Harlow District Council (HDC):
Enterprise Zone West
Workplace Travel Plan
07 August 2012
Produced for
Harlow District Council
Prepared by
Transport Planning South
Export House
Cawsey Way
Woking
Surrey
GU21 6QX
UK
T +44 (0)1483 731000
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Framework Travel Plan 07 August 2012 .doc
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Document Control Sheet
Project Title Workplace Travel Plan
Report Title Harlow District Council (HDC): Enterprise Zone West
Revision r02b
Status Final
Control Date 07 August 2012
Record of Issue
Issue Status Author Date Check Date Authorised Date
01 Draft LS 17/04/12 IB 17/04/12 IB 17/04/12
02 Final LS 03/04/12 IB 30/07/12 IB 30/07/12
r02b Final LS 07/08/12 IB 07/08/12 IB 07/08/12
Distribution
Organisation Contact Copies
Harlow District Council Andrew Russell 1
Essex County Council David Sprunt 1
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Limitations
This report is presented to Harlow Council in respect of Harlow Enterprise Zone West and may not be used or relied on by any other person. It may not be used by Harlow Council in relation to any other matters not covered specifically by the agreed scope of this Report.
Notwithstanding anything to the contrary contained in the report, Mouchel Limited is obliged to exercise reasonable skill, care and diligence in the performance of the services required by Harlow Council and Mouchel Limited shall not be liable except to the extent that it has failed to exercise reasonable skill, care and diligence, and this report shall be read and construed accordingly.
This report has been prepared by Mouchel Limited. No individual is personally liable in connection with the preparation of this report. By receiving this report and acting on it, the client or any other person accepts that no individual is personally liable whether in contract, tort, for breach of statutory duty or otherwise.
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Contents
Document Control Sheet............................................................................................. i
Limitations .................................................................................................................. ii
Contents..................................................................................................................... iii
Table of figures......................................................................................................... vii
Tables ....................................................................................................................... viii
1 Introduction........................................................................................................ 1
1.1 Introduction.......................................................................................................... 1
1.1.1 Enterprise Zones 1
1.1.2 Site Location 1
1.2 Enterprise Zone Status ........................................................................................ 2
1.3 Structure of the Travel Plan Framework............................................................... 2
2 What is a Travel Plan?....................................................................................... 3
2.1.1 Aim of this Travel Plan 4
3 Travel Plan Policy.............................................................................................. 5
3.1 National Planning Policy Framework (March 2012) ............................................. 5
3.2 East of England Plan - The Revision to the Regional Spatial Strategy for the East
of England (2008) ......................................................................................................... 5
3.2.1 POLICY SS1: Achieving Sustainable Development 6
3.2.2 POLICY SS2: Overall Spatial Strategy 7
3.2.3 POLICY T1: Regional Transport Strategy Objectives and Outcomes 7
3.2.4 POLICY T2: Changing Travel Behaviour 8
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3.2.5 POLICY T4: Urban Transport 8
3.2.6 POLICY T9: Walking, Cycling and other Non-Motorised Transport 8
3.2.7 POLICY T13: Public Transport Accessibility 9
3.2.8 POLICY T14: Parking 9
3.3 Local Development Orders .................................................................................. 9
4 Existing Site Information................................................................................. 10
4.1 Existing Site Information .................................................................................... 10
4.1.1 Site Location 10
4.1.1.1 Templefields Site 10
4.1.1.2 London Road Site 10
4.1.2 Development Site 11
4.1.2.1 Templefields Site 11
4.1.2.2 London Road Site 11
4.1.3 Surrounding Environment 11
4.1.3.1 Templefields Site 11
4.1.3.2 London Road Site 12
4.2 Baseline Transport Data .................................................................................... 12
4.2.1 Local Highway Network 12
4.2.1.1 Templefields Site 12
4.2.1.2 London Road Site 12
4.2.2 Public Transport Provision 12
4.2.2.1 Templefields Site 12
4.2.2.2 London Road Site 14
4.2.3 Pedestrian and Cycle Access 16
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4.2.4 Existing Travel to Work Patterns 16
4.2.4.1 Templefields Site 16
4.2.4.2 London Road Site 18
4.2.5 Site Audit 18
5 Objectives, Strategy and Measures................................................................ 20
5.1.1 Objectives 20
5.2 Travel Plan Framework Strategy and Measures Concept .................................. 20
6 The TPF Measures........................................................................................... 22
6.1 Level 1 - Location .............................................................................................. 22
6.2 Level 2 – Physical Aspects ................................................................................ 22
6.2.1 On-Site 22
6.2.2 Off-site 23
6.3 Level 3 – Site Travel Plan Co-ordinator ............................................................. 24
6.4 Level 4 Services and Facilities........................................................................... 24
6.5 Level 5 – Marketing and Promotion ................................................................... 26
6.6 Possible ‘Soft’ Measures ................................................................................... 27
6.7 Funding and Co-ordination of Mitigation ............................................................ 28
6.8 Targets .............................................................................................................. 28
7 Monitoring and Review.................................................................................... 31
7.1.1 Travel Survey 31
8 Summary and Conclusion and Recommendation......................................... 32
8.1 Recommendation .............................................................................................. 34
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9 Appendix .......................................................................................................... 35
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Table of figures
Figure 4-1: Location of the Proposed Sites ...................................................................11
Figure 4-2: Existing Bus Capacity - Templefields Site...................................................13
Figure 4-3: Existing Bus Capacity - London Road Site..................................................15
Figure 5-1: The Travel Plan Pyramid. Source: DFT Good Practice Guidelines: Delivering
Travel Plans through the Planning Process, April 2009 .........................................21
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Tables
Table 4-1: Bus Services and Frequency - Templefields Site .........................................13
Table 4-2: Bus Services and Frequency - London Road Site........................................14
Table 4-3: Harlow Mill Rail Station Weekday Service Frequencies ...............................16
Table 4-4: Method of Travel to Work - Daytime Population. Census 2001 Mark Hill
North Ward ............................................................................................................17
Table 4-5: Distanced Travelled to Work – Workplace Population. Census 2001 Mark Hall
North Ward ............................................................................................................17
Table 4-6: Method of Travel to Work - Daytime Population. Census 2001 Old Harlow
Ward......................................................................................................................18
Table 4-7: Distanced Travelled to Work – Workplace Population. Census 2001 Old
Harlow Ward..........................................................................................................18
Table 6-1: Preliminary action plan for implementation of the Travel Plan ......................30
Harlow Enterprise Zone
Workplace Travel Plan Framework
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1 Introduction
1.1 Introduction
This Workplace Travel Plan Framework (TPF) is provided in support of the
Enterprise West Essex @ Harlow which was granted Enterprise Zone status by the
Government on 17th August 2011.
1.1.1 Enterprise Zones
Budget 2011 announced that the Government would establish 21 new Enterprise
Zones in local enterprise partnership areas in England. The aim of these zones is to
act as a catalyst for generating employment and attracting investment. This is to be
achieved largely by cutting red tape and bureaucracy associated with the planning
process, providing incentives to business such as discounted business rates, and
maximising technology infrastructure within the zones by providing, for example,
fibre optic high speed broadband.
Of the 21 Enterprise Zones earmarked by the Government, 11 were initially named
by Budget 2011, but these were to be followed by the creation of a further 10 Zones
which were to be selected by a bidding competition, of which HDC applied to be one
of.
