Local Transport Plan for Kent 2006-11

6.1 Increasing congestion is one of the County’s biggest problems. Increasing car ownership, a lack of suitable alternatives, future planned growth and Kent’s role as the gateway to Europe all combine to put extra pressure on Kent’s transport network, reducing journey time reliability, causing extra delay and affecting local communities through poor air quality and noise. The M20/A20(T) and the M2/A2(T) currently carry over 8 million cross-channel vehicles per year, representing an additional 20,000 vehicles per day on top of the traffic generated from Kent's 1.3 million residents.

6.2 The private car is a very successful and attractive mode of travel and in Kent, 78% of households own one or more cars. The overall cost of motoring has remained at or below its 1980 level compared with the 37% rise in bus, coach and rail fares. The private car therefore remains the dominant mode of travel for journeys to work, representing 67% of all work trips made and is exacerbated by Kent’s dispersed settlement pattern which results in a high proportion of intra and inter-district commuting.

6.3 The Government's projections for traffic growth to 2025, based on the National Transport Model, predict that traffic in England will grow by 26% between 2000 and 2010. At a regional level, it is likely that the rate of growth in car ownership and traffic levels in the South East region will be above the average figure predicted for England.

6.4 Throughout  the community and partner engagement process for the Plan, the prospect of congestion charging was debated. Residents and partners unanimously rejected the introduction of such measures in the short term in the absence of satisfactory public transport alternatives. It was for this reason, coupled with the risk of adverse economic impact upon the County's towns that this Plan emphasises other types of demand management in the shorter term. However, for the longer term, the County Council is keen to investigate with the Highways Agency and freight industry the impact and feasibility of introducing a road user charging scheme for the County with the aim of recovering costs from the significant amount of international traffic travelling through Kent. To this end KCC will investigate with the Government and partners what needs to be done to follow up the unsuccessful bid submitted to the Government's Transport Innovation Fund in 2005. If successful, this will enable the concept to be investigated further.

6.5 Driven by the community engagement, shared priorities and initial outcomes from the SEA process, Kent’s increased emphasis on demand management represents perhaps the most fundamental policy step change from LTP1. Kent’s strategy comprises five broad approaches:-

• Introducing better public transport services and infrastructure, improving walking and cycling facilities and reallocating road space and managing of traffic in favour of these sustainable alternatives,
• Active management of the availability, cost and enforcement of parking provision at the journey destination
• Raising awareness of the impact of travel and the availability of alternatives relevant to people’s needs to promote behavioural change
• A consistent approach to new development to ensure the demand for travel they create is met in sustainable ways
• Measures to restrain car use and reduce the need to travel to access goods and services

Figure 6.1 A282 Approach to Dartford River Crossing

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6.6 Since Kent lacks one large urban area with a population above 250,000, KCC is not currently required to set an LTP target for reducing congestion, but congestion and its impact on Kent’s economy and communities is a priority for KCC. KCC was one of the first local authorities to appoint a Traffic Manager and is keen to carry out its Network Management Duty under the Traffic Management Act. Part of this duty is to identify current and future causes of congestion and to put into place policies and procedures for managing traffic growth. These policies are contained in this section of the LTP as well as in the LTP Objectives under Keep Kent Moving, Demand Management and Sustainable Regeneration. This Chapter elaborates on the approach KCC is taking to identify and plan for congestion within the County, the identification of potential indicators for the future and the LTP Policies which will aim to reduce congestion.

General Approach

6.7 Work has already started in many urban areas of the County to look at tackling congestion and three areas have been chosen for consideration which suffer from the worse congestion. These are the urban areas of Canterbury, Maidstone and Tunbridge Wells.

6.8 The city of Canterbury depends on a large net inflow of commuters to support the level of jobs in the area as well as an influx of secondary school children, shoppers and tourists. Canterbury suffers from significant congestion, especially on the inner ring road and inner radial routes and this is threatening the historic fabric of the city. Maidstone is the county town of Kent, being a centre for business, retail and administration. It is located close to the County's motorway and trunk road network and therefore has good links to the rest of the UK and to the coast via the M20. Localised traffic congestion and poor journey time reliability is increasingly common on many local roads. Tunbridge Wells is a large attractive town that acts as the main shopping, educational and business centre for the surrounding sub-region. The road network is radial, focussing on the town centre and is heavily congested in the morning and evening peak periods. The A26 through Southborough suffers congestion throughout the day, being the main link between Tonbridge, the A21 and Tunbridge Wells.

Figure 6.2 Canterbury Ring Road

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6.9 A series of “Congestion Plans” are being prepared for each of these urban areas which will summarise the key issues relating to congestion based upon local knowledge and professional judgement. They will form a useful way of crystallising thinking, focussing on what is achievable now and in the future and informing future work.

6.10 Following the three initial studies, the remaining urban areas to be looked at will be:

Thanet, Kent Thameside, Ashford, Tonbridge, Sevenoaks, Medway Valley, Dover, Sittingbourne/ Faversham and Folkestone/Hythe

Congestion Hot Spots

6.11 Alongside the larger urban areas where congestion can cover a larger area, KCC recognises that there are bottlenecks dotted around the County which suffer from queuing and delays. As part of the Network Management Duty, KCC is required to identify, prioritise and address the locations that are considered to be the most serious contributors to congestion of the highway network. In response, KCC has looked to identify these congestion “hot spots” on local roads in the County.

6.12 Kent County Council has considered various methods of site identification including public consultation and objective measurement procedures. However after researching advice and publications from professional bodies, it became clear that the subject of congestion and management of the network have widely altering connotations for each individual road user, dependent upon their priorities.

6.13 Therefore, a body of representative road users, including public transport operators, the emergency services, specialist transport engineers from a variety of organisations along with local representation, partners and stakeholders were asked to draw up a comprehensive list of the areas or locations. The final inventory consists of over 100 sites and KCC will prioritise these locations using criteria provided by the Department of Transport, using various factors such as demand, air quality and delay in average journey times.

6.14 The data and statistics gathered from these procedures will allow Kent County Council to carry out thorough investigations at each site to establish the best way to tackle the congestion and to manage the flow of traffic on the network. These processes may identify a requirement for major schemes that require a long-term approach and significant funding such as the redesigning of the existing road network. Alternatively relatively minor projects such as the provision of new traffic signs have a smaller cost implication and may be carried out as short and medium term undertakings. All schemes will identify provisions for all road users including drivers, public transport, cyclists and pedestrians. This identification process must take into account the needs of all road users including cars, freight, pedestrians, public transport, cyclists and equestrians along with those users with special requirements such as the disabled, blind and mobility impaired.

6.15 It is also necessary to consider the impact of future development across the County in order that any forecasted increase in traffic demand can be determined and addressed to prevent the network reaching a detrimental level of congestion. A planned and co-ordinated approach to achieving the fine balance between required development and its influence on the highway infrastructure is essential.

