Rural Issues
Role Of Transport In Rural Areas
The role of transport in rural areas is essentially the same as elsewhere – to link people with employment and education, with shops and other services and for social and leisure activities. In rural areas the timely movement of goods is also of great importance, particularly for farmers, but freight is also important for other rural industries, such as providing village shops with stocks of food.
In other respects, priorities reflect different requirements. The dispersed lower density of settlement tends both to increase journey distance and to undermine the effectiveness of public transport. Thus there is much greater reliance on the private car for travel. Rural dwellers tend to spend a higher proportion of income on car ownership, and ownership rates are higher.
Some transport-associated problems are general – safety and maintenance are issues everywhere. However, congestion is rarely a problem in rural areas, but access to any type of public transport is a major issue. This is particularly so because the distances involved make walking and cycling for everyday journeys a much less realistic alternative. This is in contrast to the many people who visit rural areas for leisure walks and cycling.
Present Situation
The West Midlands Metropolitan Area is essentially urban. It is surrounded by green belt land, which is predominantly within the neighbouring shire counties. There is however, a significant rural area between Coventry and Birmingham / Solihull – the 'Meriden Gap'. To the north and south the area is contiguous to rural Warwickshire, wrapping round to Worcestershire in the South West.
The predominant land use in the rural areas of the West Midlands is agriculture. Other major uses are mineral extraction (sand and gravel) and leisure (golf, horticulture, fishing and sports pitches). There are a number of tourist attractions, both just inside and outside the Metropolitan area, such as Packwood House, Baddesley Clinton and Wroxall Abbey that attract a number of tourists and visitors to the area by private car.
None of the above users are major employers. The overwhelming majority of employed residents work outside the rural area, and mainly commute by car.
The area has a number of rail routes focused on Birmingham. Stations serve the larger settlements and station car parks are frequently at capacity. It is widely known that local rail services on the West Coast Main Line to Coventry, which is at capacity, currently share with not only the longer distance trains but also freight trains operating between the north-west and Southampton and they are therefore constrained in their operation. Recent timetable alterations have exacerbated this situation. Bus services in the area are sparse, infrequent and generally require public subsidy. Ring and Ride services also operate in the rural areas. Over the last couple of years a demand responsive 'Taxibus' service has been operating based around 3 possible routes. The operation of this innovative service is to be analysed to ensure that its potential is maximised.
Several major roads cross the area. These are both radial to Birmingham (or Coventry) or provide a route for through traffic avoiding these built-up areas (eg M42, A452). Traffic is increasing on the main roads as the M42 in particular becomes more congested, offering poorer and less predictable levels of service. Bypass lines are currently safeguarded to protect the settlements of Balsall Common, Knowle and Hockley Heath from the effects of increasing through traffic, should the need arise.
Rural secondary roads evolved to meet local needs. They are less suited to the needs of car borne commuters or of those using rural areas for recreational purposes. Traffic speeds tend to be high, with drivers sometimes unaware of the needs of slower more vulnerable users, such as pedestrians, equestrians and cyclists. When accidents occur in rural areas they tend to be more severe then the adjoining urban areas e.g. Solihull.
Current Policies
In November 1998 the Government announced the preparation of a Rural White Paper and in February 1999 published 'Rural England – A Discussion Document' inviting comments on the issues to be addressed in the Rural White Paper.
The Rural White Paper ‘Our Countryside: The Future - Fair Deal for Rural England’ was launched by the Deputy Prime Minister on 28th November 2000. It sets out the range of existing Government policy initiatives for rural communities, as well as a number of new announcements and draws on the responses to the Rural England consultation document. The Rural White Paper is linked to the recently published Urban White Paper.
The White Paper recognises that scheduled bus services have a vital role to play in rural areas. However, they cannot meet all the rural public transport needs. A network of complementary feeder services to these main routes may be necessary or there may be situations where potential passengers are few or widely dispersed need catering for. Small buses provided by small-scale commercial operators or community transport organisations who are not required to meet the full requirements of operators licensing, would address these criteria.
