♤

LTP and ROWIP IntegrationGood practice note

1

England’s extensive network of public rights of way is a unique and valuable resource. It not only provides opportunities for recreation, but also forms an integral part of the transport system. Rights of way provide means of sustainable travel, particularly for short journeys, in both rural and urban areas, and can play a significant part in reducing traffic congestion and harmful emissions, providing safer routes for vulnerable travellers.

Rights of way improvement plans have given an impetus to authorities to undertake a strategic review of their rights of way networks, to ensure that they cater for current and future needs. And the linking of rights of way improvement plans to local transport plans will help to optimise the part that rights of way play in the wider transport system.

2

1. Purpose

The publication of the Department for Transport’s Local Transport Plan (LTP) 2009 guidance offers an opportunity to local authority transport planning and rights of way officers to optimise the part that rights of way can play in the wider transport system. Linking statutory rights of way improvement plans to local transport plans will promote a shift to active travel, a more interesting and connected transport network and help lever funding for implementation schemes that meet several joint objectives. This good practice note gives advice on how to achieve these outcomes and make efficient use of funding through joined up working.

2. Usefulness of LTP and ROWIP integration

The new Local Transport Plan (LTP) guidance recognises the role of active travel solutions such as walking and cycling. There is now an opportunity for local authorities to take a broader, more holistic approach to transport and address the rights of way network as an integral part of urban and rural transport systems and in contributing to the achievement of all the national transport goals1

-reducing carbon emissions;

-supporting economic growth;

-promoting equality of opportunity;

-contributing to better safety, security and health; and

-improving quality of life and a healthy natural environment Further detail on how rights of way can help contribute to these goals is illustrated in Table 1.

There are many shared aims and links between LTPs and Rights of Way Improvement Plans (ROWIP) which can serve to strengthen and facilitate the long term sustainability of rights of way and the delivery of sustainable transport objectives. Joined up implementation plans can secure more direct and integrated funding and delivery.

Integration encourages new ways of working with internal and external partners including local access forums.

Integration gives local authorities an advantage in delivering positive benefits for people and the natural environment – a more active lifestyle in a greener, healthier, low carbon, quieter and safer environment.

3. Our Good Practice Note outcomes

Our aims are:

for local authorities to be clearer on how the two documents relate to each other- their common themes, objectives and how the new LTP flexibilities enable pragmatic integration measures in the new plans and projects.

To provide examples of good practice that cement the relationship between the LTP and ROWIP and in particular new ways of packaging rights of way schemes that meet national transport goals in both urban and rural areas that can contribute to sustainable tourism and recreation in addition to linking local communities to employment, key services and facilities.

1 http://www.dft.gov.uk/ltp

3

4. Timeline

The Local Transport Act 20082 requires all transport authorities to have a new local transport plan in place by April 2011. The CROW Act 20003 requires a review and a new assessment of a ROWIP not more than ten years after it is first published. This means that in many instances ROWIPs will not be due for review until 2017.

Authorities can now review the ROWIP within the same timescale as the LTP for both strategy and implementation elements. Alternatively owing to the increased flexibilities over timescales built into LTP review and replacement beyond 2011, authorities can review and integrate their ROWIP within the period of a future LTP implementation plan.

Authorities may also wish to consider aligning the implementation plan element of the LTP and statement of action of the ROWIP with local government funding settlement and local area agreement (LAA) timescales.

5. Document Format

Authorities can produce the LTP policy and implementation parts in separate documents and are free to determine when they renew the different parts. It is advisable to consider incorporating the ROWIP within the same framework to help achieve integration. Alternatively it is possible to keep the ROWIP and LTP documents separate but make clear that they complement each other, are both statutory and should both be taken into account in any transport/access related matters.

A common branding style will help integration with thorough cross-referencing to ensure that key aspects of the ROWIP and the role that rights of way can play in delivering sustainable transport solutions are clear.

Should authorities choose to produce the two documents separately, the LTP might include:

a summary of the benefits and contribution that rights of way bring to the wider transport network;

the key ROWIP priorities and how they can benefit other parts of the LTP; and

signpost the detail contained within the separate ROWIP.

The ROWIP might include:

recognition of the national transport goals and any other local transport objectives; and

outline how development of the rights of way network can help contribute to these goals.

