Policy TRA1: Sustainable Travel
Policy TRA1: Sustainable Travel
- The Neighbourhood Plan identifies the existing Sustainable Travel Network, as shown on the Policies Map, for the purpose of supporting healthy and safe active travel opportunities in the parish.
- Development proposals on land that lies within or adjacent to the Network should sustain, and where practicable, enhance the functionality of the Network by virtue of their layout and means of access.
- Proposals that seek to protect and/or enhance the functioning of the Network will be supported. As set out in the Horsford Transport Masterplan, landscaping such as street trees, planters and benches, that Increases the ‘village feel’ and complements bus-friendly traffic calming measures where appropriate, should be implemented within public areas.
- Key Locations, as shown on the Policies Map, have been identified as areas where public realm improvements and traffic mitigation measures are required to enhance the active travel environment and improve residential amenity and highway safety in the Horsford Transport Masterplan. Proposals which deliver such public realm improvements and traffic mitigation measures at Key Locations will be supported.
- Development proposals will be required to contribute to public realm improvements and traffic mitigation measures identified in the Horsford Transport Masterplan provided they directly relate to the impact of the proposed development.
- Proposals required to submit Transport Assessments, or similar submissions, will need to demonstrate in their submissions how the iRAP1 outcomes of the Horsford Transport Masterplan, have been supported by their proposals.
- The International Road Assessment Programme (iRAP) is a tool to support making roads safer for all road users. ↩︎
View the Sustainable Travel Network on our Policy Map
- Road safety matters continue to be a principal concern in the community of Horsford. In 2022 the Parish Council commissioned a Transport Masterplan for the village with the aim of creating a place that residents can feel proud to live in and feel safe travelling around on foot and bicycle. The Transport Masterplan is aimed at improving the environment within the village for non-motorised road users including pedestrians and cyclists. Whilst the volume and speed of traffic through the village continues to be an issue that cannot be directly addressed through planning policy, the policy seeks to encourage safe, accessible, convenient and enjoyable means of walking and cycling in the Parish and as far as possible deliver the aims of the Horsford Transport Masterplan
- The policy identifies the existing walking, cycling and public transport routes and the Key Locations where public realm improvements and traffic mitigation measures have been identified in the Horsford Transport Masterplan. The Horsford Transport Masterplan contains specific details on the extent of public realm improvements and traffic mitigation measures sought and is published alongside the Plan. The Policies Map shows the full extent of the Network and these Key Locations, which allows applicants to determine if their proposals should take this policy into account. Where proposals include provision for amenity spaces, landscaping, new means of access or new layouts, there may be an opportunity to relate the land better to the Network and/or improve the attractiveness and connectivity of routes. Proposals should therefore consider this in the design of their schemes without undermining other planning policy objectives. At the very least, the policy requires that proposals that will undermine the existing value of the Network, or opportunities for improvement, will be refused permission. The policy therefore refines the provisions of Broadland Development Management DPD Policy TS1 by identifying specific locations for improvements to the transport network.
- To facilitate the movement of pedestrians, cyclists and access to public transport, it should be noted that the Horsford Design Code document makes the observation that “There is a clear need for parking provisions in Horsford as the streets are often overwhelmed with parking which has a negative impact on the appearance of the village, the levels of active movement, pedestrian safety, access to local amenities and the overall rural feel which is crucial to the identity of Horsford. In addition to providing adequate private parking, new development should further enhance the connectivity, access and movement through the neighbourhood area by ensuring pedestrian safety from traffic, utilising wayfinding methods to improve the village’s legibility and supporting local Public Rights of Way that will encourage movement into, through and out of the village.” Design Code CM.02 says, “New development must provide adequate parking spaces to avoid excess on-street parking that infringes on the pedestrian realm. Parking integrated within the curtilage of the dwelling is often the most successful approach and should be designed at an early development stage. Parking at the rear of the dwelling or in a dedicated parking court should be avoided.” In addition, new residential development should incorporate the Norfolk County Council ‘Parking Guidelines for New Developments in Norfolk, 2022’ which includes standards for visitor parking (1 space for every 5 dwellings) and other matters relating to residential and non-residential parking (including design standards).
- The Parish Council is actively working with relevant stakeholders to start delivering the public realm improvements and traffic mitigation measures which have been identified as part of the Horsford Transport Masterplan with the focus currently being on improving the safety of the crossing on Holt Road just a few metres away from the junction with Mill Lane following a serious accident involving a pedestrian on Christmas Eve in 2023. A Puffin Crossing was installed at the Holt Road/Mill Lane junction during October/November 2024 and crossing is now fully pedestrian controlled. Additional lighting has been provided by NCC Highways to make the crossing more visible/safer after dark.
- The Broadland Northway has increased to nearly 14,000 traffic movements a day through the village and the Norwich Western Link Project (NWL), was predicting that this would increase even more. However, the NWL project is suspended for the time being as the decision has been made to withdraw the current planning application and prioritise discussions with the Department for Transport (DfT) on the way forward for the project
- The Horsford Transport Masterplan contains an iRAP assessment of the existing situation in Horsford as well as an iRAP assessment with the Masterplan measures implemented (‘the iRAP outcomes’). To ensure that schemes do not harm the iRAP outcomes of the Horsford Transport Masterplan and consider ‘built-in’ safety in the provision of new roads for all road users, Clause F of the policy requires proposals which must submit Transport Assessments, or similar submissions, to demonstrate how their schemes contribute to the iRAP outcomes of the Horsford Transport Masterplan.
- The policy complements Policy 2 of the GNLP which seeks to ensure safe and convenient access for all and Broadland Development Management DPD Policies TS2 and TS3 which support the requirement to deal with any transport and travel consequences of schemes and satisfactory functioning and safety of the highway network. These provisions will continue to apply alongside the provisions of this policy, until such a time that it is replaced, either by national development management policies, or a future review of the DPD and/or this Neighbourhood Plan.