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‘ARE WE THERE YET?’

Managing the traffic implications of growth

A Local Transport Authority PerspectiveIan Drummond

Leicestershire County Council

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› Growth› Planning› Issues› Legacy› Immediate growth› Planned growth› Politics and policy› Conclusion

Managing the traffic implications of growth

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Growth is all around us and has been for years›Population increases›Migration›Increased mobility›Increased willingness to travel

Growth

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Planning

Now more willing to describe growth as such

›Built into Plans

›Regional Spatial Strategies

›Local Development Frameworks

›Local Transport Plans

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Issues around planning for growth

› Immediate growth and how to cater for it

› Planned growth and how to design for it

› Squaring the policy and political imperatives

Because

› Growth is more visible to people

› ….and they don’t like it

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Legacy

› We are responsible for places and how they work In the short, medium and long term

› We cannot walk away and we cannot outsource the responsibility

› If we don’t do our job now, places will seize up The economy will fail The environment will suffer

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Immediate growth

› Sometimes called “background” growth

› Caused by smaller scale development but also changes in the way that people live their lives

› Need to make the best use of existing networks

› Techniques mostly understood Smarter choices, demand management Minor works, better signal control strategies

› Don’t forget freight

› There’s no money

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Planned growth (1)

› Tends to cluster – the SUE

› Gives better opportunities for sustainable communities and sustainable travel

› However large clusters can overwhelm existing networks

› Must analyse objectively Use sophisticated modelling tools Answer the inevitable challenge

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Planned growth (2)

› Can require expensive infrastructure Land values and build out rates Use other funding sources; GPF etc.

› Is this all about infrastructure? Passenger transport, cycling, walking Design out the need to travel

› Developers and sell-on rates Can’t access it, won’t buy it Developers need to work together Developers’ consultants must look longer term

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Politics and policy

› People don’t like growth

› The housing needs argument is neither understood nor accepted

› How do we in Local Authorities square our rôles of professional advice and our political clients’ needs?

› Our job is not to prevent development happening But we must promote the best way to meet the

widest interests

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Conclusion

› Growth is happening In a stuttering way

› People don’t like it But it won’t go away

› We have to design for it But money and space are scarce

› Unplanned and unmanaged growth would be very damaging

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‘ARE WE THERE YET?’

Managing the traffic implications of growth

A Local Transport Authority PerspectiveIan Drummond

Leicestershire County Council