Growth Areas

6.16 The Network Management Duty not only requires local authorities to identify current causes of congestion but also future causes of congestion. This is particularly important in Kent since two of the four ODPM Growth Areas are located in the County. 30,000 houses are proposed for Kent Thames-side and 31,000 new homes for Ashford. This will be accompanied by 50,000 new jobs in Kent Thameside and 28,000 new jobs in Ashford. Transport measures are already being introduced that will look to handle this growth.

Kent Thameside Growth Area

6.17 It is recognised that the level of development as aspired to in the Communities Plan cannot happen within the restraints of the transport system in Kent Thameside. The network would very quickly reach saturation with unacceptable levels of congestion. It is also recognised that simply providing additional road capacity to cater for the extra traffic generated by development is not possible either from or a policy perspective or considering the existing environment ie development within and around existing communities.

6.18 The response to addressing the congestion issue is Fastrack. This is a bus-based transit system running on dedicated track and bus lanes which will link new and existing developments with the town centres, rail interchanges and major attractions such as Bluewater shopping centre. The first phase of Fastrack will commence operation in March 2006 with further phases and route additions as development takes place. It is an ambitious project. The Fastrack Business Case shows the proportion of public transport trips increasing from 7% in 2001 to 21% in 2025, a threefold increase. This will be achieved through a "turn up and go" service that will build from an initial 10 minute frequency to a 3 minute frequency as development nears completion. Fastrack is a critical project which, by ensuring its provision with development not after the event, will alleviate congestion within KTS and facilitate the development aspirations of the ODPM.

6.19 Consideration of congestion and demand management in KTS has to be done with the Highways Agency as the A2 and M25 are critical to the local transport network. There is work currently being carried out to match the limits of development against the transport capacity without the network reaching unacceptable levels of congestion. This will allow a planned approach to development and infrastructure provision to manage congestion. An essential part of this work is demand management. KCC is working closely with the Highways Agency on potential demand management measures such as ramp metering or HOV lanes.

6.20 An outline TIF bid was submitted to DfT for a study into demand management measures in KTS. This has not been funded but further discussions are needed with DfT to see how this bid could be developed.

Ashford Growth Area

6.21 Detailed work on the Greater Ashforfd Development Framework has lead to to the formulation of the Ashford Transport Strategy . This plans a broad-based approach to tackling potential congestion in the future. Ashford suffers from little congestion at the moment, but with the provision of 31,000 additional homes and 28,000 additional jobs by 2031 then, without a very extensive highway building programme, congestion would be substantial. The Transport Strategy therefore advances an integrated programme to manage car trip demand as follows:

• A bus based rapid transit system called SMARTLINK
• Improvements in classic bus services through a Quality Bus Partnership
• A land use strategy to minimise travel demand
• Park & Ride services
• A comprehensive quality cycling and walking network
• A step improvement in transport information and communications
• A car parking strategy to manage supply and cost

6.22 With all these measures in place it is predicted that the public transport modal share would increase from 4% to around 12%, equivalent to a 15% reduction in the overall car mode share, that would limit congestion to broadly acceptable levels.

Figure 6.3 Ashford

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Congestion Targets

6.23 In its Autumn Performance Report, the Department for Transport announced that it had set two targets for congestion. These targets are PSA targets, set for services or outcomes which the Government sees as key national priorities.

• SR2004 PSA target By 2007-08, make journeys more reliable on the strategic road network (PSA1)
• SR2004 PSA target By 2010-11, the ten largest urban areas will meet the congestion targets set in their Local Transport Plan relating to movement on main roads into city centres (PSA4)

6.24 PSA1 is based on average vehicle delay on the slowest 10% of journeys on each of a set of 86 routes which together make up most of the Strategic Road Network in England. The baseline figure is to be published shortly. PSA4 will be judged by three indicators which are average vehicle delay, average person journey time and person ‘throughput’ and will apply to the ten largest urban areas who will publish targets for the period 2006-07 to 2010-11 in their final LTPs in March 2006. The DfT is working with these councils on this targets setting.

6.25 Kent is not covered by this requirement to set a local congestion target for PSA4 since it does not contain a sufficiently large urban area but KCC still regards congestion as a major problem and is committed to “keeping Kent moving”. It is the aim of Kent County Council to develop considered evidence led approaches to the provision of the free flow of traffic. The implementation of cost effective and innovative solutions will target the demands and address the needs of road users and accurate and timely information provision will enable the travelling public to make informed choices relating to both their journeys and their mode of transport. KCC will look to work with the targets the Government have set in developing targets in the future.

6.26 Some of the current LTP targets are related to congestion. Mandatory target LTP2 looks to limit traffic growth to less than 2% per annum while mandatory target LTP6 whcih measures peak hour traffic applies to the urban area of Thanet (Broadstairs, Margate and Ramsgate). Other targets to promote alternative forms of transport will also help to reduce congestion. BVPI 102 Bus Patronage, LTP3 Cycling in Kent (increase the number of daily cycle trips) and LTP4 Mode Share of Journeys to School are some examples of these. Two similar local targets include KLTP4 Bus Patronage in Quality Bus Partnership areas and KLTP6 Cycling in Ashford.

Beyond 2010/11

6.27 KCC recognises that congestion will continue to be one the main transport challenges in Kent after 2011. The work on congestion currently being planned will put KCC in a strong position to deal with the problems of congestion in the future, especially in targetting where congestion and delay is worse. It is also expected, with the ongoing work on national road user pricing, that a form of congestion charging will become more widely accepted as a method of manging traffic growth and that local authorities, beyond those larger urban areas, will be expected to set targets for reducing congestion. As described in paragraph 6.4, above, the County Council is keen to investigate with the Highways Agency and freight industry the impact and feasibility of introducing a road user charging scheme for the County with the aim of recovering costs from the significant amount of international traffic travelling through Kent. Road user charging may also be feasible and appropriate in Kent's principal towns. To this end KCC will investigate with the Government and partners what needs to be done to follow up the unsuccessful bid submitted to the Government's Transport Innovation Fund in 2005. If successful, this will enable the concept to be investigated further. 

6.28 Along with demand management, the way in which the County Council uses the powers within and meets the duties of the Traffic Management Act will be central to reducing congestion and pollution problems in Kent. The County Council recognises its duties under the Traffic Management Act 2004 (TMA) to manage the local highway network in order to keep congestion and disruption to a minimum. Kent County Council was the first authority to appoint a Traffic Manager who has been in post since October 2003. Following this appointment, a review of the Network Management Duty was carried out in order to determine clear roles and responsibilities with regard to actions that may be taken to meet the requirements of the Traffic Management Act. As part of this process the County Council has worked extensively with partners to prepare the Network Management Plan (NMP),  which is attached to this Plan as Appendix 4. Through the Traffic Management Steering Groups and Congestion Management Stakeholder Group, a consensus has been built up which, along with the duties from the Act, has been the key driver in the formulation of the policies and underlying strategy summarised below.

