Countryside Strategy

Background

In Warwickshire, some 67% of the population lives in urban areas, predominantly Nuneaton, Bedworth, Rugby, Leamington Spa, Warwick, Kenilworth and Stratford-upon-Avon.  However, despite the majority of the population residing within the major towns and settlements, some 64% of the land area of the County is rural in nature and some 167,000 people live in Warwickshire’s countryside area, which includes villages and market towns.

There are a number of complementary and overlapping issues that are particularly relevant to the rural areas: accessibility; public transport; traffic management and road safety; market towns issues, land use planning; leisure and tourism; and recreational use by walkers, cyclists and horseriders.

The LTP contains specific strategies that focus on, or are relevant to, most of these individual topics.  These are:

  • Accessibility Strategy
  • Public Transport Strategy
  • Bus Strategy
  • Community Transport Strategy
  • Road Safety Strategy
  • Walking Strategy
  • Cycling Strategy
  • Bus Information Strategy
  • Transport and Land Use Strategy
  • Network Management Strategies

The countryside, however, represents such a large and valuable proportion of the County’s land area that it is important to provide a unified and co-ordinated approach to the management of transport issues by drawing together the relevant policies and initiatives from other strategies and documents into this specific Countryside Strategy. 

Key issues

The main transport related problems facing those who live, work, visit or need access to goods and services in the countryside are:

  • Poor accessibility and travel difficulties; and
  • The impact of traffic.

In many rural areas of the country there has been a movement away from the provision of rural services in small towns and villages towards the concentration of key facilities such as health and education onto larger sites in major towns and settlements.  In the rural parts of Warwickshire, this trend has contributed to poor accessibility for people who do not have access to a car, particularly for those in very isolated locations which often have no or very few facilities and are not well-served by public transport.  At the same time Warwickshire’s countryside represents a valuable resource for recreation, leisure and tourism although leisure trips to the rural areas by car can contribute to the negative impact of traffic.

Levels of car ownership and use are higher in rural areas, partly due to the difficulties of access and transport.  For many people there is no real alternative to the car but this in turn contributes to problems of congestion, pollution and noise and those without access to a car become even more isolated.  Road traffic can be particularly intrusive in rural areas and its impact on the environment and people’s lives is major cause for concern. 

The Strategy

The overall objectives of the County Council’s Countryside Strategy are to improve accessibility and reduce the impact of traffic whilst at the same time supporting use of the countryside for leisure, recreation and tourism. 

The Strategy has been developed within the National, Regional and Local policy environments and aims to be consistent with the wider framework. The West Midlands' Regional Assembly's Rural Services Scoping Study has been considered. The renaissance of the Region’s rural areas is a key objective of the Regional Spatial Strategy, which has steered development of the Countryside Strategy. 

Section 60 of the Countryside and Rights of Way Act 2000 requires all local highway authorities to prepare a Rights of Way Improvement Plan.  Details of the County Council’s progress on producing its Countryside Access and Rights of Way Improvement Plan (CAROWIP) can be found in the main LTP.  The CAROWIP itself is a sister document to the LTP.  The Countryside Strategy is closely related to the CAROWIP, which in the longer term will become fully integrated with the Local Transport Plan.

In applying the overarching principles that underlie the entire LTP to the countryside, we are particularly seeking to bring about improvements through Community Involvement and Partnerships.

Community Involvement

As part of the widespread and ongoing community involvement during the development of the Countryside Access and Rights of Way Improvement Plan and Local Transport Plan, we have consulted many organisations and individuals who have an interest in the countryside. 

Partnerships

The Council recognises the need to build partnerships with local organisations as well as those that go beyond local authority boundaries - for example, the County Council is a member of the Cotswolds Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB) Partnership.  As a matter of course, all adjoining authorities are consulted on all aspects of the Local Transport Plan.  We maintain close contact with our partners through Rural Transport Partnerships led by local Rural Transport Partnership Officers whose work is dedicated to researching and providing accessibility solutions for their communities. The County’s Local Access Forum has been set up in partnership with both Solihull Metropolitan Borough Council and Coventry City Council.    

