Planning Policy Wales - Brecon Beacons National Park

8.4.5 Private non-residential parking is also an important component of parking provision in town
centres. Authorities should, where appropriate, seek to encourage appropriate redevelopment or
re-use of existing private parking sites to bring the provision down to revised standards, and should
refuse planning permission for public and private car parks which do not meet the strategic aims of
the development plan and RTP.
8.4.6 The Transport Act 2000 includes measures that would allow the introduction of road user
charging and/or a workplace parking levy. Whilst the opportunities for road user charging
are likely to be limited in Wales, a workplace parking levy could be desirable to facilitate, either
directly or indirectly, the achievement of RTP policies. Local authorities will need to consider carefully
how road user charging and a workplace parking levy would fit alongside development plan
policies and the approaches of neighbouring authorities. Such measures could increase pressure for
the dispersal of development away from charged areas. For this reason, schemes must be designed
and implemented in ways that support the vitality of town and city centres and that do not result in
the dispersal of development.
8.5 Planning for roads, railways, airports, ports and inland waterways
8.5.1 Local authorities should utilise available powers to reduce the need to use trunk
roads and other through routes for short, local journeys. Development plans should
specify the primary road network, including trunk roads, and separately identify the core network 12 .
These routes should be identified as corridors for movement adjacent to which development that
would compromise this role will be resisted. Development plans should include all proposals for
new roads and major improvements to the primary road network over the plan period, and beyond
where known, and set out the broad policy on priorities for minor improvements. For local road
schemes the development plan procedures should normally provide the means to examine both the
need for and the alignment of the route.
8.5.2 Development plans should also include policies and proposals relating to the development
of other transport infrastructure and related services (such as public transport interchange facilities,
rail facilities, harbours and airports) including safeguarding zones. Where local planning
authorities wish to safeguard land for transport infrastructure, including schemes identified in the
RTP, they should do so through a proposal in the development plan, where possible showing the
precise route of the proposed new or improved infrastructure. When the precise route is not known,
a safeguarding policy may be applied to the area of land necessary for the scheme. Blight should
be kept to a minimum by including in development plans only firm schemes on which work will
commence within the plan period. When development plans are prepared or amended, existing
transport proposals should be reviewed, so as to remove any proposals that have previously been
safeguarded but are now abandoned or any that are unlikely to commence during the plan period.
8.5.3 The strategic significance of freight access to industry and commerce should be taken into
consideration by planning authorities 13 . Wherever possible they should promote the carriage of
freight by rail, water or pipeline rather than by road. Local authorities should consider which routes
117
Planning Policy Wales Edition 3 - July 2010 - Chapter 8 Transport