Local Transport Plan for Kent 2006-11

4.1 Improving accessibility is recognised as an important issue at national and local levels and is amongst the shared priority objectives for Kent. In 2003, the Government produced 'Making the Connections: Final Report on Transport and Social Exclusion' which highlights specific barriers preventing residents reaching key destinations and employment. The constraints identified include the availability and accessibility of transport, cost of transport, location of employment and services, safety and security and limited travel horizons. These issues were developed by Government in its ' Guidance on Accessibility Planning in Local Transport Plans' although greater emphasis has been given to the involvement of other organisations with responsibility for the delivery of key services such as the National Health Service or Local Education Authority.

4.2 Although access to key services and employment can be improved by new or enhanced transport links, the accessibility planning process also encourages organisations to consider the structure, location and delivery of services or employment and identify ways in which they could be made easier to reach. Accessibility Planning is designed to deliver benefits for all residents although an emphasis is given to groups in the community which are currently socially excluded and need help to improve access to key life opportunities.

4.3 Kent is a varied county and includes areas of significant deprivation which are often characterised by relatively high unemployment, low levels of educational attainment and poor levels of health. The objectives of the accessibility planning process align closely to the County Council's own priorities and activities including the Vision for Kent which highlights the need to tackle a range of social, health and educational challenges with an emphasis on engaging communities and promoting independence. The strategy aims to promote economic renewal in the priority regeneration areas and coastal towns and improve health and wellbeing through enhancing access to learning, employment, business or leisure opportunities and reducing levels of unemployment.

4.4 Similarly, the Kent Local Area Agreement (LAA) provides a strategic vision with contributions from a range of public and private sector organisations. The LAA complements the 'Vision for Kent' and identifies a series of key outcomes including increasing school attendance, safer communities and tackling crime, reducing health inequalities and addressing variations in health.

4.5 The Supporting Independence Programme (SIP) was launched by the County Council in 2002. The initiative brings together a wide selection of partners in the public, business and voluntary sectors to implement co-ordinated initiatives which will help residents to lead more independent lives. SIP is based upon key strands of action including the analysis of welfare expenditure, assessing current activities, and developing specific actions in areas of need. Social inclusion is a key element of SIP and particular attention is given to groupings of the most deprived residents including school leavers with low educational attainment, people with alcohol and substance abuse, residents with health problems and the long term unemployed. The accessibility planning process aims to address similar issues and the County Council recognises the need to build upon existing studies and initiatives in this area of work.

Figure 4.1 Low Floor Bus on Thanet Loop Service

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4.6 Initial stakeholder consultation undertaken by the County Council in each of the sub areas identified accessibility as a high priority. The results from detailed focus groups emphasised widespread support for better public transport which makes a significant contribution to tackling social exclusion. Accessibility therefore forms a key principle throughout the Local Transport Plan and the County Council's policy framework and programme of expenditure contributes to improving access on the highway network and making it easier for residents to reach key destinations.

4.7 In addition to these areas, the Local Transport Plan will improve accessibility through other approaches including Road Safety with which the County Council aims to provide a safe and secure transport system for all users. Within the key activities of enforcement, education and engineering, priority is given to the protection of vulnerable road users including elderly residents, pedestrians and cyclists. The safety of children is also being addressed with particular emphasis on socially deprived areas which often have high child casualty levels. The LTP also addresses Personal Safety issues from which areas of work have been developed in the ASK.

4.8 The Smarter Choices programme encourages greater use of sustainable modes through a variety of 'soft' measures including school or workplace travel planning. These measures are effective in improving accessibility to employment and key facilities or services which contributes to tackling social exclusion in deprived parts of Kent. Investment in better facilities for walking and cycling is also provided through the LTP which will improve links from residential areas to key destinations and complements significant progress made in recent years.

