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Markides Associates attended the 'Connected Cities: Rail at the Heart of Build, Build, Build' online conference on Monday 5th October 2020. The conference was hosted by Connected Cities and featured a number of presentations discussing the future role of rail travel, including the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic. Andreas Markides led a presentation which considered some of the barriers to connectivity within the UK, highlighting the need to consider railway stations within the context of placemaking and sustainable movement within the local community. We revisit that discussion in 2025, with new thoughts and examples. Co-written by Sarah Chapman.

Isn’t it just good planning?

Taking a ‘Vision Led’ approach to planning is not a new concept. Creating a clear vision for a new development and then imbedding those principles within the design is what might simply have been referred to as ‘good planning’ in old money. Even the recent, more explicit application of the term to transport planning is not a wholly new invention. Ultimately, it is a collaborative approach to planning new developments. One that aims to create better places by prioritising people, designing for sustainability and health, and encouraging community involvement.

What is new; however, is that the concept is now enshrined in national planning policy as a result of the recent changes to the NPPF. This is ultimately to be commended, but it does raise some interesting points for debate which will no doubt play out over the next months and years. This article does not aim to review  those changes (we have all now seen enough of those!) but to consider some of the main questions arising from the NPPF from a transport perspective, and how we can even begin to answer them.

 

Last weekend, Paris made a new move against the vehicle traffic in the city. Mayor Anne Hidalgo increased the parking charges for SUVs in Paris following a successful referendum, with a six-hour stay now costing €225 (£192), compared to €75 (£64) for smaller vehicles. The change is part of long-term plan for Paris to become a bikeable and greener city in advance of the summer Olympics.

In social media posts, Hidalgo argued that SUVs take up too much space on narrow Parisian streets, are too polluting, and threaten our health and our planet. And it is a growing concern.

As we celebrate the 60th anniversary of the publication of the nominal report Traffic in Towns by Sir Colin Buchanan, I decided to leaf through my copy of the report one more time. One more time I marvelled at the breadth of issues covered in that report, at the emphasis it had placed on the environmental impact of traffic, of its warnings about the future and even of its use of the English language, beautiful and easy to understand by everyone.

In the ever-evolving world of urban housing, co-living has emerged as a new model for modern living and development planning, but despite some commerical success stories, it's not being welcomed with open arms quite yet. In this article, we'll explore what it is, why it's being challenged, and what considerations this accommodation type needs in terms of transport.

May 24, 2023

The change curve is a model that details the emotions people feel when experiencing a change. Developed by Kubler-Ross in the 1960’s to describe the process of grief it is now well-recognised as a general model of how people experience all types of change. It says people go through a fairly standard set of emotional responses, whoever they are. Though the model is typically associated with negative changes. Even when experiencing a positive change, people often go through a period of emotional turmoil and adjustment before finding a new personal status quo.

Low Traffic Neighbourhoods - Does London love them or loathe them? Markides Associates' Senior Transport Planner Bridget Grant has been looking at the data from two studies to see if public opinion is changing in light of new information.

Last week the government announced its new “long term” plan to slam the brakes on anti-car measures and back drivers from overzealous councils across the UK

MA’s Sports and Social club has hit the ground running in 2023.

Exciting news! Planning consent has been secured for the relocation of the Guildford Borough Council Depot, a key component of the #Weyside Urban Village development.

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