UCKFIELD TRANSPORT STUDY

2010 Base Year Situation

Interim Report August 2011 TRANSPORT DEVELOPMENT CONTROL ECONOMY, TRANSPORT & ENVIRONMENT EAST SUSSEX COUNTY COUNCIL COUNTY HALL ST ANNES’ CRESCENT LEWES EAST SUSSEX BN7 1UE

CONTENTS Executive Summary 1. Introduction 2. Policy Background 3. Transport Study 4. Traffic in Uckfield 5. Other Transport Modes 6. Conclusions 7. Action Plan and Next Steps Appendices APPENDIX A – SURVEY INFORMATION AND METHODOLOGY APPENDIX B – PHOTOGRAPHS

Executive Summary

It was always envisaged that growth arising from the housing allocations in the Wealden non statutory plan would require developer contributions towards necessary transport and infrastructure improvements for the town . Without these measures traffic levels in Uckfield town centre will become unmanageable as a result of developments now being built out on the basis of the Wealden Non-Statutory Local Plan. This has led to congestion centred round the Bell Lane/High Street traffic signal controlled junction. Improvements to the signals have previously been implemented, but it is believed that there is limited scope to make further significant improvements without additional land being available. Without intervention and implementation of town centre traffic management improvements, traffic congestion will continue to grow as the developments that are currently being constructed become occupied. In November 2010, traffic surveys were undertaken in a study area including both the town and the bypass. The survey results give a profile of existing traffic conditions and will inform urgent studies of what transport measures are needed to accommodate the transport demands that would arise from committed and proposed future developments in the town. These findings confirm the need for implementation of agreed transport management schemes for the town to support both existing and proposed growth. This report presents the survey results. In summary, they show that, excluding traffic solely using the bypass, only about 10% of existing traffic in the town is through traffic; about 30% is wholly internal to the town; and about 60% is internal to external traffic (and vice versa). Approximately 30% of traffic on the critical High Street link between Bell Lane and Framfield Road is associated with town centre car parks. The most critical junction is High Street/Bell Lane, which does not work in providing for all the vehicular and pedestrian demands made on it. The nearby Tesco roundabout could work in isolation but cannot in combination with the existing High Street/Bell Lane junction arrangements. The same is true of the Framfield Road/High Street junction. Church Street/High Street junction also has problems stemming from turning traffic and narrow road widths. Bus services are significantly affected by town centre congestion, with overall journey times increased and reliability affected. The respective demands of pedestrians and vehicles at town centre signalised junctions are such that neither can be satisfactorily provided for, particularly at the congested High Street/Bell Lane junction where, should any extra capacity be able to be ‘squeezed out’, the major imperative would be to improve pedestrian facilities. There are no existing opportunities for specific facilities for cyclists on the town centre highway network under current traffic conditions. Without an appropriate traffic management solution, the additional traffic generated by committed and proposed development in and around the town can only significantly worsen existing traffic congestion, queuing and delays in the town centre, impacting on all road users. There are a number of potential transport approaches that could be considered independently or in various combinations in developing the optimum solution for the town centre. Options will be worked up to a feasibility level and tested during 2011. A public consultation is likely to be held in 2012 with the preferred option then being presented for approval to the Town Centre Steering Group and the County Council’s Lead Member in 2012. Once a scheme has been approved by the Lead Member, it will be taken forward through the necessary statutory processes so that implementation can take place once funding is in place*.

1.0 Introduction

Uckfield stands at the crossroads of the A22 (southeast to northwest) and the A26 (southwest to northeast). Both are County Primary Routes. The B2104 which runs east-west from Blackboys to the A22 Bypass also passes through the town centre. With the opening of the A22 Uckfield bypass in the mid-1980s, most through traffic was removed from the town, and particularly from the town centre, most of which is located just to the north of the river/railway. Over the past 10 years, flows on the main routes approaching the town have declined marginally. This is in common with trends experienced elsewhere nationally, regionally and in other parts of the county, in response to the economic downturn. Within the Uckfield study area, there is evidence that flows have remained more constant, particularly in the town centre. This is likely to be a reflection of the development that has taken place in the town during this time, the continuing importance of Uckfield as a significant local centre for the surrounding area, and the limitations of the highway network with only one crossing point (other than the bypass) of the river for movements between the north and south of the town.