The key elements of the individual issues, strategies and topic areas as related to the Countryside Strategy are summarised below.

Accessibility

Issues of poor accessibility are often exacerbated in rural areas due to the lower levels of public transport provision and larger distances between where people live and employment, education, health care and other opportunities.  In the 2001 Census, five SOAs within Warwickshire are amongst the one percent most deprived areas in England in terms of access to services and housing. 

Poor access to such opportunities can significantly impact on people’s quality of life and on their life chances.  Poor accessibility is not felt uniformly, the impact is more pronounced for certain groups of people, such as those on low incomes, the elderly and young, disabled people (including those with mental health problems), people with illnesses, women and people from ethnic communities.  Where people in these disadvantaged groups live in rural areas the problems of poor accessibility can be magnified.

Schemes and initiatives to improve accessibility can therefore have wide reaching benefits, for example, encouraging participation and retention in education, reducing inequalities in health, and helping people move from welfare into work.

The Accessibility Strategy contains a phased approach of carrying out accessibility assessments and reviewing options and resources in order to enable an action plan to be drawn up to tackle local accessibility problems.  This will include consultation with partners and communities to determine the specific types of initiatives that are most appropriate for tackling local accessibility problems.  The types of mechanisms that might be identified for delivering improved accessibility through action plans focus on three main areas: travel to services, location of services and service delivery.  A number of policies have been developed under each of these headings to provide an overall framework for delivering accessibility improvements.  These include:

Travel to services

  • Improving the availability, accessibility, affordability and acceptability of public transport;
  • Improving the attractiveness of walking and cycling for journeys to local destinations by improving routes and facilities, maintaining them in a more usable condition, improving Rights of Way, and making routes safer, more secure, and more attractive;
  • Improving physical accessibility by addressing issues that affect disabled people and those with impaired mobility in the pedestrian environment and in and around public transport services and infrastructure;
  • Considering the role of parking provision, in particular the availability of parking for disabled users and the adequacy of short stay parking;
  • Reducing the severance effect of traffic through traffic calming or traffic management measures;
  • Improving travel choice to employment sites through travel planning techniques and improving the awareness of transport options to key destinations through provision of travel information;
  • Promoting powered two wheelers as an affordable means of travel for employment, services and leisure activities, including integration with other modes;
  • Make use of accessibility analysis in the criteria and performance monitoring of essential transport links such as the Rural Bus Subsidy Grant;
  • Consider whether appropriate integration between the County Council's functions and forms of transport could lead to better accessibility and better use of resources. (The County Council's transport functions currently include: transport for pupils to and from educational establishments; transport for members of the public within rural areas where services are not considered financially viable by commercial operators but are considered socially necessary by the Authority; a community transport function for those members of the community who do not have regular access to transport and consequently would otherwise be excluded from accessing services and facilities that they need; and transport for specific sections of the community who are in receipt of a service or facility provided through the Social Services Department such as access to a day care centre);
  • Investigate a range of solutions to make travel more affordable, particularly for those most in need; and,
  • Address problems of crime and fear of crime in and around transport.

Location of Services

  • Shaping the pattern of development and influencing the location, scale, density, design and mix of land uses in ways which help to reduce the need to travel;
  • Locating key generators of travel demand in locations accessible by public transport;
  • Ensuring that the layout of developments facilitates access by public transport, cyclists and pedestrians; and,
  • Work with service providers to ensure that accessibility considerations are factored into the decision making process of service providers when locating new facilities.

Delivery of Services

  • Work with service providers to promote the delivery of services in ways that contribute towards improved accessibility.

Public Transport

There are varying levels of public transport service across the County.  Whilst the main urban areas are relatively well served, many rural or edge of town areas have only minimum public transport service levels, which limit the opportunity for local people to travel to services and facilities outside their immediate area.  The problem is particularly acute in remote rural areas and for travel in the evenings or on Sundays.