6. Cross boundary plans

The boundaries of a LTP/ROWIP do not need to follow traditional local authority boundaries; they may instead reflect travel patterns, particularly in city regions. There have been a number of successful Joint Plans for LTP2 and Joint ROWIPs with the same spatial coverage to maximise collaboration and accountability. Tyne and Wear4 is a model for LTP/ROWIP integration which other joint authorities may wish to follow in future. At Tyne and Wear an access development officer was appointed with responsibility for the ROWIP, supported by funding from the LTP partners.5

2 http://www.opsi.gov.uk/acts/acts2008/ukpga_20080026_en_13 http://www.opsi.gov.uk/acts/acts2000/ukpga_20000037_en_14 http://www.gateshead.gov.uk5 The LTP partners consist of officers and elected members from the five highway authorities (Gateshead Council, Newcastle City Council, North Tyneside Council, South Tyneside Council and Sunderland City Council) and the Tyne and Wear Passenger Transport Authority.

4

7. Other statutory plans and strategies

To maximise the opportunities and benefits that active travel solutions can bring, authorities should ensure integration with other statutory plans and strategies at the local and regional levels and make timely contributions to these on key aspects of the LTP and ROWIP. For example, rights of way and the definitive maps which record them should be an integral part of local development frameworks (LDFs), transport asset management plans (TAMPs), cycling, walking, green space, road safety, crime and anti-social behaviour strategies. Merseyside ROWIP 2008-20186 contains a clear diagram of the relationship between the ROWIP and other local authority plans and strategies.

6 http://www.merseysiderightsofway.org

5

Tab

le 1

Mea

sure

s to

en

sure

su

cces

sfu

l in

teg

rati

on

8.

Mea

sure

s to

en

sure

su

cces

sfu

l in

teg

rati

on

The

Nat

iona

l Eva

luat

ion

of R

OW

IPs

200

87 id

entifi

ed a

num

ber

of m

easu

res

whi

ch c

an h

elp

ensu

re s

ucce

ssfu

l int

egra

tion

of L

TP

s an

d R

OW

IPs.

Tab

le 1

be

low

out

lines

thes

e an

d pr

ovid

es e

xam

ples

of l

ocal

hig

hway

aut

hori

ties

that

suc

cess

fully

dem

onst

rate

d th

ese

mea

sure

s w

ith L

ocal

Tra

nspo

rt P

lan

2.

Mea

sure

s

Inte

rnal

st

ruc

ture

s

Str

on

g

wo

rkin

g

rela

tio

nsh

ips

Ea

rly

dis

cus

sio

ns

and

lin

kin

g

RO

WIP

/LT

P

targ

ets

and

ac

tio

ns

De

scri

pti

on

Man

y au

thor

ities

hav

e re

orga

nise

d th

eir

inte

rnal

str

uctu

res

as

a di

rect

res

ult o

f the

RO

WIP

in o

rder

to im

prov

e jo

int w

orki

ng

with

the

LTP

team

and

mor

e ef

fect

ivel

y de

liver

the

aim

s an

d ob

ject

ives

of t

he R

OW

IP.

Str

ong

wor

king

rel

atio

nshi

ps b

etw

een

LTP

and

RO

W s

taff

are

ke

y to

suc

cess

ful o

utco

mes

.

A p

artn

ersh

ip a

ppro

ach

betw

een

RO

WIP

and

LT

P s

taff,

w

hich

incl

udes

ear

ly d

iscu

ssio

ns a

nd c

ontin

ued

dial

ogue

, is

criti

cal t

o un

ders

tand

ing

LTP

pri

oriti

es, o

bjec

tives

and

how

th

e ri

ghts

of w

ay n

etw

ork

mig

ht c

ontr

ibut

e to

thes

e ob

ject

ives

. F

urth

er in

tegr

atio

n ca

n be

ach

ieve

d by

set

ting

out a

n au

thor

ity’s

pol

icie

s w

hich

pro

vide

the

fram

ewor

k fo

r m

eetin

g LT

P/R

OW

IP S

MA

RT

9 ta

rget

s an

d ac

tions

, inc

ludi

ng a

Go

od

pra

cti

ce

exa

mp

le

Not

tingh

am C

ity C

ounc

il8 be

nefit

s fr

om a

str

ong

depa

rtm

enta

l w

orki

ng a

rran

gem

ent,

whi

ch in

clud

es a

rig

hts

of w

ay o

ffice

r lo

cate

d in

the

LTP

team

. As

part

of t

he L

TP

team

, rig

hts

of w

ay s

taff

can

re

char

ge “

prep

arat

ion

time”

spe

nt o

n de

sign

ing

sche

mes

to th

e LT

P

as fe

e ea

rnin

g. T

he R

OW

IP a

nd L

TP

team

s al

so s

hare

the

sam

e D

irect

or w

hich

hel

ps fa

cilit

ate

mor

e “j

oine

d up

” de

liver

y. M

erse

ysid

e Jo

int A

utho

rity

has

als

o be

en s

ucce

ssfu

l in

loca

ting

a ri

ghts

of w

ay

offic

er w

ithin

the

LTP

Sup

port

Uni

t.