1.1 Uckfield Town Centre issues

Within the town centre the critical junctions are at High Street/Bell Lane and to a lesser extent Framfield Road/High Street, the Tesco roundabout, and Church Street/High Street. Over the last 10 years, Uckfield town centre has increasingly suffered from traffic congestion. Congestion is most severe during the morning and evening peak periods (8am – 9am and 5pm – 6pm), but increasingly can arise at other times of the working day. Interactions between queues at each junction can be significant, particularly between High Street/Bell Lane and the Tesco roundabout and between High Street/Bell Lane and Framfield Road/High Street. This results in queuing vehicles and delays, predominately at the High Street/Bell Lane junction and at the Tesco roundabout, exacerbated by the intermediate pelican pedestrian crossing, but also extending to other adjacent junctions. This is also influenced by cars and delivery vehicles waiting on the highway, as well as vehicles manoeuvring in and out of car parks, other side roads and accesses. Nearly all the public off-street town centre car parking is to the north of the river/railway. The town centre must also accommodate significant volumes of pedestrians, with appropriate crossing facilities at key junctions and elsewhere on the High Street and Bell Lane; local and longer distance bus services; and access to the rail station. The County Council has endeavoured to reduce traffic congestion in the town centre by optimising the traffic signals at the High Street/Bell Lane and Framfield Road/High Street junctions. However, there is now little scope for significantly increasing capacity within the existing highway. Further pressure will be put on the highway infrastructure in the town from the residential developments that have received planning permission over the last 5 years and are now being built out. Without an appropriate traffic management solution, traffic generated from new development in and around the town will significantly worsen traffic congestion in the town centre. The consequent increases in traffic demands, added to a network that it already operating close to or at capacity, is highly likely to result in a network which is over capacity, with increased journey times and unacceptable levels of queuing, delays and pollution affecting all users within the town centre in peak periods, and increasingly at other times during the working day.

2.0 Policy Background

The East Sussex Local Transport Plan 3 (LTP3) sets out our future direction for planning and providing infrastructure and services needed to deliver sustainable economic growth and support additional housing in the county between 2011 and 2026. This will be supported by shorter term Implementation Plans. The Strategy identifies that we will plan for and provide infrastructure that facilitates development and the delivery of sustainable economic growth in Uckfield. It was always envisaged, and indeed made a specific policy requirement, of the growth arising from housing allocations within the non statutory Wealden Local Plan that developer contributions would be required to fund necessary and appropriate transport management measures for the town.This is reflected in the detailed requirements of Policies UC1-3 of that document Wealden District Council’s (WDC) Proposed Submission Core Strategy Development Plan Document (DPD) has been published for representations prior to the document now being formally submitted to the Secretary of State/ Planning Inspectorate. The next stage in the Core Strategy process is its Examination in Public (EIP). The EIP is currently scheduled for autumn 2011. A key part of the Core Strategy is the accompanying Infrastructure Delivery Plan (IDP) for the District, which details the key infrastructure needs and associated delivery programme to support delivery of the strategy’s development proposals. Uckfield town centre traffic management improvements are included within the draft IDP and identified as critical to support growth within Uckfield . The WDC Proposed Submission Core Strategy identifies Uckfield as being suitable for further significant development up to 2030. It currently proposes 1,000 dwellings to the south west of the town together with additional town centre retail floor space of up to 11,000m2. Such further development will create additional transport demand in the town centre, thus exacerbating the existing congestion issues. Thus they would be expected to provide sufficient funding in addition to that to be collected from existing commitments, for a suitable improvement scheme to mitigate the impact on the town transport network. The Core Strategy does not need a detailed scheme in place, but an approval to progress the design and modelling would be sufficient to support the Core Strategy through the EIP process. WDC will require details of the proposed town centre improvement scheme and its delivery programme to inform and support the production and adoption of the Strategic Sites DPD, the next DPD to be produced as part of the Local Development Framework. Recognising the need for improvements in the town centre, officers and members of the three local authorities (East Sussex County Council, Wealden District Council and Uckfield Town Council), together with East Sussex Fire & Rescue, have formed a steering group. This group works closely together ensuring that proposals are properly considered to meet the needs of local residents and businesses. As part of this work, the group engaged planning consultants to draw up proposals for the future of the town. This resulted in the production of the Uckfield Town Centre Masterplan which was subject to widespread public consultations and an exhibition held in October 2009. The Town Council has subsequently adopted the Masterplan.