Harlow District Council (HDC) developed the bid in partnership with the West Essex
Alliance and other key partners under the name ‘Enterprise West Essex @ Harlow’
which was submitted to Government by the South East Local Enterprise Partnership
(SELEP), and on the 17th August 2011 the Government announced that the bid had
been successful and had been granted Enterprise Zone status.
Within the bid it was highlighted that the Harlow Enterprise Zone would seek to
attract 100 new businesses creating a minimum of 2,500 jobs (though this figure has
now been substantially increased to nearly 9,000 new jobs following the detailed
preparation of the Masterplan and assessment of the Sites’ capacity and potential)
and offer space for office / laboratory development and manufacturing / light
industrial development over the two linked sites on the eastern side of Harlow,
namely Templefields North East (TNE) and London Road.
The stated aim of the Enterprise Zone within the bid was to catalyse development of
the Health & Allied Industries cluster in West Essex, offering space for businesses to
consolidate and expand, and encourage new businesses to the town. The Sites
selected provide an excellent location for ‘spin-out’ businesses from Cambridge,
London and Hertfordshire with first rate connectivity to the sectors, via road and rail,
in those leading edge economies.
1.1.2 Site Location
The Sites cover approximately 51 hectares: 23 hectares at London Road (comprising
the former Nortel campus to the south and a 14ha greenfield site to the north); and
28 hectares at Templefields North East.
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The London Road site is the southernmost of the two and encompasses
approximately 23 hectares of existing built form (9 hectares of the former Nortel
campus and a further 14 hectares of green field land to its north, which was an area
allocated for employment in the Adopted Local Plan). It is anticipated that this Site
will be occupied by research and development and light industrial land uses (B1, B2
and D1 land uses).
The Templefields Site encompasses 28 hectares of land, and is likely to be set aside
for manufacturing and light / heavy industry (B2 land use). This is because the Site is
within an established employment area with warehousing with ancillary offices, some
of which will be retained, and also because the existing infrastructure can
accommodate HGVs and manufacturing and light / heavy industry activity.
1.2 Enterprise Zone Status
Following the successful bid to the government, the Harlow Enterprise was awarded
Enterprise Zone Status on the premise that a Transport Assessment; a Flood Risk
Assessment and an Environmental Impact Assessment were carried out to assess
the feasibility of the proposals for the two Sites within the Enterprise Zone; to assess
any risks to delivery and to plan for and mitigate any foreseen problems.
HDC are now in the process of preparing a Masterplan and a Local Development
Order (LDO) for the two Sites, specifying in greater detail the land uses,
development quanta, parking provision, indicative design and transport infrastructure
requirements amongst other things. Once this is complete, together with the three
assessments listed above undertaken to confirm adequate assessment and planning
for Enterprise Zone, the Enterprise Zone will be ratified by the Secretary of State.
This TPF is an integral part of the Transport Assessment.
1.3 Structure of the Travel Plan Framework
The structure of the TPF will be as follows:
• Section 2 describes what a Travel Plan is and summarises the background
information to provide context to the TP and sets out the aim of the TP.
• Section 3 discusses relevant transport and planning policy which refers to
sustainable transport and Travel Plans;
• Section 4 describes the existing site / transport conditions;
• Section 5 specifies the TPF’s objectives, then the strategy and measures to
achieve these objectives;
• Section 6 details the measures to achieve these objectives;
• Section 7 considers monitoring and review; and
• Section 8 concludes the TPF report.
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2 What is a Travel Plan?
A Travel Plan (TP) is a package of measures tailored to meet the needs of existing
or future development sites (for a range of land uses including residential, work
places, schools, leisure facilities, etc) with a focus on promoting greener, cleaner
travel choices while reducing reliance on the private car. Through the implementation
of a TP, persons undertaking trips are encouraged to use more sustainable or
environmentally friendly modes of travel such as walking, cycling and public
transport.
The generic aims of a TP are:
• to reduce the need to travel by car;
• to minimise essential single occupancy car-use; and
• to maximise the use of other more sustainable forms of travel such as walking,
cycling and public transport by future employees.
This is usually achieved by implementing a range of sustainable transport measures
- simultaneously offering incentives whilst introducing constraints to encourage
sustainable transport practices and bring about modal shift. This is typically known
as a ‘carrot and stick’ approach.
These measures are often referred to as ‘hard’ or ‘soft’ measures; ‘hard’ denoting the
introduction of physical infrastructure changes or transport service improvements,
and ‘soft’ referring to measures without infrastructural form such as the provision of
transport information (transport information packs), incentives (such as discounts on
public transport) or Personalised Travel Planning (PTP) for example.
A well written TP should be a ‘living’ document by which is meant that it should be
flexible, dynamic and able to adapt to the changes in travel patterns of an existing
site.
A Travel Plan Framework (TPF) is intended to form the basis of a Travel Plan
document, for speculative developments or where the likely end user(s) of the
development is unknown (including multi-occupant sites). A TPF therefore provides
the key objectives of the Travel Plan, the type of measures which could be
considered and a suggested monitoring regime to assess the success of the Travel
Plan.
A workplace TPF (as opposed to a residential, area-wide or school TPF), the type of
travel plan used here, is designed as the name suggests, to influence the travel
characteristics of the employees of a development. However it can have a wider
remit and include measures to influence visitor travel to/from the site, business travel
during the day and delivery and service trips generated by the development.
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Workplace travel plans have been shown to encourage more sustainable travel
patterns, and have been demonstrated to bring about a 3%-35% reduction in single
occupancy car travel1.
This workplace Travel Plan Framework is an overarching site travel plan to
encompass both Sites. However, it is expected that all future tenants will be
required to prepare individual workplace travel plans which will encourage individual
occupiers to influence the travel behaviour of their employees. It is anticipated this
will be included within the LDO for the site specifying the requirement for an
individual travel plan as a planning condition.
This Travel Plan has been prepared taking into account national and local best
practice guidance, in particular DfT guidelines, ‘Good Practice Guidelines: Delivering
Travel Plans through the Planning Process (2009).
2.1.1 Aim of this Travel Plan
The workplace TPF aims to introduce a tailored suite of sustainable transport
planning measures and initiatives to minimise the impact of car-based travel to/from
the Sites, creating a sustainable development where employees have a range of
transport options available to them, and who are encouraged and incentivised to
choose these modes of travel.
1 Making Smarter Choices, IHT (Appendix 1)
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3 Travel Plan Policy
The TPF has been developed in the context of national, regional and local policies,
which are reviewed below.
3.1 National Planning Policy Framework (March 2012)
The National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) sets out the Government’s
planning policies for England and how these are expected to be applied. The NPPF
states that Transport policies have an important role to play in facilitating sustainable
development but also in contributing to wider sustainability and health objectives. It
emphases that the transport system needs to be balanced in favour of sustainable
transport modes, giving people a real choice about how they travel.
NPPF identifies in paragraph 35 and 36 that:
Plans should protect and exploit opportunities for the use of sustainable transport
modes for the movement of goods or people. Therefore, developments should be
located and designed where practical to
• accommodate the efficient delivery of goods and supplies;
• give priority to pedestrian and cycle movements, and have access to high
• quality public transport facilities;
• create safe and secure layouts which minimise conflicts between traffic and
cyclists or pedestrians, avoiding street clutter and where appropriate
establishing home zones;
• incorporate facilities for charging plug-in and other ultra-low emission vehicles;
and
• consider the needs of people with disabilities by all modes of transport.
A key tool to facilitate this will be a Travel Plan. All developments which generate
significant amounts of movement should be required to provide a Travel Plan.
