Contact: Jon Foley, ext 7559 email: [email protected]

1. Summary

1.1 This report provides a progress update on the workplace and school travel planning programmes for the Hart area. It also includes an update on the Safer Routes to Schools programme for schemes within the Hart area.

2. Workplace Travel Plan Programme

2.1 The County Council has, through its Business Travel Plan Adviser, been working with organisations since April 2001 to assist them in developing travel plans for their establishments.

2.2 There are two elements to this work. The first is to work with planning officers to ensure that appropriate guidance is given to developers of new sites (or extensions to existing sites). This secures the requirement for a travel plan within the legal planning framework. A guidance note on the production of travel plans is currently being developed in consultation with all districts to help secure good quality travel plans through the planning process.

2.3 The second area of work is to provide support to organisations developing travel plans voluntarily. This is generally done on a `reactive' basis, with the Business Travel Plan Adviser providing advice as organisations make contact with the County Council.

2.4 The Business Travel Plan Adviser is currently aware of three organisations with travel plans in the Hart area. One of these is the Blackwater Valley and Hart Primary Care Trust which, although engaged on travel planning in Aldershot and Rushmoor, now has the information to be able to develop travel planning initiatives in the Hart area as well.

2.5 Table 1 of the Appendix shows the current status each organisation's travel plan the Business Travel Plan Adviser is working with in the Hart area.

3. School Travel Plan Programme

3.1 The County Council has, through its School Travel Plan Adviser, been working with schools to help develop school travel plans since April 2001, using a grant from the Department for Transport (DfT). The DfT has extended and increased this funding until March 2006. As a result the School Travel Planning team (5 staff) has now been established within the Transport Policy Group of the Environment Department.

3.2 There are to date over 200 schools throughout Hampshire which have developed, or are working on, travel plans. Schools which have completed a travel plan to the Hampshire standard are eligible to bid for Safer Routes to Schools funding, as well as a one-off grant from the Department for Education and Skills.

3.3 The School Travel Planning team is currently engaged with 8 of the 36 schools in the Hart area, of which 3 have an endorsed travel plan. As a whole, the County Council is engaged with 202 of the 546 schools in Hampshire, of which 103 have an endorsed travel plan. Table 2 in the Appendix shows the status of the travel plan at each of the schools in the Hart area.

4. Safer Routes to School Programme

4.1 The Safer Routes to Schools programme links very closely with the development of the School Travel Plan programme. One of the objectives of a School Travel Plan is to encourage as many children as possible to be active and independent by walking, cycling or using public transport to get to and from school on a regular basis. This could be through a combination of physical and other measures. If physical works are identified within the approved school travel plan then the school can bid for funding from the Safer Routes to Schools Programme.

4.2 On 23 January 2004 the Executive Member for Environment agreed an indicative allocation of £1.25 million for a county-wide programme of Safer Routes to Schools schemes from the 2004/05 Capital Programme, and £1.5 million in 2005/06. This includes an allocation of £250,000 for School Crossing Patrol site improvements. These improvements are based on a risk assessment priority rather than necessarily being tied to a school travel plan.

4.3 The Safer Routes to Schools programme 2004/05 for the Hart area includes school crossing patrol works for Velmead Junior and Fleet Infants Schools.

4.4 Safer Routes to Schools schemes under development for 2005/06 and beyond include pedestrian and minor traffic management improvements at Robert May's School, Odiham and Yateley Manor School.

4.5 As more school travel plans are submitted and approved it is anticipated that more Safer Routes to Schools schemes will be forthcoming.

Recommendation

That Members note the progress made with the delivery of the workplace travel plans, school travel plans and Safer Routes to Schools programmes in the Hart area.

8981/JF

APPENDIX

Table 1 Travel Plan Status of Businesses in the Hart Area

* The travel plan levels have recently been devised and are undergoing refinement

Table 2 Travel Plan and Safer Routes to School Status of Schools in the Hart Area

PRIMARY SCHOOLS

Summary of School Travel Plan Status (State Schools in Hart)

(includes an Independent School)

Key:

0 Interest shown

1 Initial work on travel plan started

2 Draft travel plan completed

3 Final travel plan submitted and approved