PJA were commissioned by Great Abington Parish Council to prepare a Transport Statement (TS) in support of the emerging Neighbourhood Plan (NP) for the former Land Settlement Association (LSA) Estate located to the south of Great Abington, Cambridgeshire. The purpose of the NP is to set a framework for future development of the Land Settlement.
The essential aim of the statement was to address the issues raised by South Cambridgeshire District Council (SCDC) with regard to the increase in traffic that is likely to arise from any additional residential dwellings. PJA successfully provided advice and assessed the transport implications of the worst-case scenario in terms of the number and locations of additional dwellings that could be built within the NP area.
Following a detailed site visit and meeting with the Parish Council, PJA assessed the existing access arrangements and internal roads to identify the potential for infrastructure improvements. The use of geographical information system (GIS) software allowed for visual presentation of existing passing points on the otherwise narrow former LSA Estate road network and demonstrated that the potential for conflicting vehicle movements to occur along the estate roads is limited.
PJA quantified the likely transport impact associated with the proposals with help of detailed travel demand models as well as analysis of traffic volume and speed surveys undertaken at the site access points.
Information about committed developments within the area and review of capacity assessments at nearby junctions were used to demonstrate the negligible cumulative transport impact of the potential housing delivery within the former LSA Estate.
In addition, due to construction traffic and the presence of a range of commercial facilities within the former LSA Estate, PJA carried out a swept-path analysis and impact assessment of heavy good vehicles which identified the requirement for a pavement core test prior to construction works being undertaken within the NP area.
The NP for the former LSA Estate at Great Abington 2018 to 2031 was adopted by SCDC on 21st February 2019.