NPPF replaces PPG13.
3.2 East of England Plan - The Revision to the Regional Spatial Strategy for the
East of England (2008)
In addition to PPG13, further guidance on sustainable transport is set out in the
Regional Spatial Strategy for the East of England. This guidance covers the counties
of Essex, Hertfordshire, Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire, Suffolk and Norfolk.
The East of England Development Plan was created as a result of the Planning and
Compulsory Purchase Act 2004. The act transferred responsibility for strategic land
use and transport planning from county to regional level with county structure plans
being abolished and replaced by Regional Development Plans (known as Regional
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Strategies or RS’s). It is the stated aim of the coalition government to abolish the
East of England Development Plan; however, until this takes place, the RS remains
the most up-to-date comprehensive document framing future development plans for
the whole of the Essex area.
The RS covers the period to 2021 but sets a vision, objectives and core strategy for
the longer term. The relevant objectives related to travel planning and sustainable
transport from the RS are reproduced below, they include:
(i): To reduce the region’s impact on, and exposure to, the effects of climate change
by:
• locating development so as to reduce the need to travel; and
• effecting a major shift in travel away from car use towards public transport,
walking and cycling.
(iii): To realise the economic potential of the region and its people by:
• ensuring adequate and sustainable transport infrastructure.
(iv): To improve the quality of life for the people of the region by:
• ensuring new development fulfils the principles of sustainable communities,
providing a well designed living environment adequately supported by social
and green infrastructure;
• promoting social cohesion by improving access to work, services and other
facilities, especially for those who are disadvantaged;
• promoting regeneration and renewal of disadvantaged areas; and
• increasing community involvement in the implementation of the strategy at the
local level.
(v): To improve and conserve the region’s environment by:
• ensuring the protection and enhancement of the region’s environmental assets,
including the built and historic environment, landscape and water; and
• providing a network of accessible multi-functional green space.
The development has limited potential to bring about a regional modal shift in the
region, or to contribute significantly to the reduce the region’s impact on, and
exposure to, the effects of climate change, or many of the other objectives contained
within the RS, unlike large residential or commercial developments.
The specific policies from the RS are summarised in more detail within the remainder
of this chapter.
3.2.1 POLICY SS1: Achieving Sustainable Development
The strategy seeks to bring about sustainable development by applying:
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(1) The guiding principles of the UK Sustainable Development Strategy 2005:
• living within environmental limits;
• ensuring a strong, healthy and just society;
• achieving a sustainable economy;
• promoting good governance; and
• using sound science responsibly.
Local Development Documents and other strategies relevant to spatial planning
within the region should:
3.2.2 POLICY SS2: Overall Spatial Strategy
The development has limited impact to influence the overall spatial strategy of the
region but can contribute to building on existing concentrations of activities and
physical and social infrastructure and to use growth as a means of extending and
enhancing them efficiently.
The RSS sets out that LDF’s should develop policies which:
• ensure new development contributes towards the creation of more sustainable
communities in accordance with the definition above and, in particular, require
that new development contributes to improving quality of life, community
cohesion and social inclusion, including by making suitable and timely
provision for the needs of the health and social services sectors and primary,
secondary, further and higher education particularly in areas of new
development and priority areas for regeneration.
The following policy extracts are taken directly from the RSS.
3.2.3 POLICY T1: Regional Transport Strategy Objectives and Outcomes
To implement the vision and objectives of the Regional Spatial Strategy, the
following objectives [are specified]:
• to manage travel behaviour and the demand for transport to reduce the rate of
road traffic growth and ensure the transport sector makes an appropriate
contribution to reducing greenhouse gas emissions;
• to encourage efficient use of existing transport infrastructure;
• to enable the provision of the infrastructure and transport services necessary
to support existing communities and development proposed in the spatial
strategy;
• to improve access to jobs, services and leisure facilities.
The successful achievement of the objectives will lead to the following outcomes:
• improved journey reliability as a result of tackling congestion;
• increased proportion of the region’s movements by public transport, walking
and cycling;
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• sustainable access to areas of new development and regeneration;
• safe, efficient and sustainable movement between homes and workplaces,
education, town centres, health provision and other key destinations;
• increased proportion of freight movement by rail;
• improved air quality; and
• reduced greenhouse gas emissions.
3.2.4 POLICY T2: Changing Travel Behaviour
To bring about a significant change in travel behaviour, a reduction in distances
travelled and a shift towards greater use of sustainable modes, regional and local
authorities, transport providers and other delivery agencies should implement
policies to:
• raise awareness of the real costs of unsustainable travel and the benefits and
availability of sustainable alternatives;
• encourage the wider implementation of workplace, school and personal travel
plans;
• introduce educational programmes for sustainable travel; and
• raise awareness of the health benefits of travel by non-motorised modes.
3.2.5 POLICY T4: Urban Transport
Within urban areas, including key centres for development and change and
appropriate market towns, Local Transport Plans, Local Development Documents
and other plans or strategies should identify ways to bring about a shift away from
car use to public transport, walking and cycling. This should be achieved through the
following types of measures, in combination as appropriate to local circumstances:
• capitalising on opportunities provided by new development to achieve area
wide improvements in public transport services, footpaths and cycle networks;
• promoting public transport through quality partnerships or other agreements to
deliver enhanced services, improved interchange, increased access, higher
levels of public visibility, better travel information, and appropriate traffic
management measures; and
• improvements to local networks for walking and cycling, including increasing
the attractiveness and safety of the public realm.
3.2.6 POLICY T9: Walking, Cycling and other Non-Motorised Transport
Provision for walking, cycling and other non-motorised transport should be improved
and developed as part of an integrated strategy for achieving the RTS objectives.
Pedestrian, cycle and other non-motorised transport networks should be managed
and improved to enhance access to work, schools and town centres, and provide
access to the countryside, urban greenspace, and recreational opportunities.
Support should be given to completing the National Cycle Network in the region by
2010, and to linking it to local cycle networks.
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3.2.7 POLICY T13: Public Transport Accessibility
Public transport provision, including demand responsive services, should be
improved as part of a package of measures to improve accessibility. Public transport
use should be encouraged throughout the region by increasing accessibility to
appropriate levels of service of as high a proportion of households as possible,
enabling them to access core services (education, employment, health and retail).
3.2.8 POLICY T14: Parking
Parking controls, such as the level of supply or the charges, should be used as part
of packages for managing transport demand and influencing travel change,
alongside measures to improve public transport accessibility, walking and cycling,
and with regard to the need for coordinated approaches in centres which are in
competition with each other. Demand-constraining maximum parking standards
should be applied to new commercial development. The standards in PPG13 should
be treated as maximums, but local authorities may adopt more rigorous standards to
reinforce the effects of other measures particularly in regional transport nodes and
key centres for development and change.
3.3 Local Development Orders
Enterprise Zone status is conditional upon putting in place a simplified approach to
planning. LDOs can be used as a planning tool by local authorities to reduce
planning control within the Enterprise Zone.
An LDO grants planning permission for the type of development specified in the
Order, and by doing so, negates the need for a planning application to be submitted
by the developer.
LDOs can apply to a specific type of development or permit any development in a
designated area, and may grant planning permission outright or with conditions.
LDOs can support growth by exempting certain development from the need to apply
for specific planning permission; those wishing to pursue such developments can
proceed without the time and cost implications of having to submit a planning
application.