4.9 The County Council also has an involvement in public transport planning which includes local bus and passenger rail services. Public transport is an important means for improving accessibility and tacking social exclusion and the County Council commits significant funding to the support of socially necessary bus services. These services ensure that links are provided between outlying rural areas and the key towns and comprise conventional routes and some demand responsive services which have been successfully introduced into areas such as Swale. In partnership with others, Quality Bus Partnerships are being developed across Kent which provide a framework through which existing services can be reviewed and operators encouraged to make revisions which improve accessibility. The Public Transport Information Strategy has also been recently revised through which the County Council aims to improve the quality of information available through new and existing methods.

4.10 Extensive work has also been undertaken with the rail industry to improve the quality, reliability and frequency of services and encourage investment in station facilities across Kent. The rail network is not used extensively outside the peak periods and the County Council aims to encourage greater use of services for local travel and as a means of accessing key life opportunities for local residents. This will also be achieved through increasing integration with local bus services and taxis and significant investment has been made in interchanges at strategic locations and other facilities such as cycle parking.

4.11 Whilst various elements of the LTP contribute to achieving accessibility objectives, transport authorities are also required to develop an accessibility strategy for which Government guidance recommended a five stage approach:

• Strategic accessibility assessment
• Local accessibility assessments
• Option appraisal
• Local accessibility action plans and measures to tackle accessibility
• Performance monitoring framework

4.12 The County Council produced the provisional Accessibility Strategy for Kent (ASK) in July 2005 which included a strategic accessibility assessment for the County and was produced with input from other key organisations including the Local Education Authority, Social Services, National Health Service and Kent Police. In addition to the strategic accessibility assessment, the provisional ASK also identified potential actions arising and was used as a consultation document for distribution to wider organisations across Kent including district councils and Primary Care Trusts.

4.13 The community engagement process validated the findings of the provisional ASK whilst further detail was provided on specific issues relevant certain groups or areas. This has informed the content of the final ASK which forms Appendix 2 of the LTP and reflects a range of diverse issues across the County but also outlines key actions to be taken. These include the development of specific initiatives and schemes in conjunction with other organisations but also involve further study work to provide a wider understanding of particular issues. In summary, the ASK provides a framework through which KCC and its partners will enable residents to reach employment and key services through improving the availability, affordability and accessibility of local public transport and through the design, location and delivery of the services themselves.

4.14 The following paragraphs provide an overview of issues identified for the key service areas and likely outputs over future years:

• Health: The provision of health care is a contentious issue and significant changes have been made to the delivery of services in Kent whilst further restructuring is expected to take place in future years. The County Council has improved partnership working with the Strategic Health Authority through the formation of a 'Department of Public Health'. This enables more effective co-ordination of the public health functions which will promote the health and wellbeing of Kent residents. The ASK is closely linked to these objectives and several specific initiatives have also been developed which contribute to improving access to health facilities. ' East Kent Direct ' is one such initiative between KCC and the National Health Service to improve accessibility to health facilities and increase the efficiency of transport services in the east of Kent. The ASK action plan has provided a means for using the findings of this work to develop initiatives designed to address specific issues including improvements to public transport information. Initial liaison has also taken place with the Swale Primary Care Trust to explore levels of access to nutritious food in deprived areas of Kent including the Isle of Sheppey.
• Crime & Safety: This is a key issue in some parts of the County which was identified through the provisional ASK and LTP and particular problems have been identified in areas of North Kent.The County Council is working in partnership with Kent Police, major transport operators and other organisations to tackle crime and security concerns on the transport network which hinders accessibility for local residents and increases social exclusion. In the initial period covered by the LTP, a number of schemes and initiatives are planned in north Kent including investment in passenger facilities and security improvements at Greenhithe station.This scheme is being funded by the County Council and addresses specific physical constraints inherent in the design of the existing station and improves interchange with taxis and local buses including 'Fastrack' services. In addition, the improvements will achieve a more attractive and secure environment which will increase passenger confidence and ensure that local residents are able to make greater use of local rail services to reach a range of destinations, particularly during the hours of darkness.  Wider improvements to the local bus network in the area include the installation of CCTV in local buses and shelters in localities where missile attacks and other vandalism is known to be prevalent. Significant investment is being made in local public transport in the area through the Fastrack scheme and, in addition, Arriva Southern Counties is refurbishing existing vehicles in the fleet to a high standard. Expanding the coverage of CCTV will improve security and safety across the local bus network and improve passenger confidence, particularly amongst vulnerable users whilst the incidence of damage to vehicles and infrastructure will be reduced thus creating a more attractive travelling environment. Finally, in partnership with Kent Police, the County Council is expanding coverage of the ' Automatic Number Plate Recognition ' system across north Kent. This system provides a more efficient system which enables the Police to track, pursue and apprehend individuals and allows resources to be otherwise deployed as appropriate.
• Employment: Access to employment has been explored in detail through partnership working with Job Centre Plus and the County Council's 'Supporting Independence Programme'. The research undertaken and evidence considered has demonstrated that work is difficult to reach from some areas of Kent whilst the constraints are greater for some members of the community than others. The accessibility action plan developed in the ASK focuses upon lone parents and teenage parents and proposes more detailed study work to identify barriers to employment in urban and rural areas of the County and determine suitable locations for employment creation. Initially, the programme of work addresses these issues in the deprived urban areas of Thanet and rural parts of Romney Marsh which are characterised by similar issues. In additional to transport and locational constraints, wider issues will also be explored to promote a co-ordinated approach including the specific needs of disabled people and a lack of childcare facilities which can make employment difficult to reach. Figure 4.2 shows the levels of accessibility by public transport from areas of Thanet to the new shopping centre at Westwood Cross which is a key employment hub for the area. The wards labelled are those with the highest percentages of single parents on income support. This includes Newington ward where 6.8% of the resident population are single parents on income support. Notably the journey from Cliftonville West ward to Westwood Cross by public transport exeeds 30 minutes which may prove a barrier to employment

