Luton Local Transport Plan 3
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Luton Local Transport Plan 3 March 2011 Prepared on behalf of Luton Borough Council by: Small Fish 64 St Leonards Road Norwich NR1 4JF www.smallfish.org.uk Table of Contents 1. Introduction........................................................................................................1 2. Background to the Area ....................................................................................3 3. Consultation on this Local Transport Plan......................................................6 4. Local Policy Context..........................................................................................9 4.1 Background......................................................................................................9 4.2 Luton and South Bedfordshire Local Development Framework.....................10 4.3 The Luton Sustainable Community Strategy..................................................12 4.4 The Local Economic Assessment and Local Enterprise Partnership.............13 5. Overall Strategic Approach.............................................................................15 5.1 Vision .............................................................................................................15 5.2 Aims .............................................................................................................15 5.3 Strategic Priorities..........................................................................................16 6. Supporting the Environment and Economic Development..........................17 6.1 Background....................................................................................................17 6.2 Supporting Economic Growth ........................................................................18 6.2.1 Managing Congestion.............................................................................20 6.2.2 Passenger Transport Improvements ......................................................21 6.2.3 Network Management and Capacity.......................................................22 6.2.4 Parking ...................................................................................................24 6.2.5 Freight ....................................................................................................25 6.3 Protecting The Environment...........................................................................26 6.3.1 Encouraging Modal Shift ........................................................................26 6.3.2 Adapting to Climate Change...................................................................29 6.3.3 The Natural and Built Environment.........................................................31 7. Stronger and Safer Communities...................................................................33 7.1 Background....................................................................................................33 7.2 Road Safety ...................................................................................................35 7.2.1 Road Safety Education...........................................................................35 7.2.2 Road Safety Engineering........................................................................36 7.2.3 Safety and Maintenance.........................................................................39 7.3 Personal Security and Crime .........................................................................40 7.4 Improving the Quality of the Public Realm .....................................................42 7.5 Accessibility and Equality of Opportunity .......................................................44 8. Health and Wellbeing.......................................................................................50 8.1 Background....................................................................................................50 8.2 Air Quality ......................................................................................................51 8.3 Walking and Cycling.......................................................................................53 8.4 Noise and Light Pollution and Nuisance ........................................................58 9. Implementation Plan........................................................................................60 9.1 Background....................................................................................................60 9.2 Local Transport Schemes and Initiatives .......................................................61 9.3 Strategic Transport Connectivity to Serve Planned Developments................69 10. Monitoring and Evaluation..............................................................................75 1 Introduction Luton Borough Council is required by the Transport Act 2000 and the Transport Act 2008 to produce a Local Transport Plan. This is the third Local Transport Plan (LTP3) that mainly covers Luton, although it does refer to strategic transport infrastructure and other cross-boundary matters for the whole conurbation, particularly in relation to the planned growth of the area. The Plan has been prepared with extensive liaison with Central Bedfordshire Council, and we will continue to work in partnership with them to deliver strategic transport infrastructure associated with the growth of Luton and southern Central Bedfordshire which, whilst located within their area, will deliver transport benefits throughout the whole Luton-Dunstable-Houghton Regis conurbation. This Plan has been prepared in accordance with Government guidance published in July 2009. Chapter 4 of that guidance sets out the process to be followed in preparing the LTP, which can be summarised as: clarify goals; specify the problems or challenges of the area; generate options to resolve these challenges; appraise the options and predict their effects; select preferred options and decide priorities; deliver the agreed strategy. The guidance also indicates that the LTP3 should take account of the spatial geography of the area, set out the Local Policy context, and include consultation with key stakeholders, partners, and the local community. The 2008 Act also enables us to produce our plan in two distinct sections, the council’s policies for transport contained in a long term strategy and a shorter term implementation plan focused on delivery. Taking account of these requirements: Part 1 sets out the spatial context of the area, together with the problems and challenges it faces. It also sets out the consultation that has taken place with stakeholders and the local community. Part 2 covers the long-term strategy up to 2026, consistent with the timescale of the Luton and southern Central Bedfordshire Local Development Framework (LDF) and the Luton Sustainable Communities Strategy. The strategy sets out the overall goals and objectives for transport for Luton over the 15 years from 2011 to 2026. It includes a series of inter-related policies that describe how transport will be managed as well as what and where the priorities will be. The aim is that the policies should guide investment and decisions, but they should be flexible given the uncertainty over such a long time period, particularly in relation to funding. Part 3 sets out the Implementation Plan covering the period from April 2011 to March 2015. The shorter time-scale enables much more certainty and so the plan sets out the priorities for local and neighbourhood transport projects that will be delivered over the next four years and where they will be implemented. This provides a much more locally focused approach, which shows people what will be happening in their area. The Implementation Plan also recognises the importance of more strategic transport infrastructure to both address existing travel problems and support the planned growth 1 of the area. The process for the development and implementation of such schemes is more complex and the timescales are longer. This is reflected in the 10 year programme for such schemes. The Council is also required by EU Directive (2001/42/EC) to undertake an environmental assessment of all plans and strategies that are likely to have significant environmental implications. The LTP Guidance sets out the relationship between the various stages of the LTP and the Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA) of that Plan. This LTP3 is therefore complemented by a separate Environmental Report produced in accordance with Government guidance on the SEA process. 2 PART 1 BACKGROUND 2 Background to the Area The M1 motorway and the Midland Main Line railway sever the conurbation, with limited ‘bridging points’. The densely built-up nature of most of the conurbation is also constrained by environmentally-sensitive areas both within it (e.g. the upper Lea valley) and around it (in particular the Chilterns Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty). These constraints are shown in Figure 2.1 below. Figure 2.1 Existing Constraints The combination of these constraints means the local road network channels high levels of traffic through Luton and Dunstable town centres, resulting in high levels of congestion particularly at peak times. This has a significant impact on journey time reliability for vehicle trips made within the conurbation. In particular this affects the punctuality of local bus services, the reliability of business deliveries, response times of emergency service vehicles and the safety and ‘journey experience’ of non- motorised users (NMUs). Travel to gateways onto the