Dur

ham

Cou

nty

Cou

ncil

has

been

suc

cess

ful o

win

g pr

inci

pally

to

str

ong

wor

king

rel

atio

nshi

ps b

etw

een

LTP

and

RO

W s

taff

from

th

e ou

tset

and

clo

se a

lignm

ent i

n a

new

Cou

ncil

stru

ctur

e w

ithou

t of

ficer

s be

ing

phys

ical

ly lo

cate

d to

geth

er. R

ight

s of

way

sta

ff a

tten

d LT

P b

udge

t allo

catio

n m

eetin

gs a

t the

beg

inni

ng o

f the

fina

ncia

l ye

ar to

pre

sent

idea

s, s

ecur

e in

itial

app

rova

l fro

m th

e lo

cal s

trat

egic

pa

rtne

rshi

p (L

SP

) an

d se

cure

fun

ds to

del

iver

pro

ject

s.

Not

tingh

am C

ity C

ounc

il’s

part

ners

hip

wor

king

hel

ps id

entif

y R

OW

IP

sche

mes

as

earl

y as

pos

sibl

e w

hich

form

pro

posa

ls fo

r ye

ar o

n ye

ar

LTP

fun

ding

.

7 R

ight

s of

Way

Impr

ovem

ent P

lans

: Nat

iona

l Eva

luat

ion

200

8:N

atur

al E

ngla

nd

http

://na

tura

leng

land

.etr

ader

sto

res.

com

/Nat

ural

Eng

land

Sho

p/P

rodu

ct.a

px?P

rodu

ctID

=71f

087

f6-7

914

-4b2

4-9

d8

4-d

38

4d

90

56

be4

8 ht

tp://

ww

w.n

ottin

gham

city

.gov

.uk

9 S

MA

RT

(S

peci

fic, M

easu

rabl

e, A

chie

vabl

e, R

elev

ant,

Tim

ed)

6

10 S

ee A

nnex

111

htt

p://w

ww

.leic

s.g

ov.u

k

Est

ab

lish

men

t o

f a

ste

erin

g

gro

up

Po

liti

cal

su

pp

ort

Wo

rkin

g w

ith

L

SP

s/L

AA

s

times

cale

for

achi

evin

g th

e ac

tions

whi

ch c

over

eith

er p

art o

r th

e w

hole

life

of t

he L

TP

and

RO

WIP

. Thi

s ap

proa

ch w

ill h

elp

defin

e m

eani

ngfu

l ind

icat

ors

for

mon

itori

ng/r

epor

ting

purp

oses

su

ch a

s an

nual

rev

iew

mee

tings

with

the

gove

rnm

ent o

ffice

.

For

bot

h la

rger

rur

al c

ount

y au

thor

ities

and

sm

alle

r ur

ban

or

unita

ry a

utho

ritie

s th

e ev

iden

ce is

that

mor

e su

cces

sful

LT

P/

RO

WIP

inte

grat

ion

has

bene

fited

from

the

esta

blis

hmen

t of

a st

eeri

ng g

roup

to a

gree

, gui

de a

nd c

arry

out

the

proc

ess

take

n fr

om th

e ou

tset

. The

se in

clud

e re

pres

enta

tives

from

the

LTP,

RO

WIP

, pla

nnin

g an

d to

uris

m te

ams

and

the

loca

l acc

ess

foru

m. A

ste

erin

g gr

oup

will

hel

p to

rai

se th

e pr

ofile

of t

he

RO

WIP

and

LT

P a

nd li

nk to

reg

iona

l/ co

unty

/ dis

tric

t str

ateg

ic

docu

men

ts.

Pol

itica

l sup

port

- fo

r ri

ghts

of w

ay, f

or s

taff

res

ourc

ing

and

fund

ing

/ im

plem

enta

tion

of s

chem

es is

key

for

succ

ess.

