limit the scale of development opportunities in this location. The phasing of development will need to ensure that underlying mineral deposits in the locality can be satisfactorily extracted”. HERT4 North of Hertford Development of 150 homes will be provided between 2021 and 2026 to the west of B158 Wadesmill Road/north of Sacombe Road which shall include provision