A national body that aims to support the use of travel by foot, bike and public transport to make everyday journeys…
A national body that aims to support the use of travel by foot, bike and public transport to make everyday journeys...
In more detail
Sustrans is a charity that aims to enable people to travel by foot, bike or public transport for more of the everyday journeys they make. The group began – as Cyclebag – in the late 1970s and was closely associated with the development of the National Cycle network, which was a National Lottery Millennium Project.
Sustrans works with local council, employers, developers, communities and others to reduce car use; create better streets and routes; enable safer and more sustainable transport; and to cut carbon emissions. The group works in neighbourhoods, workplaces and schools and colleges. As well as contracting for work in localities, Sustrans supports volunteers, organises campaigns and produces research which anyone looking to bring about better places to live and work could find useful.
Key Facts:
Sustrans is a charity set up to promote and enabole the use of sustainable forms of transport. Its background is in cycling and its Millennium Project was the construction of a national cycle network. Sustrans runs local projects and national campaigns.
Page Links from here
Sustrans head office is at 2 Cathedral Square,College Green,Bristol BS1 5DD
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BIRMINGHAM COMMUNITY PLANNING TOOLKIT DEFINITION SHEET
This sheet may be reproduced in paper or electromic or any other form but please mention it was made by Chamberlain Forum Limited for Birmingham City Council supported by Department for Communities and Local Government.
The national charity that promotes walking – might be useful to know if your neighbourhood faces parking and congestion issues around schools and workplaces…
The national charity that promotes walking - might be useful to know if your neighbourhood faces parking and congestion issues around schools and workplaces...
In more detail
Living Streets is a charity which promotes and supports walking as an everyday activity by creating safe, attractive and enjoyable streets, where people want to walk. It used to be called the Pedestrians’ Association and was set up in the 1930s. The group has a long history of achievments including helping to write the original Highway Code. It is now probably best known for the national Walk to School campaign. It also runs the Walking Works Campaign, to encourage people to walk some or all of their way to work.
The Walk to School campaign runs National Walk to School week, at the end of May which involves about 2 million schoolchildren each year. Living Streets contracts for work in localities and supports a network of about twenty local volunteer groups mainly in London which are also involved, with schools, in running Walk to School and walk to work activities.
Key Facts:
Living Streets runs Walk to School Week, Walking Works and other campaigns to pormote walking as a safe and healthy way of making local journeys. More than two million schoolchildren take part in Walk to School Week each year.
Page Links from here
Living Streets office is on the 4th Floor, Universal House, 88-94 Wentworth Street, London E1 7SA email or telephone: 020 7377 4900 or
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BIRMINGHAM COMMUNITY PLANNING TOOLKIT DEFINITION SHEET
This sheet may be reproduced in paper or electromic or any other form but please mention it was made by Chamberlain Forum Limited for Birmingham City Council supported by Department for Communities and Local Government.
Transport is a key issue affecting neighbourhoods; neighbourhood plans can influence a range of transport issues. There are, however, other ways of influencing issues like parking, cycling and traffic management both at strategic and neighbourhood level.
Transport is a key issue affecting neighbourhoods; neighbourhood plans can influence a range of transport issues. There are, however, other ways of influencing issues like parking, cycling and traffic management both at strategic and neighbourhood level.
In more detail
Neighbourhood plans enable communities to influence those aspects of local transport issues that relate to how local land is developed. For example, plans can (given sufficient evidence and so long as what they say is in line with existing local and national policies):
set out the requirement for new roads to support development
earmark sites to encourage ‘modal shift’ away from car use to public transport, walking and cycling
set out measures to tackle the challenges identified in the local transport plan which might include: accessibility; cycleways and footpaths; parking; street traffic and signage.
There are other ways of influencing local transport plans however other than through making a neighbourhood plan.
Who is responsible for what?
There are a number of different types of authority with responsibilities relating to transport:
Highways authorities are responsible for the upkeep of roads including things like potholes,re-surfacing works and .
Traffic authorities are responsible for the way they are used – including things like speed restrictions, parking, road closures and re-design and traffic calming measures.
Strategic transport authorities are responsible for producing local transport plans for their area.
The table below summarises who acts as the Local Highway Authority and Local Traffic Authority; and the Strategic Transport Authority in Metropolitan Areas (West Midlands, Greater Manchester, Merseyside, Tyne & Wear, West Yorkshire and South Yorkshire), London and the rest of England:
Metropolitan Areas
London
Rest of England
Highways authority for the local road network
City and borough councils
London boroughs
Unitary or County councils
Traffic authority for the local road network
City and borough councils
London boroughs
Unitary or county councils
Strategic transport authority
Combined Authorities
Mayor of London
Unitary or county councils/ Combined authorities
Local councils are only responsible for the maintenance and use of the local road network – which does not include motorways and major trunk roads. The table below shows who is the Highway and Traffic Authority in respect of the strategic road network (motorways and major trunk roads) in the Metropolitan Areas, London and the rest of England:
Metropolitan Areas
London
Rest of England
Highways and traffic authority for the strategic road network
Highways England
Transport for London
Highways England
Local Transport Plans and Consultation
The first thing to say about local transport plans is that they are not very local. Strategic transport authorities are required to produce them under the terms of the Transport Act 2000 updated by the Local Transport Act 2008. As you can see from the table above, the strategic transport authority is either the Combined Authority (covering several million people), the Mayor of London (serving eight million people) or – outside the metropolitan areas and London - the county or unitary council.