The current level of public transport use is determined by the services on offer and the facilities for accessing them.  The County Council is convinced that a greater need exists than is being provided for by the existing network both in terms of services and facilities such as rail stations. 

Private companies operate the majority of the bus services in Warwickshire on a ‘for profit’ basis.  To ensure that bus services that are considered to be socially necessary are provided to parts of Warwickshire not served by the commercial services, the Council procure additional services through competitive tender.  These additional, subsidised, bus services often serve the rural parts of the County.

The Bus, Passenger Rail and Community Transport Strategies contain minimum service patterns and other initiatives related to public transport quality and levels of service that are relevant to rural areas.  The key elements are laid out below, a number of which are also reflected in the Taxis and Private Hire Vehicles Strategy. 

  • Bus, rail and community transport fares should be less than the full cost of the equivalent journey by car unless the fare is justified as a premium fare due to providing a significantly faster journey time or enhanced facilities;
  • The design of bus stops, bus stations, rail stations, taxi facilities, trains and vehicles must enable passengers to board or alight unaided or with a reasonable level of assistance;
  • Interchange infrastructure should provide for ‘seamless’ changes between transport modes assisted by good signage, information and appropriately designed infrastructure;
  • Public transport services should be co-ordinated to encourage interchange with the object of increasing the range of travel opportunities and options for travellers;
  • Pedestrian and cycling routes to bus stops, interchanges and rail stations should accord with the standards set out in the Walking and Cycling Strategies.  Special attention should be given to access arrangements for people who have difficulties because of health, physical or sensory difficulties;
  • Bus, rail and community transport services should be of sufficient quality, particularly in terms of reliability and punctuality that a potential passenger would be confident in relying on them;
  • Trains, buses, bus stops, bus and rail stations, and interchanges should provide reasonable shelter, comfort, suitable heating and ventilation and a perception and reality of personal safety and security;
  • Staff should be helpful and courteous and have received appropriate customer service training;
  • The journey time of bus and community transport services should be similar to the equivalent journey by car unless this can be justified by a significantly reduced fare;
  • Timetables, routes and fares should be readily available, easy to understand and be simple to use;
  • Information systems should enable passengers to plan their journeys and provide increased public confidence as to the availability and reliability of public transport services;
  • Full and timely information should be provided or be easily available to customers in case of disruption to services;
  • Integrated ticketing between modes including rail, bus and community transport services should be available, where it is necessary to use different modes to complete a journey;
  • Community transport solutions should be developed where identified transport and access needs are not met or cannot be appropriately met through bus, rail or other provision;
  • Demand-responsive services and other flexible transport options should be investigated and introduced where appropriate;
  • Existing levels of rail service and existing rail stations should be retained;
  • The provision of rail network capacity improvements should be encouraged;
  • Proposals for new rail services and stations should be developed;
  • Suitable proposals for taxi buses to meet specific travel needs in rural areas should be developed where conventional bus service provision is not appropriate for operational or economic reasons; and,
  • Appropriate improvements for taxis and private hire vehicles should be encouraged at existing and new interchange facilities.

Traffic Management and Road Safety

Road traffic can have a devastating effect on the special character of the countryside.  The speed and volume of vehicular traffic and the movement of goods by lorry is of particular concern.

The overall strategy to control the impact of traffic on the countryside is contained within the Network Management Duty Strategy and the Sustainable Freight Distribution Strategy, both of which contain a number of policies relevant to the countryside:

  • Reduce the impact of vehicular traffic in terms of speed, volume, noise and emissions, on towns, villages, other rural locations and environmentally sensitive areas;
  • Design transport infrastructure to be sensitive to its surroundings whilst still being effective;
  • Introduce route management techniques to encourage suitable traffic on suitable roads;
  • Promote the use of a defined and agreed 24-hour lorry route network, including producing a map for distribution within the road haulage industry;
  • Control heavy goods vehicle movements through or near environmentally sensitive areas such as Conservation Areas and residential neighbourhoods by systematic intelligence gathering from Parish Councils and contact with HGV operators; 
  • Consider the introduction of Amenity Weight Limits, as a last resort, subject to meeting criteria that are designed to make sure that the limit can be effective;
  • Place more emphasis on the contribution that better co-ordination of works within the highway can make towards improving the walking environment and build on the safety improvements made in response to road accidents to enhance the cycling and walking environment.
  • Improve the safety and enjoyment of non-motorised users by making verges available for non-motorised users in key locations;
  • Implement casualty reduction (local safety) schemes where cost effective measures to reduce casualties can be developed using measures such as:
    • Signing, lining and coloured road surfaces;
    • Traffic orders such as right turn bans and speed limits;
    • Alterations to the road layout;
    • Traffic calming schemes (road humps,' village gateways,' road narrowing etc);
    • Safety cameras (speed and red light cameras); and,
    • Variable Message Signs.
  • Study casualty hot spots and corridors;
  • Review Village Speed Limits across the County;

Market Towns Initiative

Historically, market towns have been at the heart of life in rural England.  For centuries, they have acted as focal points for commercial, economic and social activity.  However, in the past thirty years, many of these functions have been undermined by social, industrial and agricultural change.  Recently, there has been an attempt to reverse some of the decline in market towns, in order to revitalise the role of these rural centres for serving the wider countryside.  The objective over the coming years is to bring a new lease of life to Warwickshire's market towns so that they are better able to provide convenient access to the services and facilities that surrounding rural communities need - retail and professional services, training and jobs, leisure and cultural opportunities.

We will continue to work with Advantage West Midlands, the Countryside Agency, District/Borough Councils and Town Councils to achieve regeneration of the market towns of Warwickshire; Alcester, Atherstone, Bidford on Avon, Coleshill, Henley in Arden, Kineton, Polesworth, Shipston on Stour, Southam, Studley and Wellesbourne.  This work includes ongoing consultation with established partnerships including particular stakeholders and the wider community.  As part of the Warwickshire Market Towns Initiative, various working groups have been set up to look at issues such as local access, civic pride, publicity and promotions, and business issues.

Not all market towns have the same characteristics; each is individual and has its own problems and opportunities.  However, the main issues of concern in most of the towns include:

  • To reduce the impact of vehicular traffic on the environment of the town centres;
  • To improve conditions for pedestrians in the town centres, sometimes in order to encourage new uses e.g. street markets, events and entertainment;
  • For improved public transport to serve both the towns themselves and connect adjacent rural areas to the towns (including community transport and taxi buses);
  • To provide central Bus Information Points in key market towns;
  • To build upon each town’s uniqueness; and
  • To ensure that each market town is the hub for the rural economy.

To address the particular problems and opportunities found in the market towns, the Countryside Strategy supports policies and actions contained in the Market Towns Initiative and other LTP strategies including the Accessibility Strategy, all of the Public Transport Strategies, the Land Use and Transportation Strategy, the Walking Strategy and the Cycling Strategy.

Land Use Planning

Many parts of rural Warwickshire are in high demand for housing from commuters from the West Midlands Conurbation.  This trend has been identified by The Countryside Agency who has recognised that south Warwickshire, in particular Stratford on Avon District, acts as a magnet for many people moving from the metropolitan areas within the West Midlands, or from other locations further away. 

The Warwickshire Structure Plan seeks to prevent development in rural areas other than that, which specifically meets the needs of the rural population, rural businesses and agriculture.  Any development that takes place in rural areas should enhance the wider rural community by supporting local services and facilities without compromising the quality of rural life.  Most of the additional housing and employment development should be directed to the nine main settlements in the Country.  Within the rural areas there should only be limited growth, and it should take into account local community assessments when determining what growth should be provided for in the smaller rural settlements.