3.0 Transport Study

A comprehensive study addressing the highway issues for the town was first undertaken in 2006. The study area focused on the town centre highway network core using a VISSIM model. VISSIM is a micro-simulation package that models the progress of small ‘packets’ of vehicles through a congested network and produces a 3D visual interpretation of traffic movements. This was later improved and updated. However, the VISSIM model did not include the bypass and consequently could not address issues of the relative attractiveness of routes on a town wide basis, including the bypass In 2010 the modelling process was extensively enhanced by the development of a more strategic SATURN model enabling a town wide consideration of traffic demands and network capacities, including the A22 bypass. A SATURN transport model is a comprehensive tool producing a mathematical representation of a wider area of a transport system than can be cost and time effectively examined with the micro-simulation VISSIM model. The SATURN model can effectively evaluate existing area-wide conditions and project future effects brought about by changes due to traffic growth and/or infrastructure and/or land-use developments. Figure 1 shows the expanded SATURN model Uckfield study area.

Figure 1 - Uckfield Study area

To develop the SATURN model, detailed traffic surveys were undertaken in the study area in November 2010, consisting of:

Manual Classified Count (MCC) at junctions in the Uckfield area;

Automatic Traffic Counts (ATC) at temporary sites;

ATC at permanent long-term sites;

Registration Plate surveys;

Journey Time Surveys;

Junction Queue Length Surveys;

Pedestrian surveys at town centre junctions; and

Traffic Signal and other junction operational and geometric data; Detailed survey results are included in Appendix A. To develop a matrix of vehicle trips, vehicle registration numbers were recorded at key points on the highway network. These included all entry/exit roads into residential areas, industrial areas and town centre car parks, together with a cordon around the town at the following locations:

Lewes Road roundabout

Eastbourne Road

Framfield Road

Bell Lane/A22 roundabout

Coopers Green/London Road to the north The town was divided into zones representing each residential area, industrial or commercial area, car park or cordon entry/exit point. Matched registration numbers were assigned to each zone from which it could be established where vehicle journeys start and end. The resultant matrices were built for each peak hour (8am – 9am and 5pm – 6pm). The transport surveys were carried out by the County Council’s Transport Monitoring team. Initial SATURN transport modelling was undertaken by consultants managed by the County Council. Subsequently further model use and analysis has been carried out in-house by the County Council. The base year SATURN model has been calibrated and validated in accordance with accepted procedures. This process is the subject of a separate local model validation report.

4.0 Traffic in Uckfield

Key results of the traffic surveys are summarised below, followed by more detailed tabulations. Where ranges are shown they relate to the AM and PM peak hours respectively. Note that in the model, Maresfield and Five Ash Down are included as ‘external’ zones.

1. Excluding traffic solely using the A22 and/or A26 to bypass the whole of the town:

9%(AM) and 12%(PM) of all traffic on the town network is through traffic.

29% (AM) and 25% (PM) is wholly internal to the town.

The largest component of all traffic within the town is internal to external, and vice versa, at 62% (AM) and 63%(PM).

In both peak hours, internal to external trips are approximately equal to external to internal.

2. The critical junction is High Street/Bell Lane junction, which does not work effectively in

providing for all the vehicular and pedestrian demands made on it. The Tesco roundabout could work in isolation but cannot in combination with the High Street/Bell Lane junction. The same is true of the Framfield Road/High Street junction. Church Street/High Street junction also has problems stemming from turning traffic and narrow road widths. Preliminary future year forecasts indicate the same pattern, with the Framfield Road junction becoming increasingly critical.

3. Through traffic from Framfield Road (east of the Hospital) is not a major component of traffic in the town, or on the critical link (High Street south of Bell Lane) where it constitutes 8% (AM) and 7% (PM) of the total flow on the link.

4. 28% (AM) and 30% (PM) of traffic on the critical link (High Street between Bell Lane and Framfield Road) is associated with town centre car parks. All traffic between south Uckfield and nearly all town centre car parks must travel on the critical link and through the critical junction (High Street/Bell Lane).