6.29 To carry out the duties of the TMA, KCC will:-

• deliver a co-ordinated, planned and effective response to the network management duty across its whole organisation.
• work with other partners (especially those responsible for the primary road network, neighbouring local road networks and emergency services, passenger transport operators and the utilities) to ensure the best operation of the road network as a whole
• identify and address the needs of all road users, including pedestrians, cyclists, motor cyclists and those with disabilities, and adopt different specific policies and objectives for the different roads or classes of roads in their network
• establish a Traffic Management & Information Centre to monitor and manage traffic, tackle congestion and provide up to date information on road network conditions
• develop systems to communicate accurate and timely travel information to the public to enable users to make an informed choice on route and mode of travel
• work with others to develop a planned, evidence-led approach to known works and events, and organise them to minimise their impact on the road network, and develop contingencies for the unforeseen
• monitor the effectiveness of their processes and assess the implementation of procedures and strategies in managing the local road network
• work with partners to consider the best ways to deal with any prospective rise in demand

6.30 Central to these actions will be the use of Intelligent Transport Systems (ITS) - a range of computing and communications tools used to manage road traffic and other modes of transport. They can be used to improve decision making by network operators and users and enhance the level of service provided to all road users. Examples include:

• co-ordinating traffic signals to minimise delays and queues
• giving 'green waves' through traffic signals to improve emergency vehicle response times
• detection and management of incidents on the highway network
• intelligent bus priority & provision of real time information at bus stops
• electronic payment, 'smart cards' and flexible ticketing
• camera systems for traffic signal and speed enforcement
• internet sites displaying current network conditions and roadworks
• details of timetables, fares, connections and current disruptions
• Roadside variable message signs (VMS) to show incidents on the highway network and alternative routes or current journey times by car and public transport

6.31 Kent County Council has a long history of making use of ITS to carry out its transport policy objectives. For example, the County Council has been operating Urban Traffic Control since 1980 and, in 1983, implemented the UK’s first commercially purchased SCOOT system (an advanced adaptive method of signal control) in Maidstone. Kent County Council will continue to make full use of ITS tools and appropriate technologies to deliver innovative, cost effective improvements to the highway services it provides. A strategy for their development and deployment is attached as Appendix 6.

6.32 The key component of this strategy will be the establishment of a Kent Traffic Management and Information Centre (TMC). The TMC will provide an improved service to other network operators and the public by serving as a focal point for information about the Kent network and adjacent Highway Agency roads. Examples of the additional services will include:

• active management of traffic and management of incidents in urban areas
• liaison with Highways Agency Regional and National Control Centres, Police and other authorities
• provision of real time information to the public and media
• development of strategies to deal with incidents and unusual congestion

6.33 As in most authorities, ITS in Kent have been introduced incrementally over time with little integration of systems. There are many benefits to integration, particularly the ability to exchange data and information between systems and organisations. Kent County Council propose to adopt the UTMC (Urban Traffic Management and Control) approach using open standards and a common data management facility. This will allow an accurate picture of current network conditions to be created by combining information from different sources. For example, the location of roadworks can be combined with information from UTC and the bus location system to identify the build up of congestion. TMC operators will then actively manage traffic to improve the situation where possible and provide accurate real time information on the situation. The UTMC system will allow strategies to be developed to tackle recurrent congestion by combining different ITS tools.

6.34 A particular problem in Kent is the interaction with the strategic road network.  The M2 and M20 corridors run through the county and incidents on either motorway have a serious impact on towns such as Maidstone. Working groups comprising representatives of the Regional Control Centre, KCC, Police and other stakeholders are meeting regularly in order to develop improved ways to manage incidents, congestion and strategic diversion routes. To facilitate this it is planned to link the urban and Highways Agency control systems. In addition, a joint HA/KCC Project Board is to be set up to manage the introduction of enhanced control and information systems on M20 Junctions 5 to 7.

6.35 The Centre will be operational in the autumn of 2006. ITS tools, such as those listed above, will be used in Kent during LTP2 to deliver real outcomes from transport policy objectives, ultimately including less congestion (and pollution) overall, but specifically producing :-

• more efficient, safer, less polluting, cheaper, better informed travel;
• best use of the network we have (as a result of greater information gathering and improved decision making); 
• simplified and accurate public transport information;
• reduced effects of pollution from vehicles (by better traffic management);
• reduced number of accidents (by providing drivers with more information about conditions on the roads they are using);.
• helping drivers find the best route to their destination before and during their journey;
• improving the security of public transport passengers and staff by providing extra communications, CCTV and better information.

Figure 6.4 Variable Message Sign, Maidstone

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6.36 Integrated transport looks to persuade people to use their cars a little less and walk, cycle and use public transport a little more. This approach usually consists of a dual approach with restraining car use and encouraging the alternatives being introduced together. The obvious approach to encouraging cycling, walking, public transport is to provide conditions that make these modes more attractive, safer and convenient which are classed as “hard” measures since they usually require the building of infrastructure. There is another area of work which aims to influence people’s behaviour and are called soft measures since they do not restrain or change the highway environment. These “soft” measures have been classed and promoted by the Department of Transport as “Smarter Choices” and KCC has likewise adopted this title for this area of work.

6.37 Smarter Choices includes local programmes to encourage school, workplace and individualised travel planning; improving public transport information and marketing services; setting up web sites for car share schemes and supporting car clubs; and encouraging teleworking and teleconferencing. Smarter Choices contributes cost effectively to national and local priorities such as improving accessibility and social inclusion, encouraging regeneration, reducing pollution and carbon emissions and helping to increase levels of physical activity. In this way, they will impact on national strategies such as The Future of Transport, the Travelling to School Initiative; Choosing Health and Every Child Matters, as well as local strategies such as the Kent & Medway Structure Plan; local development plans and this LTP.

6.38 KCC has been active in these areas of work for some time and has established a dedicated team. The team has published its first strategy called Smarter Choices Kent, which covers the LTP2 period from 2006 to 2011. The plan provides a framework for moving forward, to provide Smarter Choices in Kent and to encourage people to consider and use alternatives to the car. The following is a summary of the plan which is attached to this LTP as Appendix 11.

Travel Planning

6.39 Travel Planning is a key demand management technique. Here measures are focused on locations (the workplace, school, shopping centre, hospital or leisure attraction) which generate traffic. Tailored initiatives are then designed around the people who are going to use them and schemes are delivered and marketed through an integrated plan of action. The County Council’s Travel Plan for County Hall in Maidstone has enabled the sustainable growth of the site from 1200 to 1600 staff without additional car parking.  A package of measures has helped deliver mode share benefits including increasing public transport share from 6 to 11% and a reduction in single occupancy car trips by 13% over 4 years.

6.40 School travel plans work best when the school is actively involved but with strong support from the authority. KCC has engaged 190 (29%) of its schools in travel planning since September 2004, with 92 schools completing travel plans to the standards required by the DfES/DfT’s Travelling to School initiative. This has been achieved by giving the schools personal contact, help and support. The team will continue to develop the good working relationships established with schools and share good practice through an information pack, a school travel plans roadshow and supporting curriculum material.