Loca

l aut

hori

ties

have

to s

how

goo

d pe

rfor

man

ce a

gain

st a

ll na

tiona

l ind

icat

ors

and

show

impr

oved

per

form

ance

for

thei

r se

lect

ed t

arge

ts in

thei

r lo

cal a

rea

agre

emen

t. T

he n

atio

nal

targ

ets/

impr

ovem

ent t

arge

ts fa

ll w

ithin

five

mai

n th

emes

and

it

is p

ossi

ble

to li

nk r

ight

s of

way

impr

ovem

ents

with

all

of th

ese:

1) s

tron

ger

com

mun

ities

;2)

chi

ldre

n an

d yo

ung

peop

le;

3) a

dult

heal

th a

nd w

ellb

eing

;4)

loca

l eco

nom

y;5)

env

ironm

enta

l sus

tain

abili

tyT

he N

atio

nal I

ndic

ator

set

con

tain

s sp

ecifi

c tr

ansp

ort i

ndic

ator

s an

d th

ere

are

also

a n

umbe

r th

at r

elat

e to

rig

hts

of w

ay.10

Tyne

and

Wea

r se

t up

an in

tern

al s

teer

ing

grou

p, in

clud

ing

repr

esen

tativ

es fr

om th

e Jo

int L

AF

(JL

AF

), th

e LT

P a

nd h

ighw

ay

auth

oriti

es. S

uppo

rt fr

om th

e el

ecte

d co

unci

l mem

bers

and

the

JLA

F

was

sec

ured

thro

ugh

this

app

roac

h an

d re

gula

r pr

ogre

ss r

epor

ts

mad

e to

this

gro

up, r

aisi

ng th

e pr

ofile

of t

he R

OW

IP a

nd L

TP

with

in

the

resp

ectiv

e au

thor

ities

.

Not

tingh

am, L

eice

ster

, Dur

ham

and

Mer

seys

ide

also

att

ribu

te

succ

ess

in L

TP

/RO

WIP

inte

grat

ion

to th

e ea

rly

esta

blis

hmen

t of a

st

eeri

ng g

roup

.

Not

tingh

am C

ity h

as e

xcel

lent

pol

itica

l sup

port

for

thes

e pu

rpos

es.

The

inte

grat

ion

of th

e R

OW

IP/L

TP

bui

lds

on a

nd d

evel

ops

polic

ies

agre

ed b

y el

ecte

d m

embe

rs a

s ex

pres

sed

in th

e C

orpo

rate

Pla

n,

ther

eby

embe

ddin

g po

litic

al s

uppo

rt a

nd r

esou

rces

. Ret

entio

n of

a

spec

ific

RO

WIP

offi

cer

has

prov

ed to

hel

p dr

ive

forw

ard

and

inte

grat

e w

ith th

e LT

P th

e po

licie

s an

d ac

tions

of t

he R

OW

IP.

Leic

este

rshi

re C

ount

y C

ounc

il’s11

suc

cess

in L

TP

fun

ding

for

righ

ts

of w

ay p

roje

cts

is li

nked

to th

e st

rong

iden

tifica

tion

of r

ight

s of

w

ay p

roje

cts

with

loca

l str

ateg

ic p

artn

ersh

ip p

rior

ities

and

loca

l ar

ea a

gree

men

t per

form

ance

tar

gets

that

del

iver

on

gove

rnm

ent

obje

ctiv

es fo

r pu

blic

hea

lth, q

ualit

y of

life

, phy

sica

l act

ivity

in a

dditi

on

to th

e na

tiona

l tra

nspo

rt g

oals

.

7

12 h

ttp:

//ww

w.d

urha

m.g

ov.u

k

Mo

nit

ori

ng

an

d r

epo

rtin

g

Pro

acti

ve lo

cal

ac

ce

ss

foru

m

Wo

rkin

g w

ith

c

om

mu

nit

y g

rou

ps

Sp

ecifi

c c

ap

ital

bu

dg

et

“Su

cc

es

s b

reed

s su

cce

ss”

Eff

ectiv

e m

onito

ring

and

rep

ortin

g is

vita

l to

rais

e th

e pr

ofile

an

d im

port

ance

of a

ctiv

e tr

avel

tar

gets

and

pro

ject

s in

ord

er to

w

in p

oliti

cal s

uppo

rt a

nd e

asie

r ac

cess

to f

undi

ng. A

utho

ritie

s sh

ould

con

side

r re

gula

r in

tegr

ated

RO

WIP

/LT

P r

epor

ting.

The

invo

lvem

ent o

f a p

roac

tive

and

wel

l sup

port

ed lo

cal

acce

ss fo

rum

can

hel

p id

entif

y jo

int L

TP

/RO

WIP

impr

ovem

ent

sche

mes

thro

ugh

thei

r in

depe

nden

t rol

e.

Goo

d lin

ks a

nd s

uppo

rt fr

om c

omm

unity

rep

rese

ntat

ives

who

si

t on

loca

l str

ateg

ic p

artn

ersh

ips

is a

n im

port

ant f

acto

r in

fu

ndin

g sc

hem

es fo

r ri

ghts

of w

ay im

prov

emen

ts

Loca

l aut

hori

ties

may

wis

h to

con

side

r th

e fe

asib

ility

of s

ettin

g up

a s

peci

fic c

apita

l bud

get f

or R

OW

IP d

eliv

ery

from

the

LTP.