The Enterprise Zone in Harlow will require two separate LDOs, one for the London
Road and the other for the Templefields Site. The LDOs will be designed to facilitate
those businesses targeted within the health and allied industries and advanced
manufacturing sectors. Businesses from other sectors will not be prevented from
locating within the Enterprise Zone, but it is currently anticipated that new
development unrelated to the target sectors will continue to require planning
permission.
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4 Existing Site Information
The existing site conditions, in terms of its location and access to transport
infrastructure and services, are summarised below.
4.1 Existing Site Information
4.1.1 Site Location
4.1.1.1 Templefields Site
The Templefields Site is located approximately 3.5km to the north east of Harlow
Town Centre. It is accessed via River Way and Hart Road. River Way connects with
the A414 Edinburgh Way to the south providing onward access to the A10 in the
west and the M11 in the south east. Hart Road connects with the A1184 Cambridge
Road to the east. However, it is noted that Hart Road does not provide a through
route into the Site.
4.1.1.2 London Road Site
The London Road Site is located approximately 2.8km east of Harlow Town Centre.
It is accessed via London Road. London Road connects with the A414 to the south
via Church Langley Way and via First Avenue / Mandela Avenue to the north. The
A414 provides onward access to the M11 in the south.
The location of the proposed sites is shown in the Figure below.
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Figure 4-1: Location of the Proposed Sites
4.1.2 Development Site
4.1.2.1 Templefields Site
The Templefields Site is located north of the West Anglia Main Line and west of the
A1184 Cambridge Road. The Site is currently occupied by an existing employment
area/industrial estate. The Site encompasses 28 hectares of land.
4.1.2.2 London Road Site
The Council is preparing two LDOs to cover the 23 ha London Road Site. One LDO
will cover the 9 hectares of the former Nortel campus with the second LDO covering
14 hectares of green field land to the north of the former Nortel site.
4.1.3 Surrounding Environment
4.1.3.1 Templefields Site
The Templefields Site is bounded to the east by the A1184 Cambridge Road; to the
north by a hotel and Public House and the River Stort; to the west by the River Stort;
and to the south by the East Anglia Main Line and Harlow Mill Rail Station.
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4.1.3.2 London Road Site
The London Road site is bounded to the east London Road; to the north by the Mark
Hall Sports Centre; to the west by the A414; and to the south by London Road and
green open space.
4.2 Baseline Transport Data
4.2.1 Local Highway Network
4.2.1.1 Templefields Site
The Site is accessed from River Way via the A414 Edinburgh Way. River Way is a
two-way local access road with a 30mph speed limit, with no stopping. The A414
Edinburgh Way is a heavily trafficked ‘A’ road linking the town with the A10 in the
west. In the vicinity of the Site Edinburgh Way is a two-way road, with a 40mph
speed limit with no stopping. A segregated pedestrian footway and cycle runs along
the southern side of the carriageway separated by a grass verge.
The Site can also be accessed from Hart Road via the A1184 Cambridge Road,
although it is noted Hart Road does not provide a through route into the Site.
Cambridge Road within the vicinity of Hart Road is a dual lane carriageway, although
reverts to a two-way road just north of Hart Road. Cambridge Road lead to Bishop’s
Stortford.
4.2.1.2 London Road Site
The Site is accessed from London Road via Church Langley Way in the south and
via First Avenue / Mandela Avenue to the north. London Road is a two-way, 40mph
road with no stopping and footways on both sides of the carriageway. The A414
south of the Site is a 40mph dual carriageway with a bus lane in both directions; the
road reverts to a two-way road north of the Church Langley Way roundabout.
Church Langley Way in the vicinity of the Site is a dual carriageway.
4.2.2 Public Transport Provision
Bus Network
4.2.2.1 Templefields Site
The nearest bus stop to the Templefields Site is located on the A1184 Cambridge
Road immediately south of Harlow Mill Rail Station. This stop is served by bus
routes 510 and 511. An additional bus stop is located on the A414 Edinburgh Way,
immediately east of the roundabout with River Way. This stop is served by bus route
8. A further bus stop is located approximately 960m south of Harlow Mill Rail station
on Station Road. This stop is served by bus route 59. The following tables show a
summary of the weekday (two-way) services for these routes.
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Service Route
AM Peak
(0800-
0900)
PM Peak
(1700-
1800)
First bus
to arrive
at Site
Last bus
to depart
Site
Total
number
of buses
8
Harrow Mill-Old Harlow-Mark Hall-
Town Centre 6 6 0718 1832 64
59
Harlow Town Centre-Leaden
Roding-Chelmsford 1 3 0555 1920 29
510
Harlow-Sawbridgeworth-Bishops
Stortford-Stansted Airport 8 6 0014 2350 103
511 Harlow-Bishops Stortford (Circular) 2 1 0608 1928 37
Table 4-1: Bus Services and Frequency - Templefields Site
A survey of existing bus capacity of the routes which serve the Templefields Site
undertaken Tuesday 28 February 2012 indicates that there is existing spare capacity
between the 07:00-09:00 survey period. Although the available spare capacity
between 08:00-08:14 is significantly less than all other time periods, it is worth noting
that there were still 10 spaces available.
0
20
40
60
80
100
120
07:00
-07:1
4
07:15
-07:2
9
07:30
-07:4
4
07:45
-07:5
9
08:00
-08:1
4
08:15
-08:2
9
08:30
-08:4
4
08:45
-08;5
9
Spare Capacity
Actual Passenger Numbers
Figure 4-2: Existing Bus Capacity - Templefields Site
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4.2.2.2 London Road Site
The nearest bus stop to the site is located approximately 280m north of the site
access road on London Road. The length of time required to walk to this bus stop is
approximately 3.5 minutes2. This stop is served by bus route 20. An additional bus
stop is located approximately 480m south east of the site access road at the Tesco
store located on Church Langley Way. The length of time required to walk to this
bus stop is approximately 6 minutes. This stop is served by bus route 10 and 20.
The following tables show a summary of the weekday (two-way) services for these
routes.
Service Route
AM Peak
(0800-
0900)
PM Peak
(1700-
1800)
First bus
to arrive
at Site
Last bus
to depart
Site
Total
number
of buses
10
Town Rail Station-Harlow Town
Centre-Church Langley 5 4 0601 2336 98
20
Church-Langley-Old Harlow-Mark
Hall-Harlow Town Centre 4 5 0653 1920 47
Table 4-2: Bus Services and Frequency - London Road Site
A survey of the existing bus capacity of the routes which serve the London Road Site
(Church Langley stop) undertaken Tuesday 28 February 2012 indicates that there is
significant existing spare capacity between 07:00-09:00 survey period.
2 Based on a walking speed of 80m / minute as shown in the PTAL methodology, Transport
Assessment Best Practice, (2010) TfL.
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0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
Spare Capacity
Actual Passenger Numbers
Figure 4-3: Existing Bus Capacity - London Road Site
Whilst there are a number of other bus services which operate in close proximity to
both Sites, these are either school bus services, or services which don’t operate
within the weekday AM or PM peak hour, for this reason they have not been included
within the assessment. A map which details all relevant bus routes which serve both
Sites is attached in Appendix 1.
Rail Network
Harlow Mill Station, on the West Anglia Main Line with services operated by Greater
Anglia, is the closest rail station to both Sites contained within the Enterprise Zone. It
is located approximately 2.2km north of the centre of the London Road Site. The
length of time required to walk to the station from the London Road Site is
approximately 27.5 minutes. The station is located approximately 550m south east of
the centre of the Templefields Site. The length of time required to walk to the station
from the Templefields Site is approximately 6.8 minutes.
