Policy I/ST: Sustainable transport and connectivity proposes that “New developments should be designed around the principles of walkable neighbourhoods and healthy towns to encourage active sustainable travel; the policy will ensure priority is given to people over vehicular traffic (with low speeds), to make journeys by walking and cycling more direct and convenient than by car.”
Whilst I support this imaginative policy, it will be important to avoid unintended consequences by including local residents in discussion of specific proposals, particularly the ways in which vehicles and people can interact at low speeds. Currently there is no mention of the elderly and disabled in relation to design of transport routes. Will disability scooters and blue badge holders be automatically consulted on each development?
“Additional guidance for developers on the quality of provision is being prepared in an Active Travel Toolkit. Improvements will include enhancements to existing routes to break down barriers to use and improve safety and capacity as well as providing high quality new routes to improve connections to nearby communities, services and facilities.”
Please could the “Active Travel Toolkit” be available for consultation prior to publication? “Breaking down barriers to use” can create major safety issues in relation to sharing e.g. cycles/ pedestrians and cycles/cars on the Fendon Road roundabout. If car users had been consulted at the design stage, they would have been able to point to the multiple blind spots and prevented tall plants being planted obscuring driver’s vision of the cycle paths.