titlepage/contents pg 1-16 - British Parking Association

Defining Parking Objectives 57Accessibility appraisaltechniques vary in their degreeof sophistication:● Basic catchment areamethods simply sum theopportunities (people, goods,services, etc.) that can beaccessed within a given timeby a defined mix of transportmodes;● Opportunity methods takethis approach further byweighting the opportunitiesaccording to their degree ofaccessibility; and● Value measures may thenmake use of a standard unitsuch as generalised travelcost to arrive at a quantifiedmeasure of accessibility. Anexample of this is the PTALpublic transport accessibilitytool (9).An example of how public transportaccessibility can be linked toparking policy is found in theLondon Planning AdvisoryCommittee’s (LPAC) 1997 ParkingAdvice (5). LPAC developed aparking standards matrix, whichincorporates public transportaccessibility. This uses the level ofpublic transport accessibility as themain determinant of maximumparking provision in newdevelopments, which isrepresented on one axis of thematrix. The other axis aims to givegreater reflection to local authorityplanning and transport policyobjectives as represented by thelevel of sustainability. It is importantthat this type of approach todetermining parking standardsoccurs within a wider locationalframework that guidesdevelopment to the mostaccessible locations.Most methods readily lendthemselves to visualrepresentation, often using GIStechniques. However, careneeds to be taken wheninterpreting accessibility data,particularly by value measures.For example, a PTAL analysismeasures access from a site to apublic transport service. Othermethods are needed to assessaccessibility to a site by publictransport, which will be morerelevant where public transportnetworks are relatively sparse.Accordingly relevant objectivesfor meeting accessibilityconsiderations might, therefore,include a need:●●●●To retain a reasonable levelof access by private car;To enhance access by othermodes of transport;To promote a level of parkingstock in accordance with thetwo objectives above;To allocate parking space inlocations appropriate forparticular journey purposes(ie, short-stay parking in thetown centre and long-stay onthe outskirts); and● To permit a level of parkingwith new development that isappropriate with its locationand with wider communitygoals.Appropriate policies are coveredin the next chapter (Chapter 6),but they should be linked totargets like:● Undertake changes in carparking charges so thatlonger stay car parkers aresteered to car parks on theoutskirts of a town;● Consult community andbusiness representatives onchanges to parking chargesbefore implementingchanges within a specifiedperiod;● Identify areas that requiredifferent levels ofaccessibility and implementnecessary changes withinspecified timescales;● Review and amend carparking standards so thatother modes of travel haveadequate provision;●●Monitor and change theproportion of total parkingunder public control orinfluence; andReview and change parkingcharges when demandexceeds 85% of supply.Economic VitalityThe need to maintain andenhance the economy of an areais often the predominant urbangoal influencing policy, including