The existing weekday peak rail service operates with a frequency of 7 trains per hour
between Stratford – Bishops Stortford, Cambridge – London Liverpool Street and
Kings Lynn – London Liverpool Street. On weekends, there are 6 and 4 services per
hour on Saturday and Sunday respectively. Harlow Mill Station had a total number of
persons recorded as passing through the station (entries/exits totalled) of 160,618 in
2009/10 (The Office of Rail Regulation (ORR), 2009-10 Station Usage Report)3.
3 The Office of Rail Regulation (ORR), 2009-10 Station Usage Report.
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Route
AM Peak
(0800-
0900)
PM Peak
(1700-
1800)
First train
to arrive
Last train to
leave
Total
number of
trains
Bishops Stortford - Stratford 1 2 0538 2145 32
Cambridge- London Liverpool
St 5 5 0524 0033 85
Kings Lynn - London Liverpool
St 1 - 0836 1633 3
Table 4-3: Harlow Mill Rail Station Weekday Service Frequencies
Harlow Town Rail Station is located west of both Sites, and is also served by Greater
Angelia services. The station has a greater frequency of direct services compared to
Harlow Mill Rail Station. Whilst not located within walking distance of either Site it is
accessed directly from bus routes 10 and 20.
4.2.3 Pedestrian and Cycle Access
Harlow has an excellent network of footways and cycle paths through the town.
National Cycle Route 1, part of the Sustrans cycle network, is located within Harlow
and links Harlow Town Station in the west to the High Street in the east. Appendix 2
shows the existing cycling routes within the town.
4.2.4 Existing Travel to Work Patterns
4.2.4.1 Templefields Site
The site is located within the Mark Hall North ward, which is predominately
industrial/employment uses. 2001 Census data has been reviewed to establish how
the Mark Hall North ward daytime4 population currently travel to work and the
distance travelled to work of the workplace5 population. The results are summarised
in Table 4-4 and Table 4-5 below.
4 The day-time population is defined for people aged 16 to 74, as those people who live and
work in the area (or do not work) and those people who live outside the area and work inside
the area. Source: Neighbourhood Statistics, 2001 Census, Census Area Statistics.
5 The workplace population is defined as the people aged 16 to 74 who are in employment
and whose usual place of work is in the area. Source: Neighbourhood Statistics, 2001
Census, Census Area Statistics.
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Method of Travel to Work Percentage
Works mainly at or from home 1%
Underground, metro, light rail or tram 1%
Train 2%
Bus, minibus or coach 4%
Taxi or minicab 1%
Driving a car or van 70%
Passenger in a car or van 9%
Motorcycle, scooter or moped 1%
Bicycle 4%
On Foot 6%
Other 0%
Table 4-4: Method of Travel to Work - Daytime Population. Census 2001 Mark Hill North Ward
As expected the majority of the daytime population (79%) currently travel to work by
car/van, or as a car/van passenger. Only 17% travel by sustainable transport
modes.
The high mode share of car use coupled with the close proximity of the site to
Harlow Mill Rail Station and existing bus routes are excellent starting conditions to
achieve modal shift through the introduction of sustainable transport measures in a
travel plan.
Distanced Travelled to Work Percentage
Works mainly at or from home 2%
Less than 2km 15%
2km to less than 5km 39%
5km to less than 10km 13%
10km to less than 20km 10%
20km to less than 30km 8%
30km to less than 40km 6%
40km to less than 60km 4%
60km and over 4%
Table 4-5: Distanced Travelled to Work – Workplace Population. Census 2001 Mark Hall North Ward
Table 4-5 indicates that currently 15% of the workplace population travel less than
2km to work and 54% travel less than 5km to work. As indicated in PPG13, walking
and cycling has the potential to substitute for short car trips which are less than 5km.
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4.2.4.2 London Road Site
The site is located within the Old Harlow ward, which is predominately residential
and farm land. 2001 Census data has been reviewed to establish how the Old
Harlow ward daytime population currently travel to work and the distance travelled to
work the results are summarised in Table 4-6 and Table 4-7 below.
Method of Travel to Work Percentage
Works mainly at or from home 9%
Underground, metro, light rail or tram 0%
Train 2%
Bus, minibus or coach 3%
Taxi or minicab 1%
Driving a car or van 64%
Passenger in a car or van 6%
Motorcycle, scooter or moped 1%
Bicycle 3%
On Foot 11%
Other 0%
Table 4-6: Method of Travel to Work - Daytime Population. Census 2001 Old Harlow Ward
As expected the majority of the daytime population (70%) currently travel to work by
car/van, or as a car/van passenger. Only 19% travel by sustainable transport
modes.
Distanced Travelled to Work Percentage
Works mainly at or from home 14%
Less than 2km 21%
2km to less than 5km 22%
5km to less than 10km 10%
10km to less than 20km 12%
20km to less than 30km 10%
30km to less than 40km 6%
40km to less than 60km 4%
60km and over 2%
Table 4-7: Distanced Travelled to Work – Workplace Population. Census 2001 Old Harlow Ward
Table 4-7 indicates that currently 21% of workplace population travel less than 2km
to work and 41% travel less than 5km to work. As indicated in PPG13, walking and
cycling has the potential to substitute for short car trips which are less than 5km.
4.2.5 Site Audit
On completion of the redevelopment of both Sites a full site audit will be undertaken
(organised by the travel plan co-ordinator). The audit will seek to update information
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on available transport links, with a full description of the site and transport facilities.
This will also outline details of transport related problems and identify who on site will
play an active role in the development of the Travel Plan.
Considerations have already been made to ensure that staff can access the site by
sustainable modes. These include:
• The provision of secure parking; and
• Ensuring adequate and safe pedestrian access to the Sites is maintained.
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5 Objectives, Strategy and Measures
Having covered the definition of a TP, the baseline transport conditions and the
policy context, this sections set out the objectives of the TPF.
5.1.1 Objectives
The main objectives of this TPF will be to:
• Reduce the level of private car trips to the proposed Sites;
• Promote sustainable transport choices; and
• Promote healthier lifestyles through walking and cycling.
The success of the strategy depends on a partnership approach between the
developers, the tenants, the Local Authority and other relevant Stakeholders.
5.2 Travel Plan Framework Strategy and Measures Concept
The following section sets out the strategy and measures which will help to achieve
the objectives set out above.
The TPF has been prepared in accordance with DfT guidelines, ‘Good Practice
Guidelines: Delivering Travel Plans through the Planning Process (2009) which
encourages the use of ‘The Travel Plan Pyramid’ to ensure that all aspects required
in the formulation of a Travel Plan are addressed to encourage sustainable travel
modes for a development.
The guidance suggests it can be helpful to view a Travel Plan for a new development
as a pyramid of measures, which is constructed from the ground up, with each new
layer building on the last, all set within the context of the outcomes sought. The
Travel Plan pyramid is illustrated below:
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Figure 5-1: The Travel Plan Pyramid. Source: DFT Good Practice Guidelines: Delivering Travel Plans
through the Planning Process, April 2009
As per the levels presented in the pyramid, the following sets out the suitability of the
Site for sustainable development:
• At Level 1 – the base of the pyramid, the choice of location for development,
provides the foundation for good accessibility, by ensuring proximity to existing
facilities and services, including shops, health facilities, schools and public
transport.
• At Level 2 – are all the physical aspects of the development that can be
expected to influence travel.
