Home > Local Transport Plans > Provisional LTP July 2005 (version for comments) > Setting Transport in its Wider Context
Quality of Life Issues
It is widely acknowledged that transport, both in terms of operation and new infrastructure development, has a bearing on quality of life. These quality of life issues have influenced our wider LTP2 strategy and are weaved into the document elsewhere as appropriate.
We have, however, taken the opportunity to state clearly and categorically how we are addressing such quality of life issues with appropriate evidence. A number of these issues have come forward through consultation and analysis of Community Strategies.
In developing our strategy, we have been mindful of the need to fully consider environmental implications. Much of this is being considered through the SEA and the Environmental Report which accompanies this provisional LTP. A statement explaining how the findings of this have been taken into account will accompany the final LTP submission.
We have, however, taken full account of environmental issues at this provisional stage to ensure our plan making is of the highest quality. The starting point for this was the voluntary SEA of our 2003 LTP which concluded that In general the LTP performs well in relation to environmental issues since much of the plan is devoted to improving public transport in the West Midlands and providing an alternative to car use.
As the 2003 LTP was the starting point for preparing this one, we are confident that our broad approach is sound. Further evidence as to the environmental credentials of our strategy is outlined below in our schedule of Major Schemes and, particularly, in our Air Quality Strategy.
In many instances there are dedicated appendices which give further background information on these issues.
Quality of Public Spaces and Better Streetscapes
Birmingham City Centre, particularly the new Bullring development which removed (with LTP Major Scheme funding) the concrete collar of the inner ring road is widely cited nationally as an example of best practice in urban design and regeneration.
Its accolades include winning the Royal Town Planning Institutes (RTPI) Silver Jubilee Cup and the English Partnerships sponsored Award for Planning for City and Metropolitan Areas.
Evidence
The premier award, the Silver Jubilee Cup for 2004 was awarded to Birmingham City Council for ‘The Bullring’, Birmingham.
The Judges commented:
“The Bullring project is an outstanding example of innovative and positive planning which has reclaimed public space for the pedestrian and has created a stimulating urban experience for all. By working in partnership with other public agencies, the private sector and the community, the City Council is making Birmingham City Centre an attractive environment for shopping, working, entertainment and living and it is a worthy recipient of our award”
Source: RTPI Website
This experience is being harnessed elsewhere to further regenerate the city centre, particularly the Eastside Major Scheme which will improve accessibility to this part of the city. The Scheme as a whole will, amongst other things, provide some 3,000 – 3,500 new dwellings in a central location which will encourage less reliance on the private car.
Improving the accessibility, particularly for pedestrians, as part of wider regeneration initiatives, is not solely the preserve of Birmingham. The Phoenix Project in Coventry and the Market Square development in Wolverhampton have significantly improved the quality and quantity of public open spaces. Similarly, proposals to redevelop the railway stations at New Street, Coventry and Wolverhampton will make positive contributions towards the public realm and the Bradford Place Public Transport Major Scheme in Walsall will create a new public square as well as improving the operating environment for buses.
In terms of infrastructure design, Centro is preparing detailed guidance and developing performance specifications for Park and Ride facilities and bus infrastructure that reflect local surroundings. It also works closely with planning authorities and developers prior to development commencing to ensure that the most suitable infrastructure is appropriately located.
Landscape and Biodiversity
Our LTP2 strategy underpins the RSS which seeks to foster an urban renaissance by making use of previously developed landwithin the Metropolitan Area to counter the historic out-migration of housing and jobs to the surrounding shires. As such,this will have positive benefits on landscapes and biodiversity within the wider Region as there will be reduced demands fordevelopment.
Furthermore, as a central element of our strategy within the Metropolitan Area is to maximise the use of existing capacitythrough the implementation of Red Routes and UTC improvements, it follows that there will be less need for potentially damaginglarge scale highway schemes.
Local authorities also identify a number of policies and designations relating to biodiversity and landscape in their landuse planning documents which apply to transport proposals requiring planning consent.
As part of the SEA of our LTP2, we have identified the implications of infrastructure development on biodiversity as one ofour environmental concerns and this has been addressed in the accompanying Environmental Report.
Community Safety, Personal Security and Crime
The need to improve community safety, both real and perceived, is a major concern across our Area. It features as a priorityin Community Strategies and regularly features in polls of the issues that most concern people, for example the annual BirminghamMORI survey. Creating safer and stronger communities is also a Shared Priority. There are a number of particular strandssuch as personal security and car crime, which are integrated throughout our mainstream LTP and revenue expenditure.
The Crime and Disorder Strategies in our area have been reviewed to identify common themes and identify potential synergiesbetween different policy approaches. These reviews have been used in this LTP2 to help determine priorities and programmesfor action and in order to inform our revised shared target which now includes damage to transport infrastructure, as thisimpacts on peoples perception of personal safety. Further information can be found in the Appendices.
Centro has recently announced plans to set up a Safer Travel Police Support Unit whereby Police Community Support Officers will give a uniformed presence on the bus network.