5. 15% (AM) and 12% (PM) of all traffic to or from the southern half of Uckfield (everything south of the railway) is travelling to or from external areas to the north of the town. The results indicate that there are a number of potential approaches to an improvement scheme that could be considered independently or in combination in developing the optimum solution for the town centre, including:

Demand management through smarter choices initiatives

New or improved town centre highway infrastructure schemes

Re-distribution of parking location and/or parking demand management

Access management to and from new and committed developments

Influencing route choice to discourage non-essential use of Uckfield Town Centre making better use of the bypass and the Bell Lane link road.

4.1 Summary of Existing Trips within Uckfield – AM Peak

All flows are shown as two-way Passenger Car Units (PCU) Hour

Overall Matrix Analysis:

For whole study area including bypass Total trips within the study area 6944 Total external to external trips 2443 (35%)

using A22 and/or A26 only 1977 (28%) travelling through Uckfield 466 (7%)

Total internal to external (& vice versa) trips 3082 (45%) Total internal to internal trips 1419 (20%)

For town network only (excluding through trips using A22 and/or A26 only)

Total trips 4967 Total external to external 466 (9%) Total internal to external (& vice versa) trips 3082 (62%) Total internal to internal trips 1419 (29%)

Existing traffic using critical link (High Street south of Bell Lane):

Total two-way traffic flow along the existing ‘critical link’ 1292

of which Tesco Car Park contributed 97 (8%) other Car Parks (Bell Walk, Luxford & Co-op CP) contributed 258 (20%) Framfield Road contributed 327 (25%) through trips 109 (8%) Southern Uckfield contributed 611 (47%)

(Southern Uckfield is considered as all internal zones south of the railway line)

Existing traffic to/from Southern Uckfield:

Total trips to/from southern Uckfield 1405

Total internal to external (& vice versa) trips 664 (48%) to/from the North (A22 N, A26 N, Ringles Cross & Coopers Green) 209 (15%)

Total internal to internal trips 741 (52%) to/from Town Centre Car Parks 144 (10%)

to/from North of Railway line (excluding car parks) 298 (21%) to/from South of Railway line 299 (21%)

4.2 Summary of Existing Trips within Uckfield – PM Peak

All flows are shown as two-way Passenger Car Units (PCU) / Hour

Overall Matrix Analysis:

For whole study area including bypass Total trips within the study area 6024 Total external to external trips 2254 (37%)

using A22 and/or A26 only: 1737 (29%) travelling through Uckfield: 517 (8%)

Total internal to external (& vice versa) trips 2720 (46%) Total internal to internal trips 1050 (17%)

For town network only (excluding through trips using A22 and/or A26 only)

Total trips 4287 Total external to external 517 (12%) Total internal to external (& vice versa) trips 2720 (63%) Total internal to internal trips 1050 (25%)

Existing traffic using critical link (High Street South of Bell Lane):

Total two-way traffic flow along the existing ‘critical link’ 1357

of which Tesco Car Park contributed 133 (10%) other Car Parks (Bell Walk, Luxford & Co-op CP) contributed 269 (20%) Framfield Road contributed 312 (23%) through trips 97 (7%) Southern Uckfield contributed 504 (37%) (Southern Uckfield is considered as all internal zones south of the railway line)

Existing traffic to/from Southern Uckfield:

Total trips to/from Southern Uckfield 1157

Total internal to external (& vice versa) trips 548 (47%) to/from the North (A22 N, A26 N, Ringles Cross & Coopers Green) 140 (12%)

Total internal to internal trips 609 (53%) to/from Town Centre Car Parks 124 (11%) to/from North of Railway line (excluding car parks) 243 (20%) to/from South of Railway line 242 (34%)