• At Level 3 – is the input of a site Travel Plan Co-ordinator to co-ordinate the
ongoing development and management of the plan, including further
measures, awareness raising, monitoring and review.
• At Level 4 – are the services and facilities to be delivered as part of the Travel
Plan to help meet transport needs as appropriate.
• At Level 5 – the top of the pyramid is awareness-raising, marketing and
information. These are measures designed to ensure that people know about
the services and facilities provided through the Travel Plan and to encourage
more sustainable travel.
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6 The TPF Measures
The following measures are proposed using the DfT’s pyramid structure specified in
the previous section
6.1 Level 1 - Location
Level 1 of the guidance has limited applicability given that both Sites are already in
use with plans to improve facilities and maximise usage and utility. The location
cannot therefore be chosen to maximise opportunities for sustainable travel.
Both Sites are accessible by existing public transport facilities. Bus stops located
within 500m of the London Road Site are served by two bus routes. The
Templefields Site is served by four bus routes. In addition, Harlow Mill Rail Station is
located approximately 550m south east from the centre of the Templefields Site.
Whilst the London Road Site is located over 2km away from the Harlow Mill Rail
Station, the two bus routes which serve the London Road Site provide access to
Harlow Town Rail Station.
An existing cycle route runs along London Road providing access to the London
Road Site, the route continues along First Avenue (Mandela Avenue) and provides
access to the town centre.
Walking and cycling accessibility (i.e. ease of access and distance) have a major
role to play in transport in the local environs, particularly for short distance trips (up
to 2km walking and 5 km cycling). Walking is essential for local journeys, and is an
integral part of public transport journeys and some private car journeys. For this
reason, anything that makes these journeys easier, more pleasant, and safer is
beneficial.
The encouragement of cycling is an important aspect of any Travel Plan, particularly
for trips up to 5km. This mode of travel will be particularly useful for residents of the
local area who wish to access the Sites who live within 5km.
As detailed in paragraph 4.2.4 above, 21% of the existing workplace population live
within 2km of the London Road Site, and 41 % live within 5km. Whereas 15% of the
workplace population lives within 2km of the Templefields Site and 54% live within
5km.
6.2 Level 2 – Physical Aspects
A travel plan should include a package of measures aimed at encouraging and
improving the environment for walking, cycling and public transport use as well as
making the best use of car journeys. The following physical measures will
encourage sustainable travel behaviour when utilising / accessing the Sites:
6.2.1 On-Site
Parking Provision
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The car parking provision on both Sites will be in accordance with Essex County
Council’s Parking Standards, Design and Good Practice (September 2009).
Cycle Parking
The provision of secure and conveniently located cycle storage will be provided on
both Sites. Signage within each Site will direct cyclist to these storage areas
therefore eliminating impromptu cycle lockups. Cycle parking will be provided in
accordance with Essex County Council’s Parking Standards, Design and Good
Practice (September 2009).
Site Layout and Design
The London Road Site redevelopment includes the provision of a new spine road
into the Site from London Road (north of the existing vehicular access); this connects
to a new link road to the north of the Site which links London Road and the A414A.
In addition, a new pedestrian and cycle only access is provided off London Road,
located between the new spine road and link road accesses. Overall, the London
Road Site will have five key access points for vehicles, pedestrians and cyclists.
The Templefields Site redevelopment includes the provision of a new access road off
the A1184 Cambridge Road (north of Hart Road) which links up with River Way.
Overall, the Templefields Site will have two key access points for vehicles,
pedestrians and cyclists.
The new access routes proposed will facilitate through movements into both Sites.
The on-site street design of both Sites conforms to current Manual for Streets 2
standards. The site layouts are such that they are fully permeable and follow key
desire lines. Pedestrian footways within both Sites allow for the safe movement of
pedestrian.
Site layouts for both Sites are included in Appendix 3.
6.2.2 Off-site
Pedestrians and Cycling
To facilitate sustainable transport accessibility to both Sites an audit of the main
walking and cycling routes which link with existing public transport facilities and
surrounding residential areas has been undertaken. The audit identifies possible
physical improvements to these routes in order to make them more attractive to
potential users. Improvements suggested include footway resurfacing, signing,
provision of dropped kerbs and tactile paving, identification of crossing point
improvements etc. All suggested improvements are included in Appendix 4.
In addition, the proposed new access routes at both Sites will enhance pedestrian
access to existing bus stops.
Buses
It is proposed to make London Road a bus only route between the new link road and
First Avenue (Mandela Avenue)/Gilden Way through the installation of bus gates.
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No further bus infrastructure is proposed off-site, though service improvements /
amendments are proposed in Section 6.4 below.
6.3 Level 3 – Site Travel Plan Co-ordinator
In order for the TPF to be a success, a Travel Plan Co-ordinator (TPCO) will be
identified who will be primarily responsible for implementing and organising the
individual measures contained in the plan. A TPCO is an individual person
responsible for all aspects of researching, developing, marketing and monitoring a
TP. The workload of the TPCO is likely to be variable; therefore a permanent full-
time post is not always necessary. Greater input from the TPCO will be required in
the early stages on occupation. However, further work will be needed to update the
plan at future stages. The TPCO role can be provided by a consultant with
appropriate expertise in Smarter Choices, working on behalf of the Enterprise Zone.
6.4 Level 4 Services and Facilities
Key services and facilities to complement the location and physical design of the
development will also be implemented to further encourage the use of sustainable
transport modes.
Public Transport Improvements
Funding is to be provided for service improvements to the existing bus network so
that both Sites are comprehensively linked to most residential neighbourhoods within
the town. Analysis has been undertaken to assess how the current network could be
adapted to form a revised sample network. The analysis seeks wherever possible to
make use of existing resources, however it is noted that this will require the co-
operation of existing operators, where amendments are suggested for existing
routes. Where routes are suggested for being linked, this is made on the basis of
combining two routes operated by the same company. The proposed sample bus
network for both Sites is included in Appendix 5.
In addition, research suggests marketing initiatives for public transport are at least as
important as service improvements in attracting passengers and influencing travel
behaviour6. Therefore a targeted marketing campaign which is either area-wide or
mode specific will further increase public transport use.
Other service / facilities improvements could include the provision of a car sharing
scheme, commercially operated car clubs, the provision of high speed broadband
access and flexible working.
6 ‘Smarter choices – changing the way we travel’, Sally Cairns, Lynn Sloman, Carey Newson, Jillian
Anable, Alistair Kirkbride and Phil Goodwin, DfT , July 2004.
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We have assumed that that the public transport measures proposed will increase the
existing modal share of public transport (bus 4% and 3% and train 3% and 2% for
the Templefields Site and London Road site respectively) to 15% for the
Templefields and London Road Sites.
Car Sharing
Car sharing is when two or more people, usually who are heading to the same
destination, travel together by car for all or part of a journey. It is also known as lift
sharing. Launching an Enterprise Zone car sharing scheme will contribute to fewer
cars on the road, leading to reduced congestion, less delays, faster journey times
and cheaper motoring.
Car sharing will save both employers and employees time and money, will contribute
to a more pleasant and efficient commute to and from work, and will improve the well
being of staff.
Car sharing has been shown to reduce parking demand and peak time traffic, and
had been demonstrated to bring about a reduction of between 2%-28% in single
occupancy car trips7.
Car Clubs
Car clubs give people access to a vehicle on a pay-as-you-go basis. Cars are
parked in publicly/easily accessible locations.