Man

y au

thor

ities

suc

cess

ful i

n ga

inin

g LT

P f

undi

ng a

lso

repo

rt

succ

essf

ul b

ids

from

oth

er f

undi

ng s

trea

ms

follo

win

g on

from

th

at.

Dur

ham

Cou

nty

Cou

ncil12

mai

ntai

ns a

nd m

onito

rs a

wor

k pr

ogra

mm

e of

pro

pose

d pa

th im

prov

emen

ts to

pre

sent

for

cons

ider

atio

n fr

om

any

unde

r sp

end

from

abo

rted

sch

emes

in th

e ar

ea p

rogr

amm

es a

t LT

P b

udge

t allo

catio

n m

eetin

gs.

Tyne

and

Wea

r Lo

cal A

cces

s F

orum

has

bee

n fu

lly in

volv

ed

thro

ugho

ut th

e LT

P/R

OW

IP p

roce

ss a

nd p

lays

an

impo

rtan

t im

plem

entin

g ro

le in

sup

port

ing

RO

WIP

sch

emes

that

com

plem

ent

and

supp

ort L

TP

obj

ectiv

es.

Dur

ham

’s s

ound

exp

erie

nce

of w

orki

ng w

ith c

omm

unity

gro

ups

is

an im

port

ant m

echa

nism

for

iden

tifyi

ng a

nd d

eliv

erin

g pr

ojec

ts,

prov

idin

g th

e ev

iden

ce b

ase

requ

ired

by th

e LT

P.

Che

shire

Cou

nty

Cou

ncil

advo

cate

s th

is a

ppro

ach.

Dur

ham

’s h

ealth

y re

puta

tion

for

deliv

erin

g la

rge

scal

e sc

hem

es w

ith

LTP

fun

ding

has

rai

sed

thei

r pr

ofile

, att

ract

ing

addi

tiona

l fun

ding

so

urce

s fo

r ri

ghts

of w

ay im

prov

emen

ts o

n th

e ba

sis

that

“su

cces

s br

eeds

suc

cess

”.

8

9.

LTP

s, R

OW

IPs

and

th

e N

atio

nal

Tra

nsp

ort

Go

als

The

Dep

artm

ent f

or T

rans

port

adv

ises

aut

hori

ties

to c

onsi

der

the

natio

nal t

rans

port

goa

ls a

s ov

er-a

rchi

ng p

rior

ities

for

thei

r LT

Ps.

The

rig

hts

of w

ay n

etw

ork

has

an im

port

ant r

ole

in h

elpi

ng to

con

trib

ute

to a

ll of

the

natio

nal t

rans

port

goa

ls a

nd s

ugge

stio

ns a

re o

utlin

ed in

the

tabl

e be

low

. 13

htt

p://w

ww

.eas

tsus

sex.

gov

.uk

Tab

le 2

Th

e co

ntr

ibu

tio

n r

igh

ts o

f w

ay c

an m

ake

to t

he

LTP

an

d t

he

nat

ion

al t

ran

spo

rt g

oal

s

Nat

ion

al

tran

spo

rt g

oal

Red

uc

e c

arb

on

e

mis

sio

ns

Su

pp

ort

ec

on

om

ic

gro

wth

Co

ntr

ibu

tio

n r

igh

ts o

f w

ay (

Ro

W)

net

wo

rk c

an m

ake

to

th

e LT

P a

nd

nat

ion

al t

ran

spo

rt g

oal

s

A w

ell p

lann

ed a

nd m

aint

aine

d R

oW n

etw

ork,

inte

grat

ed w

ith

the

publ

ic tr

ansp

ort n

etw

ork

prov

ides

a lo

w c

arbo

n al

tern

ativ

e to

th

e ca

r. E

ncou

ragi

ng p

eopl

e to

use

this

net

wor

k, p

artic

ular

ly fo

r sh

ort j

ourn

eys,

can

hel

p ta

ckle

con

gest

ion

and

redu

ce c

arbo

n em

issi

ons.

