Testun llawn:
Background
This paper provides views from the County Council's Transport Planning Group and Development Group on the transport implications of Warwick District Council's Core Strategy Development Plan Document Alternative Sites Consultation.
The advice provided in this submission gives an indication of:
(i) The immediate issues relating to the provision of a suitable access (or accesses) to the highway network to serve the proposed sites;
(ii) The broad impacts that the development of these sites would have on the immediate and wider transport network; and
(iii) The types of transport measures which would be required to come forward to support the development of these sites and mitigate their impact on the transport network.
Due to the status of the consultation and the isolated nature of the sites, we have not undertaken any specific traffic modelling to evaluate their individual or combined impact on the transport network. As such, the observations provided below are necessarily strategic. at this stage .
Alternative Sites 1a and 1b: Kenilworth Wardens Cricket Club and
Woodside Training Centre, Glasshouse Lane, Kenilworth
Highway Access
Area incorporating the Woodside Management Training Centre - Access would need to be provided towards the northern boundary of the site away from the apex of the bend of Glasshouse Lane. Notwithstanding this comment, the ability to attain suitable visibility would still need to be fully assessed.
Area incorporating The Wardens Cricket Club and Sports Ground - Again access would need to be to the away from the bend on Glasshouse Lane by locating it towards the southern boundary of the site. Visibility would again need to be checked to ensure that the required standards can be attained.
As these areas abut one another it would be recommended that if they were developed independently, a form of emergency access would need to be provided between the two sites by way of a pedestrian/cycle link.
Broad Transport Impacts
The sites would generate additional traffic on Glasshouse Lane/Birches Lane and Crew Lane, with resulting impacts at the junctions of Birches Lane/St Johns Gyratory, Glasshouse Lane/Crew Lane, Crew Lane/B4i15 Stoneleigh Road and Knowle Hill/Dalehouse Lane. These currently experience varying degrees of congestion at peak times of the day. The sites are poorly related to the existing public transport network, both in terms of the town services within Kenilworth, and longer distance services to Coventry, Leamington Spa and Warwick. The nearest bus services of any significant frequency are currently located on Leyes Lane in terms of the regular X 17 Coventry to Warwick route, however this would require a walk of between % -% mile depending on where you were located within the site. Similar walking distances would be required to access the nearest shops on Leyes Lane. The distance of the sites to/from Kenilworth town centre may also limit the role of walking and cycling.
Mitigation Measures
Modelling of the site would need to be undertaken to identify the scale of any highway improvements which would be required at the junctions described above. This may include modifications such as signalisation and/or safety improvements.
The spatial position of the sites mean that they would be difficult to serve by public transport. Stagecoach would be unlikely to divert the existing X17 service, therefore the only option would be to revise the route and hours of operation of one of the town services. This on its own would be unlikely to result in a high modal share for bus frotyl the site, given that demand from the site would primarily be towards Coventry, Leamington Spa and Warwick.
Good pedestrian and cycle routes will need to be provided towards Leyes Lane and the two nearest education facilities (Park Hill Junior School and Kenilworth Secondary School), including appropriate crossing facilities on Glasshouse Lane. This may necessitate a change to the speed limit on the section of the road between Dencer Drive and Edwards Grove.
Alternative Site 2: Land at Campion School/South of Sydenham
Highway Access
Potential accesses to serve the proposed development may be achievable from Sydenham Drive, Withy Bank, Hastings Fields and Moncrieff Drive. If a preferred access were to be identified from these options, the alternatives could be used to provide emergency access to the site. There is also potential for pedestrian/cycle links to be provided into the site from Church Lane and
Fieldgate Lane.
Broad Transport Impacts
The scale of this site goes well beyond that proposed within the District Council's LDF Core Strategy Preferred Option. As such, its impact will be far more significant in transport terms. The barrier formed by the Leamington Spa to Banbury rail line to the west of the site and the limited crossings thereof mean that the highway impacts of the site will all be channelled towards the residential areas off Chesterton Drive, Sydenham Drive, Prospect Road/Grosvenor Road and Calder Walk/Gainsborough Drive. Wider impacts will also be experienced at the junction of Sydenham Drive and the A425 Radford Road. Despite proximity to the Service 67 bus service, a large proportion of the site is remote from the public transport network. The site is also some way from the town centre, which may limit the role of walking and cycling.
Mitigation Measures
If this site were to go forward with the scale of development proposed, it would clearly need to be well served by public transport. This would necessitate a further extension of Service 67 into the site via 8t Fremund Way, including an increase in frequenQY from every 15 minutes to every 10-12 minutes (as per Service G1 'Gold line'). Good pedestrian and cycle routes within and to/from the site would also need to be provided, particularly to the relocated school and any local shopping facilities. The links over and under the railway line at Church Lane and Fieldgate Lane respectively will need to be maximised for pedestrian and cycle access. The existing bridleway from Church Lane towards Barn Farm and Radford Semele would need to be improved in order to make it appropriat~ for use by bicycles.
Modelling of the site would need to be undertaken to identify the scale of any highway improvements which would be required on the roads to the north of the site (as described above). This would need to -include an assessment of the modifications that would be required to the junction of Prospect Road/Sydenham Drive/Chesterton Drive, as well as area-wide traffic management safety improvements.
