Sustainable Travel

What is Sustainable Travel?

Sustainable travel is all about reducing the number of people making single-purpose, single-occupancy car trips. It is about encouraging travel by non-car modes such as walking, cycling and public transport.

Sustainability in the way people travel is at the heart of transport planning. National and local planning policies require developments to reduce and mitigate the impacts of development traffic. Doing so can positively affect highway safety and junction capacity.

New developments have the potential to add more vehicles to the roads. By promoting and facilitating sustainable travel as part of the development, more people will move about by walking, cycling and using public transport.

These sustainable travel modes are much better for the environment and public health. Non-car travel results in lower carbon dioxide emissions, more effective energy use, and less frequent infrastructure maintenance.

Sustainable Travel in Planning Policy

The National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) sets out planning policies for new developments across England. It states:

“Planning policies and decisions should support development that makes efficient use of land, taking into account: …the scope to promote sustainable travel modes that limit future car use.”

NPPF 2023 paragraph 128

“Transport issues should be considered from the earliest stages of plan-making and development proposals, so that: …opportunities to promote walking, cycling and public transport use are identified and pursued;”

NPPF 2023 paragraph 108

“In assessing sites that may be allocated for development in plans, or specific applications for development, it should be ensured that: …appropriate opportunities to promote sustainable transport modes can be – or have been – taken up, given the type of development and its location;”

NPPF 2023 paragraph 114

Local planning policies follow these guiding principles of putting sustainable travel first.

How can Connect Consultants Help?

Connect Consultants’ Transport Planning and Highway Design teams have an excellent track-record of advising our clients on effective and successful sustainable travel solutions for their development proposals.

We undertake access reviews and accessibility audits to establish the available non-car travel options for a development site. And we work with the project team to identify suitable opportunities for improvements to help meet policy objectives, paving the way to planning success.

You can use us to advise on the most cost-effective, proportionate measures to meet these aims. This may involve liaising with highway authority officers, public transport operators and organisations such as Sustrans and Bikeability.

We can assist with a wide range of sustainable travel schemes, from a single new pedestrian crossing, a new footway/cycleway, right up to a comprehensive mobility strategy for a strategic development which could include a travel plan, new bus routes, transport hub, electric car club, implementation phasing strategy, and viability analysis.