Paul Basham Associates provided highways input in the form of reports and junction modelling to support the proposed car park extension and bike hire facility at Ashurst Railway Station in New Forest National Park.
The Brief
Approached by Questmap Ltd to support an application for a 32-space car park extension and cycle hire facility at Ashurst Railway Station, Paul Basham Associates provided comprehensive transport planning works to assist in delivering this sustainable transport scheme.
Our Approach
In the first instance a site visit was undertaken to determine the current capacity of the 40-space car park. Following that, a Transport Note was prepared which detailed that whilst the proposals would result in additional vehicle journeys, a significant increase in rail travel from the site warranted the extension and would in turn reduce demand for parking off-site and increase the attractiveness of commuting to and from the New Forest via modes other than car.
In addition, the opportunities and benefits associated with the extension were also to provide an increase in sustainable travel options, with the addition of 9 sheltered cycle spaces and 14 cycle hire stands, as well as reducing the impact of parking on the local road network.
Following comments from Hampshire County Council, the Paul Basham Associates team provided junction capacity modelling of the existing station site access onto the A35 which demonstrated that despite the increase in vehicle movements, the free-flow of traffic along the A35 would not be disrupted and that a favourable outcome should be considered.
The Result
The site was granted consent in July 2020 and we look forward to seeing the new car park in operation soon. If you ever find yourself using one of the hire bikes we would love to know!