6.41 Workplace Travel Plans could cover a single site or a cluster of businesses, for example on a business park. KCC will lead by example, by establishing travel plans at 19 KCC offices with more than 100 staff. Other areas we will look to establish travel plan networks are in Canterbury, Maidstone/Aylesford and Tunbridge Wells. Countywide, KCC will actively promote workplace travel plans to 146 companies with more than 500 staff (Phase 1) and 325 companies with more than 200 staff (Phase 2). Existing Supplementary Planning Guidance will be strengthened to ensure that workplace travel plans are built into planning applications for all large or strategically significant developments.

6.42 Public Transport Information and Marketing. The County Council has well-established partnerships with public transport operators, with many good examples of area-wide projects, non-targeted marketing, promotion, information and re-branding of public transport services. There is potential to promote individual bus routes to the people most likely to use them through travel plans and other Smarter Choices. This will support the development and delivery of the Public Transport Information Strategy and promote public transport through school and workplace travel plans as well as promote initiatives with public transport operators.

6.43 Travel Awareness Campaigns Travel awareness campaigns aim to improve general public understanding of the problems caused by traffic growth and to encourage people to think about their own travel behaviour. Travel awareness campaigns tend to be aimed at the whole population rather than particular groups of people. KCC will promote a sustained TravelWise Canterbury campaign, phased over a number of years with similar New Ways 2 Travel campaigns in Maidstone/Aylesford and Tunbridge Wells.

6.44 Personalised Travel Planning Personalised travel planning is a targeted marketing technique, providing travel advice and information to people based on an understanding of their personal trip patterns. KCC is looking to develop an e-mail based personalised travel planning service to all new recruits at KCC (Phase 1) and to 34,000 existing members of staff (Phase 2). Other planned work includes personalised travel planning to workplace through travel plan co-ordinators and travel plan networks, linking to the Travel Line web site.

6.45 Car Sharing Smarter Choices also includes ways of reducing car use. Car sharing schemes are a way of achieving this and tend to be targeted at the daily commute, especially when 84% of vehicles for commuting and business carry only one occupant. The ways we will look to achieve this are through an Internet based, public access branded car share scheme (kentcarshare.com), a similar scheme for schools (kentschoolrun.org) and market the schemes in Canterbury, Maidstone/Aylesford and Tunbridge Wells using advertising on buses and through travel plan networks.

Figure 6.5 KCC Dual Fuel Pool Car

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6.46 Car Clubs A car club gives people access to a car whenever they need it, but without the high fixed costs of individual ownership. Car club members are able to mix and match their travel, using a car when that is the best option but travelling by public transport, on foot or by bike at other times.KCC will look to establish a car club at the County Hall complex in Maidstone; replacing the existing pool car scheme for County Council staff during office hours and available to local residents during evenings and weekends. Similar schemes at our Canterbury and Gravesend offices and at appropriate new developments will also be investigated.

6.47 Teleworking, Teleconferencing and Flexible Working Teleworking involves work that has to be done with a telephone and a computer and nationally, the number of teleworkers has been growing at 13% per year. The people most likely to telework are managers and people in professional, administrative, secretarial and skilled occupations. KCC’s policy on flexible working states that it is “committed to assisting its employees to achieve a balance between their work and personal lives, in the best interests of both service delivery and the wellbeing of individuals”. KCC will continue to promote initiatives such as flexitime, nine day fortnight, annualised hours, term time only working and part time work to County Council staff as well as pursuing teleconferencing facilities at County Hall and the Divisional Highways Offices.

6.48 Increased levels of walking for short trips can make a valuable contribution to reducing traffic congestion and pollution. Currently, nearly 64,000 people walk to work in Kent (nearly 13% of journeys to work) and walking has an important role forming part of a much larger proportion of all journeys. The County Council aims to improve on this to help deliver the LTP2 Objectives of improved integration, reversing the adverse effects of transport upon the environment, managing demand and sustainable regeneration.

6.49 As the local transport authority, KCC is responsible for managing the local highway network and works with local groups to encourage walking through a range of measures. Underneath LTP2, KCC has a Walking Strategy which guides and informs the work on walking. Some District Councils have written their own walking strategies such as Thanet’s “Feet First” while other councils, like Canterbury City Council, have published a joint “Walking and Cycling Strategy”. The implementation of the Folkestone Walking Strategy is a key element of promoting sustainable transport in the Shepway district between 2006 and 2011. During LTP2, KCC will:-

• improve utility routes to encourage modal shift in journeys to work and to school.
• improve and install pedestrian crossing facilities and pedestrian zones
• improve the Public Rights of Way network
• encourage children to walk to school through Kent’s dedicated team of school travel planners
• promote walking with KCC staff through travel plans and lunchtime walks
• concentrate upon improving linear routes into town centres
• tackle the negative safety and security perceptions of walking through awareness campaigns and improvements to the “street scene"
• encourage and require safe and secure walking routes to be built into new development through Kent Design

Figure 6.6 Walking Route in Canterbury

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6.50 Increased cycling means less traffic on Kent’s roads and consequently less congestion and pollution. Good progress has been made in Kent on cycling with over 490km of cycle network in the County and an increase of 56% in cycling levels over the life of LTP1. KCC has identified that its 2001 Cycling Strategy needs to be updated. This was highlighted in the 2002/03 CTC Benchmarking project in which KCC took part, with seven other local authorities. KCC’s work on cycling has also been assessed by the English Regional Cycling Development Team, a body set up by the Government to support local authorities in their work on cycling. KCC recognises that it needs to tackle the issues of increasing utility cycling within the main urban areas. Whilst the established leisure routes in East Kent will form a foundation to develop some of these urban networks, towns in West Kent will need to be tackled. This strategy has been finalised and is attached as Appendix 9.

6.51 In broad terms, the continued approach to cycling for LTP2 will be:-

• KCC will plan and implement networks of cycle friendly routes linking major destinations
• KCC will make Kent’s roads safer for cyclists
• KCC will promote the benefits and suitability of cycling

6.52 Underpinning these broad policy approaches is the range of integrated transport schemes identified for 2006-11 including cycle parking facilities, expanding the National Cycle Network, implementing Safer Routes to Schools, cycle crossings and so on. Additionally, KCC will continue to provide safe cycling training to school pupils and to work in partnership with cycle user groups. Local cycling organisations will continue to be consulted in early planning stages for routes and facilities so that their needs are provided for in finalised schemes, wherever possible. The need for good cycle routes and facilities associated with new developments is recognised through Kent Design and plans for cycle facilities are included in development briefs and plans. The levels of cycle parking and cycle facilities are included in KCC’s new Vehicle Parking Standards.

