Streetscape design guide and specification

Streetscape design guide and specification

Streetscape design guide to aid architects, engineers, planners, developers and designers.

In this Streetscape Design Guide, Worcestershire County Council sets out guidance for homeowners, developers and their consultants, in formulating designs and making applications for planning permission. 

The principles and requirements are founded upon providing safe and free flowing movement for all categories of road users.

This Guide reflects the design philosophy of the ‘Manual for Streets’ 1 and 2 documents, recognising that streets have a wider role to play in creating a sense of place and community, as opposed to simply having a functional transport role.

The criteria in this Guide is to act as the main point of reference and the requirements we expect to be applied. The Guide includes:

  • requirements and guidance on access, layout and connectivity
  • standards on parking provision
  • advice to facilitate planning for passenger transport
  • requirements and processes for creating an adoptable streetscape

The Guide complements the policies set out in the Development Plan Documents (DPD) and Frameworks of the Local Planning Authorities.

The Council has produced a Streetscape Design Guide and Specification to aid architects, engineers, planners, developers, designers and other professionals in preparing transport infrastructure related to new developments.

The Streetscape Design Guide and Specification will be updated periodically.

Pre planning advice

The Early Technical Assessment (ETA) of offsite highway works, during the lifetime of the planning application is a precursor to the Section 278 process and is not an iterative process.

This facility is offered, primarily to highlight issues which may arise during the detailed design process of the proposed off-site highway works but which wouldn’t necessarily come to light during the assessment of the preliminary designs submitted as part of the planning application submission.

The ETA process will enable a more rigorous assessment of the off-site highway improvements submitted as part of the planning application and should give developers greater confidence that their proposals are deliverable in compliance with both National and Worcestershire County Council design specifications.

In order to produce an assessment of the off-site highway works within the timescales allotted to the planning process (8 to 12 weeks) the level of information required is reduced from that normally needed to initiate a Section 278 submission.

Please see the Early Technical Assessment, Section 38 Application Form & Section 278 Application Forms, which are available at www.worcestershire.gov.uk/SDG for a breakdown of the information required to commence the respective submission.

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