Regional Action Plan the Role of Modal Interchange to Foster Low Carbon Urban Mobility
The RSES, in line with international best practice encourages Local Authorities (LA) to incorporate the compact “10 Minute Town” concept into their Local Transport Plans (LTP). LTPs give local expression to regional transport strategy and provide for local implementation of national-level land-use and transport policies across the region. LAs will prepare LTPs for their key towns, based on the Area Based Transport Assessment 16 (ABTA) guidance produced by National Transport Authority (NTA) and Transport Infrastructure Ireland (TII). Secondary objectives of this priority: Implementing the “10 Minute Town” concept in key towns in the Southern region will lead to more sustainable and inclusive communities, reduce social exclusion, and improve the overall well-being and quality of life for citizens in these key towns. By improving transport connectivity, modal interchange and low carbon urban mobility, citizens will be more active and more connected, and will assist in reducing carbon emissions in the Southern region. SRA are now seeking to enhance the RSES RPO 176 “10Minute Town” concept by creating a new implementation tool consisting of a framework and methodology to assist LAs in undertaking a “10 Minute Town” assessment on their key towns which will incorporate low carbon urban mobility and modal interchange improvements.
Table 5.1: Policy instrument
5.2 Policy Need
Description of the need(s) to be addressed through the policy improvement
The typical suburban development pattern seen in recent decades in many Irish towns has consisted of individual housing areas delivered by independent landowners. This has often led to poor connectivity between these residential areas and key community facilities such as schools, shops, leisure, and healthcare facilities. In addition, the transport networks associated with this development pattern have been centred on private vehicles, with little attention paid to pedestrian and cycle accessibility, or access to the public transport network. This has fostered car dependency and tended to undermine the viability of towns and villages across the country. More recent planning guidelines, such as the NPF and the Design Manual for Urban Roads and Streets 17 , have addressed the issues encountered in previous development pattern. There has been much more focus on improving permeability and the quality of the environment for pedestrians and cyclists in newer developments. However, there remains a challenge to retrofit existing towns and villages to provide a coherent transport network focused on sustainable mobility, in particular facilitating convenient access to community facilities by walking and cycling. The emphasis on compact growth in the NPF for the delivery of new housing, employment, and community facilities will naturally promote access on foot or by bike as the resultant shorter distance trips are more convenient for these modes compared to the longer distance trips that result from less dense suburban areas.
16. https://www.tiipublications.ie/library/PE-PDV-02046-01.pdf 17. https://www.housing.gov.ie/sites/default/files/publications/files/design_manual_for_urban_streets_version_1.1_low_res.pdf
Southern Regional Assembly | Regional Action Plan
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