Figure 4.2 Public Transport Accessibility to Westwood Cross Shopping Centre within the Thanet area based upon arrival between 0915 and 0945

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4.15 The County Council is also working with partners to incorporate accessibility planning into wider activities in order that locational decisions or the use of funding will be informed by accessibility considerations.

• Planning supported local bus services. During 2003, the County Council's criteria for supporting local bus services were adjusted to reflect the findings of 'Making the Connections: Final Report on Transport and Social Exclusion '. Through the ASK, the County Council will ensure that its revenue support budget is used as efficiently as possible to address specific accessibility constraints particularly to key services and employment.
• Development of Quality Bus Partnerships (QBPs). The County Council has successfully developed QBPs in some areas and proposals are being developed for additional partnerships in other parts of the County. The accessibility planning process will enable future QBPs to be focused on measures to improve specific parts of the existing network and accommodate new demand, particularly in the growth areas.
• Informing the location of education and health facilities. Significant changes are planned in the delivery of education and health services and the County Council will aim to work in partnership with the Local Education Authority and National Health Service to inform the location of new facilities. In the case of health facilities, some services are being transferred from hospitals to community health facilities and the County Council has established LTP indicators and targets measuring access to hospitals and doctors' surgeries to reflect this change in service delivery.
• Development planning. The district councils in Kent are the local planning authorities and responsible for producing Local Development Frameworks (LDFs) whilst, as transport authority the County Council provides transport input on large planning applications. The County Council is working with local planning authorities to make use of the accessibility planning process in developing LDFs and, in particular is encouraging use of 'Accession' outputs to inform the selection of development sites. Similarly, the County Council will increasingly make use of such outputs to inform its comments on major planning applications from a transport perspective. This will improve the integration of land use and transport planning at a strategic level.

Supporting Targets

4.16 The accessibility planning indicators and targets reflect key issues identified through the ASK and have been developed in conjunction with partners organisations.  The core indicators selected by the County Council are concerned with measuring accessibility to health facilities and reflect changes being made to the delivery of  services and the increasing emphasis on delivery at a local level.  The base line line data supplied by Government showed varying levels of accessibility across Kent and the County Council will be working in partnership with the National Health Service to address specific issues over future years.  The local indicators and targets are concerned with improving access to town centres by sustainable modes and are linked to wider County Council initiatives to enhance pedestrian access in Folkestone and the development of new Quality Bus Partnerships.