This chapter points out that for sustainability it is very important to seek to limit traffic levels and the most effective way to achieve this in the long term is to discourage dispersed development patterns. In the shorter term, alternatives to car travel must be promoted which include public transport for longer trips and the promotion of cycling and walking for short distances. Access to stations in rural villages by all modes is encouraged. This includes reviewing car parking and secure cycle parking facilities, as well as making pedestrian access easier and safer.
Consultation
The greatest area of response from rural residents within the 2003 LTP consultation process was on the need to improve rural bus services, which some also linked with reduced car use. Frequency of service was the greatest concern, followed by punctuality, reliability, journey time and cost.
Other points expressed were:
- Lack of safe cycle / pedestrian routes, particularly for journeys to school
- Need to improve parking at stations
- Excessive traffic volumes and size of vehicles using rural lanes
- Need for defined catchments to reduce school journey length
- Promote measures to minimise travel
- Need for cheaper parking in town centres
- Objection to any road widening / building proposals
The 2004 and 2005 consultation focussed on modes rather than issues to enable people to show support or disagreement and prioritise elements of the overall LTP2 strategy. Therefore, rural issues did not feature directly although residents of rural parts of our Area had the opportunity on each occasion to express their views.
Strategy
The strategic objectives for the West Midlands are equally valid in both urban and rural areas and in many respects the strategy for rural areas mirrors that for the remainder of the West Midlands. This is particularly in the case of operators that provide demand responsive transport into rural areas. Who will work in partnership with the respective rural local authorities and where appropriate, Centro to provide the best possible services.
To achieve sustainability it is very important to seek to limit traffic levels. Probably the most effective way to achieve this in the long term is to discourage dispersed development patterns as set out in RPG and UDPs. In the shorter term, alternatives to car travel must be promoted. These include public transport for longer trips and the promotion of cycling and walking for short distances. The development of longer distance cycling and walking routes are regarded as primarily recreational rather than essential transport infrastructure.
Safe walking and cycling facilities are to be developed within settlements. These will include safe routes to school as well as routes to local services, stations and bus stops as appropriate.
Access to stations in rural villages by all modes is encouraged. This includes upgrading public transport interchanges with quality information provision, improving Park and Ride, where justified, through reviewing car parking and secure cycle parking facilities, as well as making pedestrian access easier and safer.
Rail services to a number of rural stations should be improved when the West Coast Main Line is widened to four tracks through the area, by the potential to run a higher frequency local stopping service. The four tracking between Dorridge and Tyseley should similarly benefit local services, and some improvements may also follow signal improvement on the Shirley – Stratford line. However, rail services only offer direct access to a limited range of destinations.
Innovative ways of providing better bus services are needed for rural areas, and of improving integration with rail services. One service has been introduced linking smaller settlements to Solihull Station and is supported by a rural bus grant. The Heart of England Taxibus is another good example of an inclusive new approach to rural public transport, particularly for people with impaired mobility.
Good access between rural and urban areas must be maintained to allow the rural population access to urban services and to permit the urban population access to rural leisure pursuits.
Higher accident severity in rural areas will be addressed by suitable means, such as speed cameras and other measures on the major roads. The problems of inappropriate traffic and speeds on secondary roads need to be tackled by a combination of traffic management, traffic regulation, enforcement and education. It is possible to discourage inappropriate and extraneous traffic, and Active Traffic Management on the M42 will help significantly. Solihull is developing a consistent approach to traffic calming specifically for rural settlements.
Sustainability considerations generally discourage new or more intensive development in rural areas, and this is reinforced by green belt planning policies, which also support strategic park and ride sites to serve the conurbation they would be located within or on the edge of rural areas and will clearly provide an excellent service for the rural areas.
Targets
Due to the scale and position of the rural parts of the West Midlands, it is inappropriate to develop specific targets. No distinction is made between urban and rural targets.
Projects and Programmes
All of the LTP projects and programmes are included in the main schedule and no separate listing has been provided for rural areas.