5.0 Other Transport Modes

Bus Services At present along the critical road link (between the junctions of High Street with Bell Lane and Framfield Road) there are 10 two way bus movements per hour (5 per hour each way). All buses access the bus station located in Bell Lane, therefore resulting in a double movement at the High Street/Bell Lane junction i.e. 20 movements per hour, and on the congested part of Bell Lane between High Street and the Tesco roundabout. Therefore, punctuality is adversely affected in the peak hours, with overall journey times increased. Rail Services To the south of the river/railway line there is limited bus stop infrastructure provision, and therefore poor connectivity between bus and rail services. Uckfield station is a terminus. Currently the rail service is provided by Southern Rail connecting north to East Croydon and onto London stations. At present there are station car parking facilities for only 8 vehicles with secure cycle parking and taxi set down/pick up. Other station car parking takes place on-street principally in the New Town area. There are aspirations to reinstate the rail line between Uckfield and Lewes. However the most recent study identified that, whilst technically feasible, there was currently no robust business case, with the best possible benefit: cost ratio (BCR) of 0.78. Pedestrians and cyclists Uckfield town centre has pedestrian crossing facilities throughout with two Pelican crossings along the High Street and all-red pedestrian phases at both the High Street/Bell Lane and the Framfield Road/High Street signalised junctions. Linked to the High Street/Bell Lane signalised junction between the Tescos roundabout is a Pelican crossing, which has intelligent pedestrian detection facilities. The Church Street/High Street junction has no pedestrian facilities. The respective demands of pedestrians and vehicles at town centre signalised junctions are such that neither can be satisfactorily provided for under existing arrangements. This particularly applies to the High Street/Bell Lane junction where, should any extra capacity be able to be ‘squeezed out’ the major imperative would be to improve pedestrian facilities. There are no specific facilities for cyclists on the town centre highway network, and no opportunities for their provision under current traffic conditions.

6.0 Conclusions The base survey results demonstrate and confirm that town centre congestion, queuing and delays for all road users occurs to a sufficient scale and intensity as to require resolution to meet both the demands of committed and proposed development. Appendix B contains photographs illustrating the existing traffic conditions in Uckfield at the critical junctions.

7.0 Action Plan and Next Steps:

The proposed stages of the Uckfield Town Centre Action Plan as detailed and approved by the Lead Member for Economy, Transport & Environment in July 2011 are:

1. Detailed Modelling Reports. The SATURN transport model base year report will be made available on the web in late summer. This report is the first part of Stage 1. The second part of Stage 1 (The SATURN Local Model Validation Report) will be published by late summer 2011. The Stage 2 report (SATURN Forecasting Report) and feasibility designs will be prepared later in 2011. 2. Option Development. Different options will be worked up to a feasibility level and tested using the model during 2011. 3. Consultation and Exhibition. Events showing the range of proposals are likely to be held in 2012. The public and other specific interested groups will be given the opportunity to influence and comment on the ultimate scheme selected through extensive consultation. 4. Preferred Option. Depending on the outcome of these public events, it is proposed that a preferred option will be brought back for approval to the Town Centre Steering Group and the County Council’s Lead Member in 2012*. 5. Scheme Approval. Once a scheme has been approved by the Lead Member, it will be taken forward through the necessary statutory processes so that implementation can take place once funding is in place*. * Strictly subject to funding being available to cover the statutory provisions relating to any blight or purchase notices under the Town and Country Planning Act 1990

APPENDIX A

Site Surveys Data Available The following data was provided for November 2010 for the study:

Traffic Signal Data;

Junction Manual Classified Count (MCC) Data;

Temporary Automatic Traffic Count (ATC) Data;

Permanent ATC Data;

Registration Plate Data;

Journey Time Surveys; and

Junction Queue Length Surveys Traffic Signal Data There are 3 signal controlled junctions and 4 signal controlled crossings within the Uckfield model study area. Traffic controller configuration forms were provided, along with log files containing snapshots of green and inter-green timings. Table 1 shows the signal junctions within the scheme model boundary, along with the site number and control type. Table 1 – Uckfield Model Traffic Signal Controlled Junction Sites

Site Number Location Control Type

EPR016 Church Street/High Street

VA

62139 High Street/Bell Lane VA

60559 Framfield Road/High Street

VA

Y71123 London Road/Hooke Hall

VA/Puffin

Y71183 High Street/Post Office VA/Pelican

Y71113 High Street./Town Centre

VA/Pelican

Y71153 Bell Lane/Bus Station VA/Puffin

Model Time Periods The average weekday vehicular trip patterns in SATURN have been modelled using two average peak time periods, chosen to reflect the heaviest directional traffic flows through the study area.

AM Peak Period: 0800 – 0900 Hrs; and

PM Peak Period: 1700-1800 Hrs. Traffic Counts The traffic count information was collected in November 2010. The registration number survey took place on Tuesday 9 November; all other surveys during the weeks beginning Monday 8 November and Monday 15 November. The analysis of data from the above sources is detailed in the relevant subsections below.