6.53 Effective management of parking is central to delivering the LTP2 Objective of Demand Management. Kent's district councils are responsible for the practical application of parking policy within a framework set by the County Council which aims to :-

• produce and implement local parking plans compatible with LTP2 covering the 12 district council areas in Kent,
• promote reduced/ maximum parking standards to contribute to sustainable communities and new developments
• deliver best practice in parking management through the Kent Parking Group

6.54 Local Parking Plans (LPPs) must accord with local objectives. Parking systems are made up of on and off street provision, they can be regulated in terms of quantity, length of stay and through charging regimes. Five Parking Plans have been developed in Kent. These cover Canterbury, Ashford, Tonbridge & Malling, Sevenoaks and Westerham. These plans will provided a basis for producing and implementing LPPs compatible with LTP2 covering each of the 12 district council areas in Kent. Locally determined targets will be included in each of the 12 local parking plans including reductions in total parking provisions where alternative sustainable travel options are introduced. Good enforcement is a key pre-requisite for effective implementation of LPPs. Kent was the first non-metropolitan County in the UK to be fully covered by decriminalised parking enforcement following the unilateral withdrawal of traffic wardens. As of July 2001, all of Kent's district councils adopted enforcement powers under the 1991 Road Traffic Act.

6.55 Both Kent County Council and Medway Council have adopted maximum Vehicle Parking Standards for different categories of land use. These constitute Supplementary Planning Guidance to the KMSP. The Traffic Management Act 2004 includes new powers to enforce parking and moving offences. These cover yellow box junctions, banned turns, one way streets, pedestrian areas and parking on pedestrian crossings and a new double parking offence. Enforcement using cameras and the issuing of Penalty Charge Notices by post is also covered. KCC is eager to take on powers under the Act to help deliver the LTP once the results of a series of trials have been published. The LTP includes packages of transport initiatives for the principal urban centres, as well as rural areas, promoting journeys by public transport, bicycle and on foot. To maximise their effectiveness in terms of value for money related to outcomes these packages must be integrated with local parking management schemes:

• Marketing of sustainable transport options within parking operations, for example discounted bus vouchers on the reverse of pay and display tickets;
• Targeted enforcement, for example to discourage bus stop parking focused on Quality Bus Partnership service and infrastructure enhancements or in areas around schools to support School Travel Plans; and
• Increasing car park charges to favour a public transport alternative where a viable alternative exists, for example in towns with park & ride systems

6.56 The availability of car parking encourages car use, contributing to increasing congestion as well as taking up land that could be used more productively.  KCC will look to restrain car use through the management of car parking, both on-street and in new development. To be effective the management of parking must be part of a balanced plan taking into account strategic and local land use, transport and environmental policies. The County Council does not consider that the introduction of workplace parking charges is appropriate for Kent, however, with effective enforcement systems up and running, Kent is well placed to deliver enhanced demand management through parking controls. The County Council’s policy on parking is set out below:-

6.57 Better public transport is absolutely essential to tackling three of the four shared priorities – accessibility, congestion and pollution - and is also fundamental to achieving the LTP objectives. On a local level, the bus network forms the most important part of the public transport system and makes a significant contribution towards tackling these issues. KCC's overarching objective for local bus services is to increase patronage levels through encouraging modal shift towards public transport and, through a programme of investment and partnership working with operators and others, to improve the quality and coverage of bus services in Kent.

6.58 Bus services are operated on a deregulated basis and approximately 80% of routes in Kent are provided commercially without financial support including most services within the principal towns and various interurban services. Stagecoach East Kent and Arriva Southern Counties operate most services in the County although some commercial routes are also run by smaller companies.

6.59 Kent County Council currently spends over £7 million revenue funding on the support of socially necessary bus services, including £2.2 million of Rural Bus Subsidy Grant (RBSG) provided from Central Government. In 2003, the criteria for supporting bus services were adjusted to reflect the findings of the Social Exclusion Unit's 'Making the Connections' report. KCC now prioritises socially necessary services providing access to one or more of healthcare, education, employment and shopping.

6.60 The County Council's approach for developing the Kent local bus network covers a number of different areas and further detail of these activities is given in the Bus Strategy for Kent 2006-2011 which is submitted as Appendix 5 to the LTP. Ultimately, the County Council will produce a new Passenger Transport Strategy for Kent which will incorporate the Bus Strategy and cover local rail services, taxis and other modes.

6.61 KCC will promote and develop the local bus network through a number of approaches which can be summarised as follows:

• Revenue support for socially necessary bus services. Over recent years, the County Council has experienced significant increases in local bus service contract costs which has caused budgetary pressure despite significant increases in the amount allocated and effective use of the Rural Bus Subsidy Grant. The County Council will continue to provide financial support for the existing network of socially necessary bus services and will also consider funding additional services which meet the established criteria. The accessibility planning process also provides opportunities to improve and refine KCC's approach local bus service planning. The Accessibility Strategy for Kent (ASK) includes an action plan through which accessibility considerations will be incorporated within local bus planning activities including the use of Accession outputs to highlight possible gaps in provision.
• Demand responsive services. KCC supports a flexible approach to public transport provision and recognises that, under some circumstances, demand responsive transport provides the most appropriate solution. Recently, the County Council has funded several demand responsive transport schemes through the Government's ‘Rural Bus Challenge’ initiative.  In particular, the 'SUN', 'DART' and ‘Shepway Kent Karrier’ projects have introduced successful new or revised demand responsive services linking rural areas to key local destinations. All of these services have been retained beyond the Challenge funding period. The County Council welcomes the opportunity to develop innovative approaches to public transport and will explore the potential for additional demand responsive services in Kent over future years.
• Quality Bus Partnerships (QBPs). During the first LTP period, QBPs have been established in Maidstone, Thanet and Canterbury in conjunction with the local operators and district councils. The QBPs have provided a structured approach which has enabled all organisations to work together successfully towards the objective of increasing local bus patronage. This has resulted in significant investment in the QBP areas on real time information, bus priority measures and other highway infrastructure by KCC and has enabled the bus operators to justify early investment in new accessible vehicles and better levels of service. Notably, Stagecoach East Kent has provided significant investment in new vehicles around Canterbury and Thanet where the key local routes have been successfully re-launched as the 'Thanet Loop' which achieved a 20% patronage increase over twelve months. KCC will continue to invest in the existing QBPs, and has developed a Punctuality Improvement Plan for each partnership. Proposals are also being developed for new QBPs in other parts of Kent including Dover, Tunbridge Wells, Kent Thameside and Ashford. Particularly within the growth areas, local bus services will form an important part of the future transport infrastructure. The County Council will also explore opportunities to secure funding from wider sources such as the successful 'Kickstart' bids which have improved the quality and frequency of bus services in the Thanet, Gravesend, Dover and Swale areas.
• Kent Bus System. The Kent Bus System has been introduced through the QBPs and provides priority for buses at traffic signals, real time passenger information (RTPI) screens for passengers and the facility for operators to monitor the performance of their services more effectively to improve reliability. The LTP includes an ongoing programme, which will enable the benefits of the scheme to be extended throughout Kent, and investment will be concentrated at locations where new QBPs are being introduced.
• Public Transport Information. In recent years KCC has made significant improvements to the quality and coverage of information available and has renewed and updated the Public Transport Information Strategy to reflect progress made and new approaches to the production and distribution of publications. KCC aims to provide public transport information through a variety of formats including conventional approaches such as printed timetables and roadside displays. £50,000 capital funding has been allocated in 2006/07 for improvements to bus stop timetable provision. The amount of publicity produced in electronic format has also increased and includes system maps for several parts of the County. KCC has also improved the availability of information through specific initiatives including a 'Pathfinder' project to improve access to further education for students aged between 16 and 19. Initiatives introduced included travel mentors for students with disabilities to promote independent travel, travel surveys in deprived areas and website based transport information for schools and colleges.
• Crime and Community Safety. KCC has worked with schools, local bus and coach operators, Kent Police and British Transport Police to develop a Code of Conduct for safe home to school transport. In addition safe travel to school sessions have been co-ordinated, an award scheme for individual and collective behaviour developed and the introduction of CCTV on buses has been of considerable benefit. KCC will continue to work with the Police and local operators to improve safety on the public transport network. A programme of investment is planned through the LTP to improve levels of accessibility by tackling crime and the fear of crime and a series of initiatives will be implemented in north Kent including CCTV at bus shelters and on buses and the improvement of interchange facilities.
• Interchange and Integration. An integrated approach to public transport planning is essential to encourage modal shift and forms an important element of the LTP. Recent interchanges for local buses and taxis have been completed at Ramsgate and Greenhithe stations and similar facilities are now planned in other locations including Dover Priority and West Malling stations. KCC also aims to improve existing bus stations and interchanges and encourage greater integration between car and bus travel through the development of existing and new Park & Ride schemes. Scheme proposals are currently being developed for Tunbridge Wells and Ashford. In addition, the potential to extend integrated ticketing and introduce smartcards will be explored.
• Five Year Integrated Programme. The Integrated Transport Programme in the first LTP has supported bus services through bus lanes, new shelters and revised infrastructure for low floor vehicles. In recent years KCC has also funded the purchase of low floor buses for use on supported services which has significantly improved the quality of vehicles and provided higher levels of accessibility, particularly for residents with impaired mobility. Similar investment is planned over future years through the LTP Integrated Transport Programme which has been developed following discussions with operators and includes further improvements designed to assist the movement of buses on the highway network and provide better facilities for passengers. Under the requirements of the Traffic Management Act 2004, the County Council's approach to managing highway capacity will be guided by the Network Management Plan whilst ongoing liaison with operators aims to minimise the disruption cause by roadworks to bus services. Kent County Council was the first local authority to appoint a Traffic Manager.
• Concessionary fares Over recent years, KCC has co-ordinated the Kent Countywide concessionary fares scheme for elderly and disabled people in partnership with Medway Council and the district councils. From 1st April 2006, concessionary travel will be provided free to entitled residents and KCC is currently working with the district councils to maintain the Countywide scheme which offers significant benefits in terms of journey opportunities and accessibility to key services and facilities. The introduction of free travel is expected to significantly increase demand for local bus travel although potential funding constraints have also been identified.  KCC's Trading Standards department has also developed a 'Proof of Age' card through which young people are entitled to reduced bus fares.
• Major schemes KCC and its partners recognise that a high quality public transport system is needed to maximise the regeneration and development potential in the growth areas. Fastrack Phase 1 was funded by KCC through the first LTP and will provide a high quality bus based public transport system for Kent Thameside with the addition of later phases to serve the developments planned in this key growth area. The County Council will work in partnership with other organisations on the future development of Fastrack and explore opportunities for similar schemes elsewhere in the growth areas. In particular, outline proposals are currently being developed for 'Smartlink' which will provide a high quality public transport system in Ashford which forms a key element of the future transport infrastructure in this important growth area.

Figure 6.7 Thanet Stars Bus Service, Margate

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6.62 In a similar way to local buses, passenger rail services have a key role to perform in solving problems of accessibility, pollution and congestion. There is, however, a wider role for this area in terms of Kent’s LTP as passenger rail is a key contributor to Kent’s UK Connections and UK Gateway objectives. Kent has an extensive network of passenger rail services which serve ninety nine stations ranging from minor halts in some rural parts of the County to larger stations in the major towns. There are a further seven stations in the Medway administrative area. Most rail services in Kent are operated daily on at least a half hourly or hourly basis, although on some parts of the network the number of journeys provided increases considerably during the peak periods.

6.63 From 1 April 2006, the new Integrated Kent Franchise (IKF) starts with a new operator, GoVia, taking over from South Eastern Trains. The IKF will immediately cover local rail services on the existing network in south east London and Kent and, from December 2009, high speed domestic services which will, in part, operate on the Channel Tunnel Rail Link (CTRL) – CTRL Domestic Services. The proposals are to run frequent, all-day CTRL domestic services between St. Pancras and Thanet, Canterbury, Ashford, Folkestone, Ebbsfleet, Gravesend, Sittingbourne and possibly Dover with significant journey time saving, especially from East Kent, Ebbsfleet and Gravesend. The completion of the CTRL in 2007 will remove Eurostar trains from the local railway network in Kent and south London and therefore will release capacity and improve the reliability of suburban and longer distance services.

6.64 During the period of the second LTP the County Council will continue to lobby the rail industry and Government for investment to address a number of key priorities for improving the passenger rail network:

• More direct, faster rail services. Rail journey times from some parts of Kent to London are disproportionately long for a number of reasons including large numbers of stations served, congested junctions on some parts of the network and outdated infrastructure which reduces line speeds. The County Council has lobbied the Government and rail industry extensively for improved rail journey times, most recently through the consultation process for the IKF. Whilst faster services are required, a balance has to be struck to ensure that there are sufficient services at smaller stations so that local residents are not forced into using cars for a longer part, or whole of their journeys.

Figure 6.8 Introduction of New Trains

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• Modern rolling stock. In recent years significant investment has been made in the rolling stock used in Kent and ‘slam door’ trains were removed from service last year. The County Council welcomes this investment in rolling stock but recognises that ongoing effort is needed to improve the standards of train cleanliness, and also to tackle the problems of vandalism which are particularly prevalent in parts of north Kent.
• Accessibility, safety and passenger facilities. The railway stations in Kent are variable in terms of size, accessibility and passenger facilities. Whilst stations in the key towns are generally reasonably appointed with passenger lifts, waiting facilities and a staff presence, smaller stations are often inaccessible and unattractive with poor passenger facilities. The County Council has highlighted the need for significant investment in railway stations to create an environment which is safe, accessible and attractive and will encourage greater use of rail services, particularly for local journeys.
• Promoting patronage growth. During the weekday peak periods, the majority of journeys are commuter movements to London and, apart from scholar traffic in some areas, the number of peak journeys by rail into Kent towns is modest. The County Council wants to encourage more local journeys within the county to reduce congestion, especially in towns and will be discussing the scope for attracting more Park and Rail with the new train operating company. In addition to promoting patronage across the network as a whole, there is also a need to improve the performance of specific lines which are currently underused including the Medway Valley Line and Sheerness Branch Line.
• Increasing the modal share of passenger rail in the growth areas. Significant development and regeneration is planned in the Kent growth areas and it is widely acknowledged that an integrated, high quality public transport system is essential in achieving these objectives. In the Thames Gateway, the local rail network forms an east to west corridor linking key development sites in Kent and further afield.  Ashford is already an important railway hub and the Ashford to Hastings line has potential to form a more important part of the local transport infrastructure in future years.