Alternative Site 3: Glebe Farm, Cubbington
Highway Access
Any potential for development on this site would be limited by the number of potential access points to the existing highway network in this area, these being Cheviot Rise and Oakridge Close. There are potential issues with visibility in relation to any access from the site onto Offchurch Road / Windmill Hill. Realistically therefore, even with an option to secure third party land, it is unlikely that satisfactory access(es) could be attained to serve the development of the entire site. As such, the nature of the surrounding highway network is likely to constrain the scale of development which can be achieved on the site, particularly given the need for multiple access points.
Broad Transport Impacts
Subject t6 achieving a satisfactory access onto Offchurch Road/Windmill Hill, the development would result in a very concentrated impact of traffic on this corridor with resulting impacts at the junctions of Windmill Hill/B4453 Rugby Road/ Cubbington Road/Kenilworth Road, 84453 Cubbington Road/A445 Lillington Road, Kenilworth Road/A445 Leicester LanelWesthill Road, Westhill Road/B4113 Stoneleigh Road/Bericote Road, and Bericote Road/A452 Kenilworth Road.
The site has reasonably good proximity to existing bus services in the area, including Services 67 and 68 along the Cubbington Road and Parklands Avenue (Service 68 only). Parts of the site are also in reasonable walking and cycling distance to the neighbourhood centres at Cubbington and Lillington, although these would be somewhat remote from the south eastern edge of the development.
Mitigation Measures
Modelling of the site would need to be undertaken to identify the scale of any highway improvements which would be required to the roads within the vicinity of the site. This may identifY the need for significant improvements to a number of the junctions described above, along with area-wide traffic management and/or safety improvements.
In order to improve public transport connectivity, it will be necessary to consider rerouting either Service 67 and/or Service 68 to serve the site, including improvements to frequency and hours of operation. Good pedestrian permeability from the west of the site through the existing residential area to the north east of Lillington should be provided to allow access on foot to bus services on Parklands Avenue. These links should also be available for cyclists to use, in order to ensure that a more direct, convenient route to and from the town centre is available.
Alternative Site 4: Loes Farm, Guy's Cliffe, Warwick
Highway Access
From the plan contained in the consultation document, there would appear to be five separate. areas that make up this site. Comments on each of these in relation to highway access are provided below. Area immediately to the south of Hintons Nursery - This would be suitable for a small scale development. There is potential for an access to be provided from the A429 Coventry Road to serve this site.
Larger area to the north of Hintons Nursery - There is potential to provide an access from the A429 Coventry Road to serve this site. An emergency access would need to be considered which could potentially come from Primrose Hill in the form of a footlcycleway. Alternatively the private access road along the southern boundary of the site (Woodloes Lane) could be utilised as an emergency access. To the north of the site, there appear to be a number of recorded accidents on the A429 Coventry Road. Any supporting information regarding this site would need to consider the nature of these accidents, and demonstrate that any intensification of traffic would not exacerbate the situation.
Triangular area to the south of the A46 Roundabout - It may be possible to provide a potential access to serve this site from the A429 Coventry Road along the section of the route prior to the dual carriageway. There could however be some issues with visibility due to the embankment to the north of the site.
Area to the south of Gaveston Wood Cottages - Without third party land, there are limited opportunities to provide a suitable access to serve this site. Notwithstanding, the current access road from Warwick Road does not meet an adoptable standard, and there is little scope for this to be improved in order to achieve the appropriate standard. There is also little scope for an emergency access to be provided to serve the site.
Area to the north-east of the A46 Warwick Bypass - There is no scope to achieve an acceptable access onto the public highway to serve this site.
Broad Transport Impacts
Certain areas of this site (particularly those located to the south of theA46) have already been considered as part of previous work undertaken by the County Council on behalf on the District '90uncil. The main implications of development on these parts of the site would be experienced on the A429 Coventry Road, with resultant impacts on the A429/A46 (southbound access), A429/A46/B4115 and A429/Primrose Hill/Spinney Hill junctions. The development would need to be modelled in order to quantify the scale of this impact.
In terms of the areas of the site to the north of the A46, their principal impact would be on the Warwick Road (south of Leek Wootton) and the A429/B4115 junction. Once again, modelling would be required to quantify the scale of this impact.
The areas of land to the south .of the A46 have reasonable proximity to bus services in the form of Service 16 (Coventry - Stratford-upon-Avon) and, to a lesser extent, Service G1 'Goldline'. Access to Service 16 is also available from the site to the north of the A46 nearest Warwick Road. There is also good access from certain elements of the site to the existing pedestrian/cycling facilities on Coventry Road between the Woodloes Roundabout and Leek Wootton. .
Mitigation Measures
Improvements to the junctions in the vicinity of the site (as described above) may be required, not least at the intersection of.the A429 Coventry Road with the A46 and at the Woodloes Roundabout. Good pedestrian and cycle access to the east and south will be particularly important in order to provide convenient access to the town centre, the cycling facilities on Coventry Road/Warwick Road and existing bus services. A contribution to meet the costs of increasing the frequency and hours of operation of Service 16 will be required, along with the provision of appropriate bus stop facilities on Coventry Road.