Count Analysis Traffic monitoring by the County Council utilised three means of data collection i.e. manual surveys (MCCs), permanent automatic traffic counters and temporary automatic traffic counters (ATCs). The junction MCC data was analysed to compile data for matrix estimation, and the permanent and temporary ATC data was analysed to compile data for validation purposes. A total of 13 MCC sites; 5 permanent ATC sites; and 2 temporary ATC sites were selected for data analysis. MCC Data The classified vehicular count data was converted into Passenger Car Units (PCUs) using the following factors:

Motorcycle 0.4 PCU;

Car/light goods vehicle 1.0 PCU;

Medium goods vehicle 1.5 PCU;

Heavy goods vehicle 2.3 PCU; and,

Motorcycle 0.4 PCU. Bus flows had been extracted from the MCCs and have instead been coded into the model as fixed flows operating at a frequency obtained from timetable information. Buses have been added to the model in this way so that matrix estimation and the assignment processes cannot make changes to the services meaning an appropriate bus flow is included in the simulation of junctions. In addition, the model would be able to demonstrate the impact to existing bus journey times in a modelled future scenario. ESCC Manual Classified Traffic Count Locations A22/A26/C58 Horsted Roundabout A22/B2102 Bell Lane Roundabout A22/A26 Maresfield/Uckfield Bypass High Street/Mallard Drive/Lewes Road B2102/High Street B2102/Bell Lane/Tesco/Industrial Estate B2102 Framfield Road High Street/Church Street/Hempstead Road London Road/Browns Lane London Road/Snatts Road/Coopers Green Road Snatts Road/Rocks Park Road Eastbourne Road/New Road Lewes Road/New Road ATC Data Due to the inherent inaccuracies that exist with automatic classified counts the total vehicle numbers were converted into all-vehicle categories using conversion factors obtained from the nearby manual classified junction counts. The ATC traffic count locations A22 North of Sandhill Lane

London Road A22 Uckfield Bypass B2102 Bird-in-Eye-Hill A26 Little Horsted South of A22 B2102 Uckfield High Street B2102 Bell Lane Consistency analysis of Site 6 – B2102 Uckfield High Street (4513) showed significant peculiarities and as it has been found that, due to slow moving traffic, the automatic counters had not recorded accurately,this data has been discounted from further use in the model. The location of the ATC Site 1 – A22 North of Sandhill Lane (4514) was outside the study area; therefore, the data had been discounted from further use in the model. Vehicle Registration Origin and Destination Survey A registration plate survey was undertaken to establish vehicle trip origin-destination movements through the study area. The survey consisted of vehicle flow counts and accompanying sample records of vehicle registrations, passing in both directions through 34 monitoring sites, covering both strategic routes and generators/attractors within the study area (e.g. key residential areas, car parks and employment areas). The registration survey was carried out during AM peak (3 hour 7am – 10am) and PM peak (3-hour 3.30pm – 6.30pm) on a weekday in November 2010. Overall, vehicle registrations were recorded during a 6 hour period. A classified vehicle count was also undertaken in each direction through the registration survey sites. The registration sample rate achieved at some sites was low, particularly at the A22 site south of Blackdown Roundabout. The sample rate was not as high as planned, owing to difficulties arising from lack of daylight and poor visibility conditions. Nevertheless, the sample rate was considered sufficient for the purpose of the survey. Vehicle Journey Time Surveys Journey time surveys were undertaken by the County Council during the weeks commencing 8th and 15th November 2010. The journey time data was collected in 4 to 8 runs on 4 different routes. Junction Queue Length Surveys In November 2010, observations of weekday peak period junction queues at four key locations in the study area were made by the County Council. The junctions surveyed were in Uckfield town centre and were the same as for the MCC surveys that were also undertaken in November 2010. The results suggest that typical queues are relatively severe at a number of locations within the town centre.

APPENDIX B – PHOTOGRAPHS

High Street junction with Bell Lane

High Street south bound

Bell Lane west bound

Tescos Roundabout with Bell Lane

Bell Lane east bound

High Street junction with Church Lane and Hempstead Road

High Street north bound

High Street junction with Framfield Road and Bridge Farm Road

High Street north bound

W:\Development Control\LDF Transport Modelling\Uckfield\Base report\Uckfield Interim Report Final 22 8 11.doc