Pos

sibl

e m

easu

res:

Im

prov

ing

cond

ition

and

man

agem

ent o

f exi

stin

g R

OW

C

reat

ion

of n

ew R

oW to

impr

ove

conn

ectiv

ity o

f the

net

wor

k

Wor

king

with

loca

l pla

nnin

g au

thor

ities

to a

chie

ve

impr

ovem

ents

in a

cces

sibi

lity

to a

nd fr

om e

mpl

oym

ent,

re

side

ntia

l are

as, k

ey s

ervi

ces

and

the

natu

ral e

nviro

nmen

t

Pro

mot

ing

wal

king

and

cyc

ling

such

as

part

neri

ng lo

cal

sc

hool

s an

d pr

ovis

ion

of in

form

atio

n/p

ublic

atio

ns o

n w

alki

ng

an

d cy

clin

g ro

utes

.. In

bot

h ur

ban

and

rura

l are

as th

e R

oW n

etw

ork

has

a ro

le in

co

ntri

butin

g to

bot

h su

stai

nabl

e to

uris

m a

nd c

onne

ctin

g lo

cal

com

mun

ities

to a

reas

of e

mpl

oym

ent,

key

serv

ices

and

faci

litie

s.

Pos

sibl

e m

easu

res:

Im

prov

ing

cond

ition

and

man

agem

ent o

f exi

stin

g R

oW a

nd

cr

eatin

g ne

w R

oW to

impr

ove

acce

ss to

sus

tain

able

tour

ism

dest

inat

ions

P

rovi

sion

of p

ublic

tran

spor

t lin

ks a

long

pro

mot

ed r

oute

s

Pro

mot

ion

of c

ircul

ar r

oute

s fr

om r

ail a

nd b

us s

tops

..

Go

od

pra

cti

ce

exa

mp

le

Eas

t Sus

sex13

has

inte

grat

ed th

e ob

ject

ives

of i

ts c

yclin

g st

rate

gy w

ith th

e LT

P a

nd R

OW

IP, i

nclu

ding

the

need

s of

re

crea

tiona

l and

off

-roa

d cy

clis

ts a

nd th

e im

port

ance

of l

inks

fr

om u

rban

are

as in

to th

e co

untr

ysid

e.

Not

tingh

am C

ity C

ounc

il ha

s at

trib

uted

its

LTP

fun

ding

suc

cess

in

par

t to

linki

ng r

ight

s of

way

impr

ovem

ents

to th

e C

ity’s

gr

owth

as

a to

uris

m d

estin

atio

n fo

r la

rge

num

bers

of v

isito

rs

draw

n to

the

City

’s h

isto

ric

past

. It h

as c

once

ntra

ted

on p

rim

ary

pede

stri

an a

nd c

yclin

g ro

utes

into

/out

of t

he c

ity li

nked

to th

e tr

am/b

us s

ervi

ces.

9

14 h

ttp:

//ww

w.le

ice

ster

.gov

.uk

Pro

mo

te

equ

alit

y o

f o

pp

ort

un

ity

Co

ntr

ibu

te t

o

bet

ter

safe

ty,

secu

rity

an

d

hea

lth

Thr

ough

car

eful

pla

nnin

g an

d in

clus

ive

desi

gn th

e R

oW n

etw

ork

can

prov

ide

oppo

rtun

ities

for

all u

sers

to a

cces

s em

ploy

men

t, ke

y se

rvic

es, t

he n

atur

al e

nviro

nmen

t and

incr

ease

peo

ple’

s so

cial

inte

ract

ion

and

sens

e of

com

mun

ity.

Pos

sibl

e m

easu

res:

A

dopt

“le

ast r

estr

ictiv

e” a

cces

s op

tion

to p

ath

impr

ovem

ents

that

are

app

ropr

iate

to la

ndsc

ape

sett

ing

Im

prov

e an

d pr

omot

e in

form

atio

n on

pat

h ac

cess

ibili

ty

th

roug

h si

gnag

e, p

ublic

atio

ns a

nd w

eb.

The

RoW

net

wor

k pr

ovid

es th

e op

port

unity

for

phys

ical

ly a

ctiv

e tr

avel

and

rec

reat

ion

in u

rban

and

rur

al a

reas

, con

trib

utin

g to

im

prov

ed p

hysi

cal a

nd m

enta

l hea

lth a

nd w

ellb

eing

.

Pos

sibl

e m

easu

res:

W

orki

ng w

ith tr

avel

pla

n an

d sa

fe r

oute

s to

sch

ool o

ffice

rs

to

ens

ure

the

RoW

net

wor

k is

incl

uded

for

peop

le’s

jour

neys

Li

nkin

g w

ith th

e pr

imar

y ca

re tr

ust i

n th

e de

liver

y of

loca

l

Wal

king

you

r w

ay to

Hea

lth In

itiat

ives

(W

HI)

Cre

atio

n of

new

link

s, h

ighe

r ri

ghts

or

upgr

adin

g ex

istin

g

ri

ghts

of w

ay to

impr

ove

conn

ectiv

ity o

f net

wor

k fo

r w

alke

rs,

ri

ders

and

cyc

lists

and

red

uce

the

need

to u

se th

e ro

ads

Im

prov

ing

educ

atio

n an

d sa

fety

aw

aren

ess

for

all r

oad

user

s.

