titlepage/contents pg 1-16 - British Parking Association

Chapter 2National andRegional TransportPlanning PoliciesAcknowledgementsChapter 2National andRegional TransportPlanning PoliciesThe development ofParking PoliciesIntervention to control andprovide for parking wasoriginally prompted by importantbut rather narrow concernsabout safety and obstruction oftraffic flow on the streets.Parking policy and managementwithin local authoritiesconsequently evolved as anumber of separate activities orconsiderations, including:●The management of parkingon the highway;● The planning of parking innew developments; and● The provision andmanagement of off-streetpublic car parks.Generally speaking, theseactivities were all geared toensuring that sufficient carparking was provided to meetdemand. For as long as this wasthe policy, and the wider impactswere not questioned, there waslittle difficulty in dealing withparking as a separate matter.Over time, however, it becameincreasingly clear that the landuse and transport trends werecreating a whole range ofproblems, and this led from the1970s onwards to a majorchange in policy.How car use anddependence has beenencouragedFor several decades it was anobligation on the promoters ofnew development to providesufficient parking to cater forexpected demand and to ensurethat no development resulted inpotentially dangerous orobstructive parking on thestreet.Planning policies alloweddevelopment to take advantageof locations served bymotorways and other highstandard roads. Patterns of landuse development thus emergedthat are difficult to access bymeans other than the car. This inturn resulted in many peopleadopting lifestyles that are cardependent, using cars to accessworkplaces, shops, leisurefacilities and personal servicesnot as a matter of choice, but asa function of habit.Public investment frequentlymirrored these trends, with newhospitals concentrating healthcare facilities in locations poorlyserved by public transport,whilst the education policies ofparental choice resulted inlonger journeys to school and a