LTPs contain an assessment of the transport needs of the area and sets of proposals for improvement including short term and long term (15-20 years) measures. In general Local Transport Plans: set out the current position with regard to transport, accessibility and pollution in the area; identify targets for improvement; set out the programme for achieving these objectives. This may be split between separate strategy and implementation plans.
LTPs are not neighbourhood level plans but they set the strategic framework within which more local transport plans can be formed. A local transport plan can be a 'material consideration' in determining a planning application. You can find the most recent version online: they were originally to be revised every 5 years, but strategic transport authorities may now produce them as and when they see fit.
The over-arching aims for LTPs are set by government. They include: supporting economic growth; cutting carbon emissions; contributing to safety, security and health; and improving quality of life and the local environment. Local Transport Plans contain an Environmental Assessment which looks at the impact of what is proposed on the environment.
LTPs are subject to public consultation. Groups that must be consulted include public transport user groups, bus and train operators and groups having a special interest, eg disability groups and environmental groups.
The video above is by Bristol Green Capital Partnership - an independent partnership which promotes sustainable transport in Bristol. In the video, Liz Zeidler suggests how transport planning could improve her city. The video is part of a series produced by the partnership to promote Bristol's Good Transport Plan.
Key Facts:
Local Transport Plans (LTPs) are strategic documents which set out how transport will develop in your city or region over the next 15-20 years. Neighbourhood plans can address local transport and traffic issues but they must fit in with the strategic objectives set out in the LTP. The local authority must consult before producing an LTP.
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BIRMINGHAM COMMUNITY PLANNING TOOLKIT DEFINITION SHEET
This sheet may be reproduced in paper or electromic or any other form but please mention it was made by Chamberlain Forum Limited for Birmingham City Council supported by Department for Communities and Local Government.
How reliably the bins are emptied; the maintenance of local roads; how older people are cared for; and whether there is a place at a good school for your children – the way local services work can be major factor in making better places to live. By working with public service providers, communities can improve the way they work locally…
How reliably the bins are emptied; the maintenance of local roads; how older people are cared for; and whether there is a place at a good school for your children - the way local services work can be major factor in making better places to live. By working with public service providers, communities can improve the way they work locally...
In more detail
Your local council provides a wide range of services which can include, for example:
children's social services
public and environmental health
waste collection and management including recycling
highways repairs
social care for older people
planning and economic development
planning and licensing
community centres, park and leisure facilities
libraries and adult education classes
museums and art galleries
democratic services - making sure you get a vote at elections.
As the local education authority,the council still has responsibility for community schools (but not for private schools, academies or 'free schools'). Some other local services, in some places, are delivered by independent trusts etc.
Some local authorities have retained council housing. Others have been through LSVT (Large Scale Voluntary Transfer) of housing stock which is now managed by housing associations. Housing associations are independent non-profit social landlords who now provide housing in many city neighbourhoods.
Other significant public service providers in your neighbourhood are: the police; bodies that are part of the National Health Service and local health centres and GP practices; the fire and rescue service; and schools and further education colleges.
The video below is of Mark Rogers, the Chief Executive of Birmingham City Council being interviewed by Nick Booth talking about The 21st Century Public Servant and the way public service is changing:
Improving Services
All of these service providers have ways of engaging with the communities they serve. This is because they want to provide services that meet the varying needs of different communities and neighbourhoods. By engaging with public services individually and collectively (because the way they work together - or fail to work together- can also be a big issue), your neighbourhood community can improve services and neighbourhood wellbeing.
Running Services
In some places, communities have become involved in the delivery of public services paid for by the council. The Localism Act gives community groups a right to challenge the council if you believe you could run services in your area better yourself.
Key Facts:
Local councils, the police, health service, social landlords, schools and other public service providers play an important role in determining community wellbeing. Engaging with service providers to improve individual services and how well they join up in the streets and households of your neighbourhood, can be a practical way of improving the area.
Page Links from here
The 21st Century Public Servant is a report by Catherine Needham and Catherine Mangan at Birmingham University which looks at how public service and what it means to provide public services is changing. There is a website about the project.
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BIRMINGHAM COMMUNITY PLANNING TOOLKIT DEFINITION SHEET
This sheet may be reproduced in paper or electromic or any other form but please mention it was made by Chamberlain Forum Limited for Birmingham City Council supported by Department for Communities and Local Government.