Impr

ovin

g co

nditi

on o

r m

anag

emen

t of e

xist

ing

RoW

whe

re

th

ese

are

curr

ently

per

ceiv

ed n

ot to

be

safe

or

attr

activ

e

ro

utes

.

Leic

este

r C

ity14

has

a w

ide

rang

ing

data

base

of s

take

hold

ers.

T

he C

ounc

il co

nsul

ts s

take

hold

ers

thro

ugh

an a

nnua

l Loc

al

Tran

spor

t day

whi

ch p

rovi

des

an o

ppor

tuni

ty to

put

vie

ws

dire

ctly

to th

ose

resp

onsi

ble

for

the

tran

spor

t str

ateg

y -

it re

sults

in m

any

usef

ul o

bser

vatio

ns a

nd id

eas

shar

ed. L

eice

ster

C

ity a

lso

carr

y ou

t eac

h ye

ar t

wo

maj

or p

ublic

con

sulta

tion

exer

cise

s- P

ublic

War

d m

eetin

gs a

nd G

roup

Dis

cuss

ions

- th

e kn

owle

dge

gain

ed h

as c

ontr

ibut

ed to

LT

P o

bjec

tive

form

ulat

ion.

Thr

ough

reg

ular

par

tner

ship

wor

king

(Le

ices

ter

Par

tner

ship

, City

Old

er P

erso

ns’ F

orum

and

Mob

ility

and

S

enso

ry Im

pair

men

t Gro

up, L

ocal

Acc

ess

For

um)

and

the

othe

r co

nsul

tatio

ns h

ighl

ight

ed, a

LT

P s

trat

egy

has

been

dev

elop

ed

supp

orte

d by

sta

keho

lder

s.

Mer

seys

ide

Join

t Aut

hori

ty h

as w

orke

d w

ith th

e P

rim

ary

Car

e Tr

ust a

nd h

as b

een

succ

essf

ul in

fun

ding

rig

hts

of w

ay s

chem

es

linke

d cl

osel

y to

nat

iona

l tra

nspo

rt g

oals

that

incl

ude

wal

king

an

d cy

clin

g op

port

uniti

es th

at a

ddre

ss c

ross

bou

ndar

y is

sues

, pa

th im

prov

emen

ts a

nd n

etw

ork

mis

sing

link

s th

at a

ll he

lp

addr

ess

the

heal

th a

gend

a.

10

15 h

ttp:

//ww

w.s

taff

ord

shire

.gov

.uk

Imp

rove

qu

alit

y o

f li

fe a

nd

a

hea

lth

y n

atu

ral

envi

ron

men

t

The

opp

ortu

nitie

s R

oW p

rovi

de fo

r re

crea

tion,

tour

ism

and

su

stai

nabl

e ac

cess

to th

e na

tura

l env

ironm

ent h

as p

ositi

ve

impa

cts

on p

eopl

e’s

qual

ity o

f life

. T

hey

can

form

par

t of

mul

ti-fu

nctio

nal g

reen

infr

astr

uctu

re n

etw

orks

whi

ch a

lso

deliv

er a

ran

ge o

f ben

efits

for

the

natu

ral e

nviro

nmen

t (cl

imat

e ch

ange

ada

ptat

ion,

floo

d al

levi

atio

n, w

ater

man

agem

ent

and

biod

iver

sity

). S

ensi

tive/

appr

opri

ate

cons

truc

tion

and

mai

nten

ance

of t

he r

ight

s of

way

net

wor

k ca

n he

lp p

rote

ct a

nd

enha

nce

the

natu

ral e

nviro

nmen

t.

Pos

sibl

e m

easu

res:

P

rovi

ding

RoW

link

s be

twee

n, a

nd w

ithin

, urb

an a

nd r

ural

area

s to

faci

litat

e su

stai

nabl

e ac

cess

to th

e na

tura

l

en

viro

nmen

t

Info

rmat

ion

on a

nd p

rom

otio

n of

the

righ

ts o

f way

net

wor

k

Co

oper

atio

n an

d jo

int w

orki

ng a

cros

s a

rang

e of

team

s to

deliv

er b

ette

r R

oW im

prov

emen

ts.