Figure 6.9 Cycle Parking at Canterbury West

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6.65 Initial contact with the new operators has been positive and under the franchise agreement GoVia are committed to make significant investment in the business, creating a better railway for passengers with cleaner and more reliable trains, improved safety and security on the whole network and graffiti-free stations and trains

6.66 There is a need to provide a range of specific strategic and local improvements:

• CTRL Domestic Services
• Thameslink Project delivering direct services to Kent
• Extension of Crossrail Line to Ebbsfleet and the rest of the Kent Thames Gateway
• Lower Thames Rail Crossing
• North Kent Line capacity (Rochester Bridge Junction and Dartford - Slade Green)
• Improved links to the City of London from Maidstone East and West Malling
• Journey time improvements – particularly between  Ashford and Thanet
• Improved rail connections to London Gatwick Airport
• Direct rail link to Kent International Airport

6.67 In recent years, the County Council’s rail activities have been supported through partnership working with a range of public and private sector organisations. Partnership working is needed to maintain liaison with the rail industry, develop and implement improvement schemes and ensure that passenger rail is integrated more effectively with other modes and in the wider transportation and development planning processes. This will continue for the Second Kent LTP in a number of ways:

• Joint funding of scheme development: This approach has enabled the County Council to develop schemes in partnership with the rail industry and others
• Station improvement schemes including new interchanges
• Working with other authorities: Regular liaison takes place between the County Council and district councils and neighbouring authorities on key issues
• Regional Planning Assessments (RPAs): RPAs are being developed by the Department for Transport to promote partnership working between the rail industry and local authorities

6.68 Integration is a key principle which helps deliver better accessibility, reduced congestion and less pollution. KCC has a specific LTP2 Objective to encourage integration, especially between land use and transport planning is central to the Sustainable Regeneration LTP2 objective. There are a number of ways Kent will work to deliver better integration :-

6.69 Integration between modes. this is an important factor in promoting a sustainable transport system and encouraging modal shift away from car travel towards public transport, walking and cycling. Specific actions to promote integration include improved information, better interchange facilities, walking and cycling infrastructure and multi-modal ticketing. Modal integration is highlighted on a number of policy levels including the RTS, which identifies Ebbsfleet, Maidstone and Ashford, Canterbury and Tonbridge-Tunbridge Wells as regional ‘hubs’. Emphasis is given to measures to improve integration at these locations in their integrated transport programmes for 2006-11, such as high quality interchanges, improved public transport and better facilities for pedestrians and cyclists.

6.70 In addition to infrastructure provision, the County Council has a key role to play in co-ordinating the activities of transport operators to achieve an integrated approach to public transport. The County Council will influence service planning to provide connections from bus to rail and also to alternative bus services. This is achieved through the Transport Integration Unit, the County Council's transport planning and procurement body which discharges the statutory duty for providing transport to meet social need (bus and taxi services), for children entitled to free transport to school and for social services clients to day centres. Through this unit the County Council has developed a co-ordinated approach for the planning of local bus, school transport and social services transport which has been effective in achieving network cohesion, cost savings and efficient practice. 

6.71 The County Council also promotes integration between bus and rail services through co-ordinating reimbursement for operators involved in the rail-bus ticketing schemes, and will continue to explore and support options for integrated ticketing over the period of this LTP. KCC will also continue to subsidise bus services specifically timed to integrate with train arrivals and departures. The new Public Transport Information Strategy has been developed and now gives the County Council the opportunity to influence the way in which public transport information is provided.

6.72 Integration between organisations. The development of LTPs must be linked to the activities of other organisations, particularly to reflect the shared priority of improving accessibility to education, employment and local services and facilities. This is particularly relevant in the growth areas where significant employment and housing expansion is planned which will inevitably increase demand on local services. The accessibility planning process described earlier is the largest example of KCC taking an integrated approach across organisations to tackle the step change now necessary in the planning of local transport.

Figure 6.10 Taxis at Dartford Station

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6.73 people to travel at times when they wouldn't feel safe using public transport.The County Council acknowledges the important contribution that taxis make to passenger transport, particularly to integration. The greatest asset of the taxi is its flexibility to respond to demand, making it a key tool in providing improved accessibility. The role of taxis and private hire vehicles in tackling social exclusion for rural communities is a therefore a critical one. They are most relevant to the mobility impaired and KCC as Highway Authority will seek to ensure that access, with focus on town centres, is maintained. Similarly, Kent will work in liaison with District Councils to provide wheelchair accessible Hackney carriages with the shared use of bus priority measures, expanding on the current arrangements in Maidstone.

6.74 Taxis can remove barriers to using other modes of public transport. Integration with other modes can remove barriers concerning distance for both the able bodied and mobility impaired. Such a ‘door to door’ facility with immediate transfer from mode to mode and the security of a guaranteed connection can help alleviate crime and fear of crime as a further barrier to use of bus, rail and coach services.

6.75 It is recognised by the County Council that taxis can increase patronage on public transport and the contribution that they make to the shared priorities of reduced congestion and improved air quality should not be underestimated. The priority of safer roads can also be assisted by taxis through the ability to reduce drink driving. The County Council will support the role of taxis through local development frameworks and partnership working with other transport providers in order to ensure that new facilities and interchanges are introduced to assist the convenient transfer to and from taxis. The County Council is keen to promote the taxi as the alternative to the car in this context and the provision of access to and facilities in town centres is fundamental to this process.

6.76 Kent County Council’s Transport Integration Unit employs Taxi and Private Hire vehicles in discharging its duty in providing home to school transport and will seek to influence the standards provided by operators over the period of this LTP. The Unit already offers significant support to taxi operators through driver and escorts training on Disability Awareness and the processing of Criminal Records Bureau checks against staff employed. The County Council also acknowledges that the Government is preparing its Best Practice Taxi / Private Hire Licensing Guide and sees this as an opportunity to provide a consistent county wide standard through liaison with district councils.

6.77 Finally, the County Council acknowledges cost and accessible information as potential barriers to taxi usage. The County Council in liaison with District Councils will seek to encourage the expansion of concessionary fares schemes to include their availability of use for travel by taxi. As a commitment under its new Information Strategy for public transport, the County Council will give contact details for Taxi and Private Hire companies operating wheelchair accessible vehicles.