Car clubs provide the convenience of a car, without the hassle of repairs, servicing,
renewing insurance and parking. This can be for individuals who do not want to own
a car but still have occasional need for one, or for business usage in place of car
pool vehicles. By breaking the link with habitual car use, car clubs reduce
congestion and pollution and increase physical activity.
Car club operators offer new cars for hire by the hour. They are responsible for
providing the vehicles, insurance, roadside rescue and taking care of the cars’
cleaning, maintenance and repair. Cars can be booked by telephone or online, 24-
hours-a-day and are accessed using a smart card and PIN. Billing is done securely
online by credit card, unless paper copies are requested by members.
Technology
The provision of fibre optic high speed broadband at both Sites will allow for
businesses to make use of teleworking, tele-conferencing and video conferencing.
Teleworking is shown to improve employee work/life balance, improve productivity
and staff retention, and can bring about a reduction of between 15-200 car miles per
7 Making Smarter Choices, IHT (Appendix 1)
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week. Additionally, it had been demonstrated to reduce employee sick days by
70%8.
Flexible Working
Flexible start and finish times, allows employees to organise their working days
around public transport, car sharing opportunities, or to avoid congestion. By
travelling outside of peak hours, workers save time otherwise wasted in congestion,
reduce stress and help to cut emissions. It is considered that this will bring about a
reduction of peak hour car trips of 5%.
6.5 Level 5 – Marketing and Promotion
Marketing and a communications strategy are essential and critical to the success of
a TP. Effective marketing goes hand-in-hand with implementing measures and is
designed to ensure that people know about the services and facilities provided
through the travel plan.
Personal Travel Planning
‘Personal Travel Planning’ (PTP) is an approach to delivering customised travel
advice tailored to individual’s journey needs. It seeks to overcome habitual use of the
car, enabling more journeys to be made on foot, bike, bus, train or in shared cars. It
can also seek to discourage unnecessary travel, through the provision of local or
site-specific information. The development of the Enterprise Zone provides an
opportunity to offer personal travel advice when employees have just moved in. At
this point, new travel habits are being established and information about the services
and facilities in the area are essential to achieving sustainable travel choices.
In addition to this, the current programme of Personal Travel Planning being
implemented throughout the town (Fifth Avenue and Mark Hall South) will assist to
lower current town centre vehicular traffic demand with a shifting emphasis towards
sustainable travel.
PTP could help to achieve modal shift and reduce travel demand via the private car
by education and promotion of making sustainable travel choices. A detailed
programme of PTP could be introduced once the Site is fully occupied.
PTP has been shown to encourage more sustainable travel patterns, and had been
demonstrated to bring about up to 11% modal shift away from the private car9.
Within Harlow, the implementation of the PTP programme has demonstrated a 15%
reduction in overall car use, a 59% increase in walking and a 7% increase in bus use
in Mark Hall for journeys to work.
8 Making Smarter Choices, IHT (Appendix 1)
9 Making Smarter Choices, IHT (Appendix 1)
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Publicity
Information relating to the TPF will be publicised on the Sites’ web site and in printed
promotional material. The Site web site will contain information to all visitors and
employees on how to access the site by means other than the car. Information to
include pedestrian and cycle route maps, public transport links and timetables.
Information will be collated by the Travel Plan Coordinator.
Publicity can also include involvement in special travel awareness events such as
Bike Week, Walk to Work Week and Car Free Days.
Welcome Pack
Every new employee / business in the development will be made aware of the TPF
and will receive a welcome pack on occupation. The pack will contain the following:
• Maps showing local bus stops / routes, cycle routes and walking routes to the
Site and the location of local amenities;
• Bus timetables;
• Information on facilities as well as amenities for the disabled; and
• Information regarding the health benefits of walking and cycling.
In order to ensure that TPF objectives continue to be met several years after
occupation, the TPCO will also need to provide a welcome pack for new employees.
After the survey information has been included in the TPF the TPCO should consider
organising a green travel launch event to bring together all the elements of the TPF
and re-advertise it to the Site employees.
6.6 Possible ‘Soft’ Measures
Key measures/initiatives to complement the location and physical design of the
development will also be implemented to further encourage the use of sustainable
transport modes. Some examples of possible measures are detailed below. It is
important to note that this list is not exhaustive.
• Formation of a Bicycle Users Group (BUG)
• Provide free cycle training to employees of business located within the
Enterprise Zone;
• Assistance to staff in accessing information about safe cycling, appropriate
clothing, local cycle routes etc;
• Provide site map detailing locations of cycle parking;
• Provide local area map detailing public transport links, and cycle routes;
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• Provide public transport information, available direct from the local operators
or the council;
• Identify safe walking routes;
• Participate in ‘Walk to Work’ week;
• Consider the need to provide facilities for those who travel by motorcycle /
moped;
• Develop a ‘how to find us’ guide for visitors showing how the Site can be
accessed by sustainable modes of travel. Include the information on the
Enterprise Zone website.
6.7 Funding and Co-ordination of Mitigation
£1m has been set aside by ECC, which was acquired from the New Hall s106
contribution, originally earmarked for bus lane improvements in Harlow. This
scheme was subsequently financed by ECC and the contribution has therefore been
earmarked to be used for Enterprise Zone mitigation. Furthermore, following
discussions with ECC’s Development Control team, there is a high level plan to co-
ordinate s106 contributions for proposed developments across Harlow to improve
transport across the town. In addition, a proportion of the £67m of revenue
associated with business rates for the Enterprise Zone could be combined with any
s106, coordinated by HDC and ECC to target transport problem areas (roads
suffering from high congestion, or residential areas with poor public transport
accessibility).
The types of measures which the contributions could be used for could include:
• Public Transport Service Improvements;
• Highway Capacity Improvements;
• Implementation of Infrastructure Schemes such are Park and Ride, Bus Rapid
Transit, Provision of Cycle Lanes, Bus Gates, or
• Toward softer measures such as further PTP in residential areas.
These measures are discussed more specifically in the mitigation section of the TA.
All of the mitigation proposals, developer / promoter contributions will need to be
finalised and agreed with ECC development control team following the submission of
the Transport Assessment.
6.8 Targets
Targets are the measurable goals by which we will assess the Travel Plan’s
progress. Objectives and targets should be SMART - Specific, Measurable,
Achievable, Realistic and Time bound and set in light of the results of the travel
survey and with consideration to the local surroundings. Indicators are the elements
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that will be monitored to identify whether the targets have been met and the
objectives achieved. Most targets will be set for between three and five years after
occupation.
The following initial target will be applied to the Workplace Travel Plan Framework
for the Enterprise Zone. The staff travel surveys will be used to set additional robust
targets for the Travel Plan.
• All business located within the Enterprise Zone will need to attain a minimum
sustainable mode share for travel to the site of 30% from three years of
occupation. This target will also be specified within the LDO.
Future iterations of the Travel Plan through annual monitoring will be used to refresh
targets and identify new targets in line with progress and any subsequent
development of the Sites.
A preliminary action plan for implementation of the Travel Plan Framework is
summarised in Table 6-1 below. It is important to note that this action plan is not
exhaustive.
Measures Responsibilities Timescales
Framework Travel Plan
(overarching site travel plan)
Site Travel Plan Co-ordinator Agreed for determination of
the Local Development Order
(LDO), to be reviewed
annually
Individual Workplace Travel
Plans
Lead by tenants’ own Travel
Plan Co-ordinator /
representative with input
from the Site Travel Plan Co-
ordinator.