Sta

ffor

dshi

re15

ack

now

ledg

es th

e im

port

ant r

ole

gree

nway

s an

d gr

een

rout

es (

off-

road

rou

tes)

, can

pla

y in

pro

vidi

ng s

hare

d us

e (w

alke

rs, c

yclis

ts a

nd h

orse

rid

ers)

bet

wee

n co

mm

uniti

es

in u

rban

are

as w

ith th

e su

rrou

ndin

g co

untr

ysid

e. P

roje

cts

to

impr

ove

conn

ectiv

ity u

sing

gre

en r

oute

s fo

r sh

ares

use

are

id

entifi

ed in

the

stat

emen

t of a

ctio

n w

ith a

gree

d LT

P f

undi

ng.

11

10. ROWIP/LTP issues specific to different tiers of local government

Urban/unitary authorities There is often an inherent focus placed on primary objectives of reducing congestion, air quality and road safety in urban/unitary authorities. Rights of way are perceived as an integrated part of these transport objectives. They can also contribute to improved access to the natural environment and for recreation purposes. The co-location of RoW and LTP staff in urban and unitary authorities is often cited as a key reason for success.

Rural highway authorities Some rural authorities have many smaller settlements which are important service centres for large catchment areas. Access to and from these settlements often involves the use of well used rights of way which link with the public transport network and can therefore make them eligible for improvement within LTP funding criteria.

Other rural authorities, such as Leicestershire County Council, have one or two large urban centres where a policy decision has focused on gaining LTP funding for rights of way improvements in and around those centres where the majority of the population live.

Some rural authorities may demonstrate areas of low car ownership, poor health or low physical activity levels. Promoting non- car journeys through improvements to and promotion of the rights of way network can help meet combined ROWIP/LTP objectives.

National parks Many national park authorities are involved with several ROWIPs and LTPs. For example the Peak District National Park Authority has six LTPs covering passenger transport authority and executive boundaries :Derbyshire, Staffordshire, Cheshire, South Yorkshire ( including Barnsley and Sheffield), Greater Manchester (including Oldham) and West Yorkshire (including Kirklees) and the number of ROWIPs is even greater and produced by each local highway authority.

This additional complication makes it sensible for those highway authorities to make use of the increased flexibilities over timescales built into the new LTP and to integrate the ROWIP/LTP as much as possible.

Accessing LTP funding for rights of way improvements in the national parks requires linking projects with the wider transport agenda – and raising awareness that improvements to access services are not mutually exclusive to access for visitors and recreation. Redcar and Cleveland Borough Council’s16 Countryside & Public Rights of Way Service has successfully accessed LTP funding for rights of way improvements within the North York Moors National Park as a result of :

a close working relationship with the park authority generally ,– the Countryside and Public Rights of Way Service has a close working relationship with the LTP team which both form part of the Area Management Service Directorate with responsibility for both the ROWIP and the LTP.

through management on cross-border projects, strategies and policies.

16 http://www.redcar-cleveland.gov.uk

12

11. Local Access Forums Local Transport Plan Guidance Part 1, Annex C includes local access forums (LAFs) as stakeholders. Authorities should consider their involvement at the outset of the LTP/ ROWIP plan preparation/review and encourage LAF input throughout. Whilst LAFs have a statutory duty to advise local authorities on rights of way and access issues, it is good practice to consult the LAF in LTP development and implementation, particularly on ROWIP/LTP integration matters. Support and encouragement for a proactive LAF can make a positive difference in helping to deliver sustainable transport objectives.

Annex 1 Transport and rights of way national indicators for local area agreements

Transport NI 47 People killed or seriously injured in road traffic accidents NI 48 Children killed or seriously injured in road traffic accidents NI 167 Congestion – average journey time per mile during the morning peakNI 168 Principal roads where maintenance should be considered NI 169 Non-principal roads where maintenance should be considered NI 175 Access to services and facilities by public transport, walking and cycling NI 176 Working age people with access to employment by public transport (and other specified modes) NI 177 Local bus passenger journeys originating in the authority area NI 178 Bus services running on time Outcome - Environmental sustainabilityNI 198 Children travelling to school – mode of travel usually used

Rights of way The following national indicators related to rights of way can also help deliver transport indicators

NI 5 Overall/general satisfaction with local areaNI 8 Adult participation in sportNI 55 Obesity among primary school age children in Reception YearNI 56 Obesity among primary school age children in Year 6NI 57 Children and young people’s participation in high quality PE and sportNI 110 Young people’s participation in positive activitiesNI 175 Access to services and facilities by public transport, walking and cyclingNI 186 Per capita reduction in CO2 emissions in LA areaNI 198 Children travelling to school- mode of travel usually usedNI 199 Children and young people’s satisfaction with parks

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© Natural England 2009 NE325

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