Figure 6.11 Taxi at Dartford Station

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6.78 Information plays an important role in meeting the Government’s four Shared Priorities and also KCC’s LTP2 Objectives. Information can assist in reducing congestion by advising travellers on the most appropriate route, avoiding incidents and delays and making alternative forms of transport more attractive and convenient. Information on road safety helps reduce crashes and information makes transport more accessible. KCC, as local transport authority, gives out information not only to the public but also to partner organisations and private businesses with an interest in the transport network. Action for the LTP2 period will be carried out in various areas :-

• Journey Planning KCC produces information to assist journey planning in a number of ways, essentially suited to the needs of the traveller. These needs usually consist of journey information used to plan the journey before departure and real-time information to inform the traveller of current incidents and delays. The County Council produced its first Information Strategy in 2002, which aims to improve access to high quality public transport information through the different formats available. In LTP2, the County Council will update the Information Strategy, continue to issue printed publicity material and expand the range of information available electronically including walking and cycling guides and advice on safety.
• What’s happening where you live KCC aims to keep the public as up to date as possible with details of forthcoming planned roadworks. Information is available in a dedicated area on the County Council’s website, where information can be searched by district or by individual roads. Future plans will enable the public to enter the details of their journey into the system and their route will appear, showing all the planned roadworks and diversions.
• Statistics and Trends The Kent Travel Report (KTR) will continue to be produced annually by KCC, presenting year-on-year traffic and travel trends across the county. Partners, including the Highways Agency, District Councils and local transport operators have continued to offer their support to this work by providing a significant amount of data.
• Publicity and awareness KCC will participate in all national DfT road safety publicity campaigns and will launch bespoke travel awareness campaigns through Smarter Choices to accompany investment in sustainable transport.

6.79 The efficient use of road space is one of the most effective methods of managing demand in urban corridors where congestion is increasing. Measures consist of high occupancy lanes, bus lanes and bus boarders at stopping points, cycle facilities within the carriageway, priority at traffic signal junctions and exemptions from banned turns. LTP1 achieved a steady rise in bus passenger numbers. KCC wishes to increase the investment substantially in these measures in LTP2 to tackle pollution and congestion problems in Kent’s towns. The five year programme of integrated transport schemes is full of examples of this approach, with over 40 bus priority schemes as an example. The enforcement of moving offences now possible under the Traffic Management Act (2004) will be crucial to ensure the continuing success of measures which reallocate road space.

Figure 6.12 Bus Lane, Maidstone

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6.80 The private car is a very successful and attractive mode of travel, but current trends are not sustainable and their consequences in terms of congestion, people’s health and the environment are undesirable. Effective travel demand restraint policies and measures can help tackle traffic growth. A better balanced and more integrated transport system with good quality travel options for all is essential to counter the negative impacts of traffic growth on Kent’s economy, environment and the personal health of its residents. Therefore, travel demand restraint should be co-ordinated with measures to improve the attractiveness of more sustainable alternatives. KCC is aiming to restrain the demand for travel, not the demand for services and therefore a key part of this work is to bring services and opportunities closer to communities, either physically or through technology and communications.

Road User Charging

6.81 Throughout  the community and partner engagement process for the Plan, the prospect of congestion charging was debated. Residents and partners unanimously rejected the introduction of such measures in the short term in the absence of satisfactory public transport alternatives. It was for  this reason, coupled with the risk of adverse economic impact upon the County's towns that this Plan emphasises other types of demand management in the shorter term. However,  for the longer term, the County Council is keen to investigate with the Highways Agency and freight industry the impact and feasibility of introducing a  road user charging scheme for the County with the aim of recovering costs from the signifcant amount of international traffic travelling through Kent. To this end KCC will investigate with the Government and partners what needs to be done to follow up the unsuccessful bid submitted to the Government's Transport Innovation Fund in 2005. If successful, this will enable the concept to be investigated further.

Workplace Parking Charges

6.82 KCC recognises that workplace parking charges are a powerful tool in influencing businesses to reduce the level of car parking provided and to release financial support for promoting alternatives of the private car, thereby helping achieve an integrated transport system. Unfortunately, the evidence nationally, where no local authority has actually introduced such a system, reflects the public’s opposition to such proposals, especially in a County which is looking to attract large businesses. Therefore, KCC does not support the introduction of Workplace Parking Charges at this time.

Car Sharing

6.83 The best developed, and therefore most successful, car sharing schemes are targeted at the daily commute. Such schemes may operate within a single company, like Pfizer at Sandwich or across a number of different employers in the same area, such as at Kings Hill in West Malling.

6.84 To promote car sharing KCC will commission an Internet based, public access branded car share scheme (kentcarshare.com), commission a similar scheme for schools, market the schemes in other areas using the school travel and workplace travel planning staff and offer a limited number of free licences to companies and schools registering with the schemes.

Car Clubs

6.85 A car club gives people access to a car whenever they need it, but without the high fixed costs of individual ownership.  Car club members are able to mix and match their travel, using a car when that is the best option but travelling by public transport, on foot or by bike at other times. We will establish a car club at the County Hall complex in Maidstone; replacing the existing pool car scheme for County Council staff during office hours, and available to local residents during evenings and weekends. We will investigate similar schemes at our Canterbury and Gravesend offices, and promote car clubs where appropriate at new developments.

Teleworking/teleconferencing and flexible working

6.86 Teleworking involves work that has to be done with a telephone and a computer, and nationally the number of teleworkers has been growing at 13% per year. The people most likely to telework are managers and people in professional, administrative, secretarial and skilled occupations. The County Council’s policy on flexible working states that it is “committed to assisting its employees to achieve a balance between their work and personal lives, in the best interests of both service delivery and the wellbeing of individuals”.

Mixed Use Development

6.87 The location of houses in relation to jobs, services and opportunities directly influences the length of journey and therefore the type of transport. In line with PPG13, KCC aims to bring housing and other land uses closer together by promoting mixed-use development. This should reduce the length of journey required to access goods and services, making them more suitable for alternative modes of transport. Mixed use also promotes activity in areas during the day and night which can bring vitality to an area. Large single use developments inhibit community cohesion since the area where people live is not the place where they work, meet friends, relax or shop.

Figure 6.13 Cycle Parking at Pfizer Ltd

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Restrain the Availability of Car Parking

6.88 The Kent and Medway Structure Plan (Deposit Draft) looks to reduce dependence on the private car in new development. This is mainly done through the provision of good public transport links and walking and cycling facilities but there is scope to restrain the demand for car use through limiting the availability of car parking. Kent Vehicle Parking Standards (Deposit Draft KMSP Supplementary Planning Guidance) adopt maximum car parking standards for different categories of land use as well as setting standards for parking provision for other modes like cycles and motorcycles. It is not enough for an applicant to show that a development accords with the maximum permissible, they must also show that development with significant transport implications includes measures to minimise the need for parking. The guidance will be regularly reviewed to take account of any changes in circumstances. Local standards for individual town centres which consider both transport implications and town centre viability may be agreed with the district authority. In some cases it may be appropriate for car parking to be provided away from the site as part of publicly provided parking space or in conjunction with a Park & Ride scheme.