Alternative Site 5: Hurst Farm South, Burton Green
Highway Access
The location of the site limits the opportunity for access onto the strategic road
network, particularly in view of the proposed scale of development. With the possibility of securing third party land, this may enable a small area of land to be opened up for development. The alignment of Crackley Lane however reduces any potential points of access, and there are concerns regarding the potential impact that development would have on the nature and use of this road. Overall therefore there is little or no scope for development on this land. The remote location of this site and the lack of appropriate access to the highway network mean that the main impact of any development in this area would be experienced on what are essentially rural country lanes (i.e. Cryfield Grange Road, Crackley Lane and 80ckendon Road). This would have a resultant impact on the junctions of A429 Kenilworth Road/Cryfield GrangeRoad, A429 Coventry Road/Crackley Lane, A452 Beehive Hill/Hollis Lane and Westwood Heath Road/Brockendon Road. Development in this area would also place additional pressure on the already congested corridor between Warwick University, the A46, the 84115 and Stoneleigh village.
Despite its proximity to Warwick University, the site has a poor relationship to
the public transport network. The nearest services can be found on Red Lane/Cromwell Lane (Service 540) and Cromwell Lane/Tile Hill Station (Service 19), which provide links between Kenilworth - Burton Green and Coventry - Solihull respectively. There are also a number of services which either terminate or call at Warwick University. Apart from the existing rights of way which cross the site, there are no facilities for either pedestrians or cyclists in this area.
Mitigation Measures
Any increased use of Cryfield Grange Road, Crackley Lane and Bockendon Road would require these roads to be substantially upgraded in order to cope with the likely levels of traffic that would arise from development on this site.
Improvements to the various junctions identified above may also be required (including those in the Warwick University to A46 corridor), along with area wide traffic management and safety measures. Consideration would also need to be given to the rerouting of existing bus services in the area and/or provision of bespoke new services. These would need to link the site with Coventry, Kenilworth and Warwick. Good public transport, walking and cycling links would also need to be provided from the site to Tile Hill railway station. A contribution towards the cost of enhancing the parking facilities at the station may also be appropriate.
Alternative Site 6 - Land at Baginton
Highway Access
This proposed site would impact significantly on the local and strategic highway network, with limited scope for suitable access provision or improvement. There is also likely to be a significant impact on the villages of Baginton and Stoneleigh where there is little scope for the improvement of the network to mitigate against the impact of large scale development.
Broad Transport Impacts
The potential scale of development on this site and its limited connections to the local and strategic highway network would ultimately lead to the main impacts being experienced on Rowley Road, at the A45/A4114 Stivichall and A45/A46 Tollbar End Roundabouts, and on the rural roads in the area (Le. through Baginton village, Stoneleigh Road and Bubbenhall Road). Comments will need to be sought from the Highways Agency regarding the impact of this scale of development on the Stivichall and Tollbar End interchanges, particularly in the context of the proposed improvements which are planned to take place at these locations over the coming years.
As well as the impact on Baginton village itself, the development will impact on the A445 Leicester Lane/Coventry Road and A445IWeston Lane (near Bubbenhall) junctrons, along within Stoneleigh village (including Stoneleigh Bridge and the B4115/Birmingham Road junction) and Stareton.
Public transport facilities in the area are limited to the infrequent Service 539 (Kenilworth - Coventry). The proximity of the A46, A45, Finham Sewerage Works and Coventry Airport also mean that existing and future pedestrian/cycle penetration of the site will be challenging.
Mitigation Measures
Subject to achieving suitable arrangements for highway access to serve the site, the level of necessary mitigation will be considerable. A new public transport network will need to be established, linking the site with Coventry, Kenilworth; Leamington Spa and Warwick. Significant improvements to the local road 'network would be required in order to cope with the likely levels of traffic that would arise from development on this site. Excellent pedestrian and cycle facilities would also be required to ensure that the development is well linked to surrounding trip attractors, including the existing employment facilities at Middlemarch Business Park (Siskin Drive), Stonebridge Trading Estate (Rowley Road) and Coventry Airport, as well as towards Coventry city centre.
Conclusions
Apart from the three areas of land to the south of the A46 which form part of Site 4, all of the alternative sites included within the consultation document have transport issues which to varying degrees will either be difficult or impossible to overcome. Based on the assessment provided above, we recommend that Sites 3, 5, 6 and the areas of land to the north of the A46 in Site 4 are not considered any further within the LDF process.
It is our considered view that Sites 5 and 6 have substantially inferior existing or potential transport links when compared to the proposed site at King's Hill near Finham/Gibbet Hill.
Although they do not offer any improvement over the sites which have been included within the LDF Core StrategyPreferred Option, Sites 1 and the areas of land to the south of the A46 in Site 4 may be worth further consideration, although our concerns in relation to each of these should be noted. We remain of the view that the scale of growth on Site 2 as proposed within the current LDF Core Strategy Preferred Option (i.e. ,200 dwellings) is considered appropriate.