Within 6 months of first
occupation, to be reviewed
annually.
Travel surveys Lead by tenants’ own Travel
Plan Co-ordinator /
representative with input
from the Site Travel Plan Co-
ordinator.
Initial survey within 6 month
of occupation of new tenant,
then annually for a period of
five years.
Welcome packs Site Travel Plan Co-ordinator Disseminate to new tenants
and staff on occupation
Personalised Travel Planning Site Travel Plan Co-ordinator
with input from tenants own
Travel Plan Co-ordinator /
representative
Within 1 month of first
occupation
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Car clubs Site Travel Plan Co-ordinator
and tenants own Travel Plan
Co-ordinator / representative
in liaison with car club
companies
On-going programme
depending on demand
Car Sharing Site Travel Plan Co-ordinator Access to website available
prior to first occupation
Formation of a Bicycle Users Group (BUG)
Site Travel Plan Co-ordinator On-going programme
depending on demand
Cycle training to employees Site Travel Plan Co-ordinator
in liaison with tenants own
Travel Plan Co-ordinator /
representative
On-going programme
depending on demand
Local area Public transport
and cycle route map
Site Travel Plan Co-ordinator Available prior to first
occupation
Develop a ‘how to find us’
guide for visitors
Site Travel Plan Co-ordinator Available prior to first
occupation
Table 6-1: Preliminary action plan for implementation of the Travel Plan
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7 Monitoring and Review
7.1.1 Travel Survey
Monitoring the TPF will be crucial in ensuring that all information is kept up to date
and relevant to the needs of the visitors and staff. This responsibility for this will rest
with the Travel Plan Coordinator.
The primary tool for monitoring will be through the undertaking of travel survey
periodically. The TPCO will be responsible for organising the travel survey and using
the results to assess how effective the Travel Plan has been in achieving its targets
and objectives. The travel survey will indicate whether there has been a shift in travel
behaviour. Other monitoring exercises, for example counting the number of cycles in
the cycle parking areas or cars in the car park, will be used as an effective indicator
of how successful the Travel Plan is in meeting the targets set.
The results of the travel survey will be used to gauge how the current Travel Plan is
performing. The results will also identify which measures are successful and which
need revising. The Travel Plan measures should be altered based on the results of
the travel to work survey creating an up to date flexible document.
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8 Summary and Conclusion and Recommendation
This Workplace Travel Plan Framework (TPF) is provided in support of the
Enterprise West Essex @ Harlow which was granted Enterprise Zone status by the
Government on 17th August 2011.
The Sites cover approximately 51 hectares: 23 hectares at London Road (comprising
the former Nortel campus to the south and a 14ha greenfield site to the north); and
28 hectares at Templefields North East.
This workplace Travel Plan Framework is an overarching site travel plan to
encompass both Sites. However, it is expected that all future tenants will be
required to prepare individual workplace travel plans which will encourage individual
occupiers to influence the travel behaviour of their employees.
The TPF has been prepared in accordance with DfT guidelines, ‘Good Practice
Guidelines: Delivering Travel Plans through the Planning Process (2009) which
encourages the use of ‘The Travel Plan Pyramid’ to ensure that all aspects required
in the formulation of a Travel Plan are addressed to encourage sustainable travel
modes for a development.
Both Sites are reasonably well located in terms of existing Public Transport facilities.
The car and cycle parking provision on both Sites will be in accordance with Essex
County Council’s Parking Standards, Design and Good Practice (September 2009).
The London Road Site redevelopment includes the provision of a new spine road
into the Site from London Road (north of the existing vehicular access); this connects
to a new link road to the north of the Site which links London Road and the A414A.
In addition, a new pedestrian and cycle only access is provided off London Road,
located between the new spine road and link road accesses. Overall, the London
Road Site will have five key access points for vehicles, pedestrians and cyclists.
It is proposed to make London Road bus only between the new link road and First
Avenue (Mandela Avenue)/Gilden Way through the installation of bus gates. .
The Templefields Site redevelopment includes the provision of a new access road off
the A1184 Cambridge Road (north of Hart Road) which links up with River Way.
Overall, the Templefields Site will have two key access points for vehicles,
pedestrians and cyclists.
In order for the TPF to be a success, a Travel Plan Co-ordinator (TPCO) will be
identified who will be primarily responsible for implementing and organising the
individual measures contained in the plan.
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Key services and facilities to complement the location and physical design of the
development include service improvements to the existing bus network so that both
Sites are comprehensively linked to most residential areas within the town.
Launching an Enterprise Zone car sharing scheme will assist to contribute to fewer
cars on the road, leading to reduced congestion, less delays, faster journey times
and cheaper motoring.
The provision of commercially operated Car clubs on both Sites will give individuals
and/or businesses access to a vehicle on a pay-as-you-go basis.
The provision of fibre optic high speed broadband at both Sites will allow for
businesses to make use of teleworking, tele-conferencing and video conferencing.
Flexible start and finish times will allow employees to organise their working days
around public transport, car sharing opportunities, or to avoid congestion.
The development of the Enterprise Zone provides an opportunity to offer personal
travel advice when employees have just moved in. At this point, new travel habits are
being established and information about the services and facilities in the area are
essential to achieving sustainable travel choices. Personal Travel Planning (PTP)
could help to achieve modal shift and reduce travel demand via the private car by
education and promotion of making sustainable travel choices.
Information relating to the TPF will be publicised on the Enterprise Zone web site
and in printed promotional material. The Site web site will contain information to all
visitors and employees on how to access the site by means other than the car.
Every new employee / business in the development will be made aware of the TPF
and will receive a welcome pack on occupation.
Soft measures/initiatives to complement the location and physical design of the
development will also be implemented to further encourage the use of sustainable
transport modes will include the formation of a Bicycle Users Group, free cycle
training to employees of business located within the Enterprise Zone; the provision of
local area map detailing public transport links, and cycle route; public transport
information and the identification of safe walking routes etc
An initial target to be applied to the Workplace Travel Plan Framework for the
Enterprise Zone will be that all business located within the Enterprise Zone will need
to attain a minimum sustainable mode share for travel to the site of 30% from three
years of occupation.
The staff travel surveys will be used to set additional robust targets for the Travel
Plan.
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In summary, the measures/targets identified will assist to bring about the following
modal shift:
• Personalised Travel Planning – will demonstrate a reduction of between 11% -
15% in car use;
• Car sharing - will demonstrate a reduction of between 2%-28% in single
occupancy car trips;
• Public Transport Improvements – we have assumed an increase in public
transport modal share to 15% for both Sites;
• Flexible start and finish times - will bring about a 5% reduction of peak hour car
trips;
• As specified in the LDO, all business located within the Enterprise Zone will need
to attain a minimum sustainable mode share for travel to the site of 30% from
three years of occupation.
Cumulatively the impact of the measures detailed above and those contained within
the mitigation section of the Transport Assessment, will contribute to a to a 30%
reduction in car usage compared to the Harlow average for people travelling to the
EZ.
8.1 Recommendation
The Workplace Travel Plan Framework could be expanded to include Area wide
Travel Planning. Area travel plans bring together organisations in a specific
geographical area in order to share resources and ideas for developing and
implementing travel plans and to increase the effectiveness of individual travel plans.
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9 Appendix
Appendix 1: Existing Bus Routes
Appendix 2: Existing Cycle Routes
Appendix 3: Site Layouts
Appendix 4: Cycle Audit
Appendix 5: Sample Bus Network