Any new development that is approved in rural areas will be subject to policies laid out in the Land Use and Transportation Strategy.  These aim to ensure that the development is located where it will be served by public transport, cycling and walking facilities and that other measures are put in place to encourage sustainable travel.  The combination of policies will help to ensure that new development does not lead to a deterioration of conditions in the countryside.

Recreation, Leisure and Tourism

Warwickshire has a varied and accessible countryside, attracting many thousands of visitors a year and providing a recreation and leisure resource for the County’s residents.  The landscape is gentle and welcoming with countryside that is generally intensively farmed. There are many locations of historical and cultural interest.  The County has a well-managed network of public paths overlain with promoted trails of national, regional and local importance. 

Warwickshire is fortunate in having a world-class tourism destination in Stratford upon Avon as well as other major attractions such as Warwick Castle.   Of equal importance is the growing list of attractions in the countryside such as Hatton Country World, National Trust properties, Country Parks, farms and gardens.  The historic market towns act as gateways to the wider countryside. 

Recreational use of the countryside can make a positive contribution to peoples' health, well being and quality of life. Tourism brings important economic benefits to the rural areas.   Most visitors however, travel by car and this puts pressure on the road network, adds to congestion and problems such as traffic noise and pollution.  Congestion hot spots can occur near to major attractions, particularly during the summer months and on bank holidays or during special events.

The Countryside Strategy seeks a balanced approach in order to manage traffic and encourage visitors to make sustainable travel choices.   The Countryside Access and Rights of Way Improvement Plan, Walking and Cycling Strategies and the Network Management Duty Strategy all contain elements in relation to recreation, leisure and tourism.  These include:

  • Working in partnership with the Local Access Forum, Countryside Access Liaison Group and other interested groups;
  • Promoting opportunities for safe and easy walking, cycling and horse riding by identifying and developing networks of Greenways, bridleways and footpaths;
  • Producing more information to tell people what is available: for example, the Council has developed a number of way-marked countryside leisure cycling routes using quiet roads, tracks, and bridleways, each accompanied by a high quality map / guide. 
  • Encourage traffic-free cycling opportunities in Greenways and Country Parks which are particularly suitable for novice cyclists and families, providing the ideal environment to gain skills and bike handling confidence;
  • Encouraging facilities that can be used without a car;
  • Packaging days out for the existing visitor market by suggesting walks and trails near to other attractions and presenting the information in a clear accessible format that promotes sustainable transport options;
  • Working to develop opportunities for cycling in parks, open spaces and along green corridors such as canal towpaths and disused rail lines; and,
  • 'Easy Going Trails/Health Walks' for those who are less mobile or active.

Walking, cycling and horse riding

Walking, cycling and horse riding have a large role in recreation, leisure and tourism in the countryside.  Walking and cycling are also important in rural areas for making everyday local journeys although for many rural trips public transport is more appropriate due to the longer distances to destinations.  The Walking and Cycling Strategies and Countryside Access and Rights of Way Improvement Plan include policies covering the implementation of traffic management initiatives, road, footway and cycleway maintenance, provision of new pedestrian and cycle infrastructure and the improvement and promotion of public rights of way.  These all aim to improve facilities for walking, cycling and horse riding and will include measures to make these modes safer and more attractive.  These include:

  • Designing promoted routes which will start and finish in towns and villages or transport nodes so as to maximise use;
  • Working with Sustrans to develop the National Cycle Network routes in Warwickshire to provide both leisure and commuter routes from rural areas into local towns;
  • Greenways will be designed to provide links between towns and the countryside, including the towns and countryside outside Warwickshire such as Coventry and Redditch;
  • Assess the potential for a Quiet Lanes scheme in Warwickshire;
  • Improvements will continue to be made to the rights of way network, and improved signage introduced on the most popular sections of the network;
  • Support the British Horse Society's safety training schemes;
  • In rural areas where paved footways are not justified identify key verges or other corridors for non motorised users and maintain them accordingly; and,
  • Identify low cost opportunities for upgrading public footpaths to cycleways and bridleways where they will form key links in the network.

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