Healthy Communities
People’s health varies significantly across our Area, reflecting closely levels of prosperity. This is relevant to the healthof the nation, initiatives to promote healthier communities and the Shared Priority of narrowing health inequalities.
Linkages, actions and policies on health and transport have historically focused on individual Health Authority / DistrictCouncil boundaries and Health Action Zones. This was illustrated in our 2000 LTP. Since then we have undertaken assessmentsof the impact of different policy initiatives. The development of Community Strategies across our Area has also identifiedhealth as a key concern.
Our 2003 LTP was accompanied by a full Health Impact Assessment (HIA). Although the broad direction of our strategy remainsunchanged, we have sought advice from a local public health expert to verify that this is still the case. Further informationcan be found in the appropriate appendix.
comprises one of our LTP objectives and is reflected in our approaches to reducing the number of accidents, improving airquality, promoting cycling and walking and implementing Safer Routes to Schools schemes.
Our Accessibility Planning Strategy also seeks to improve health by actually improving access to healthcare facilities andfresh foodstuffs as well as examining opportunities to encourage cycling and walking.
Sustainable and Prosperous Communities
In February 2003, the Government published Sustainable Communities: Building for the Future. This included plans to delivera step change in housing supply and renewal. In the West Midlands, this has led to the designation of the Birmingham / Sandwell Housing Pathfinder which seeks wholesale renewal and redevelopment of the area.
The land use planning system is one of the key tools for implementing the Sustainable Communities Plan. More details of keypolicy documents as they relate to our LTP2 are discussed in section 3.3 ‘Government Guidance’.
We have also engaged with the LSPs and ensured that our LTP2 reflects their aspirations. There are numerous references throughoutthis document to these linkages and the evidence below identifies key common themes which are addressed by the LTP. LSPsare also becoming increasingly important players in promoting the Accessibility Planning agenda.
An audit of Community Strategies within our Area has been undertaken as part of LTP2 preparation. Access to jobs, health and education facilities are common themes across the board. Improved accessibility is a key component of our LTP2 strategy.
The National Strategy on Neighbourhood Renewal set out the principles for addressing the unacceptably bad conditions inmany areas of the countrys poorer neighbourhoods. It acknowledges that poor accessibility is in part responsible for thisand identifies LTPs as a tool for tackling it. All metropolitan authorities (except Solihull) are in receipt of NeighbourhoodRenewal Fund (NRF), some of which (see evidence box) has been harnessed to provide revenue support for Accessibility Planning.
Both local Communitiy Strategies and LSP priorities and Neighbourhood Renewal Strategies will influence local authoritiesplanned expenditure, particularly the Integrated Transport Block. The implications for regeneration and social inclusionfigured strongly when developing and prioritising our Major Schemes programme.
Further background information can be found in the Social Inclusion and Community Strategies appendices.
The Swiftlink Demand Responsive Transport (DRT) service, which will operate within seven of Coventrys (LSP identified) priority neighbourhoods by January 2006 has been supported by NRF monies.
Noise
It was acknowledged in the HIA of the 2003 LTP that transport noise is an issue; nationally some 23% of the population isaffected by it. As such, it has featured as an environmental concern in our SEA. At present, consideration is given to theuse of noise reducing road services as part of our maintenance programme and planning and traffic regulation controls limithours of vehicle access and operation. The recommendations of the environmental report, which accompanies this LTP2, willbe considered with a view to revising the 2006 submission.
We continues to pioneer work on noise mapping in the UK through the Birmingham Updated Noise Mapping Project (BUMP) whichis supported by DEFRA and is due to be completed by the end of 2005.
Climate Change, Greenhouse Gases and Air Quality
The Government’s Energy White Paper, Our Energy Future– Creating a Low Carbon Economy Strategy (2003) reaffirmed its commitment to reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 12.5% below 1990 levels by 2008-12 and carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions by 20% below 1990 levels by 2010. In addition, it announced the intention to reduce total current CO2 emissions by some 60% by 2050. Road transport is estimated to produce about 20% of CO2 emissions and is the fastest growing source.
Our LTP2 strategy underpins the RSS approach of reversing out migration of people and jobs to the surrounding areas. Thisin turn reduces the need for longer distance travel and makes public transport, cycling and walking more attractive propositions. As such, this will reduce the environmental footprint of the West Midlands Region as a whole and have positive implicationsfor carbon dioxide emissions. More specifically in the Black Country, the BCS is looking at options for reorganising landuse patterns that can be better served by public transport.
Other measures include promoting workplace and school travel plans to reduce car travel at peak times and making better useof the existing highway network which minimises emissions.
Air quality is closely allied to climate change and as one of the TSPs forms a central plank of our LTP2 strategy. Air Quality Management Areas (AQMAs) have been declared in Birmingham (the whole authority area), Coventry, Dudley, Sandwell and Walsall. Wolverhampton is in the process of doing so. These AQMAs result from an expectation that nitrogen dioxide (NO2) standards will be breached in these areas, while levels of PM10 particles are also rising. More details can be found in the Appendices.