Terms of reference template: Neighbourhood accessibility plan - investigation stage

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Purpose statement

The main purpose of the neighbourhood accessibility plan project is to develop a course of action that will improve safe access for pedestrians, cyclists and shared mode users in the study area.

Information collection will include quantitative data and qualitative information collected from stakeholders and community members. This will form baseline information for evaluation and will also help to inform the scope of the action plan.

The aim of engaging community members and stakeholders in the process is to facilitate community ownership of issues within geographical areas.

Scope and issues to be addressed

The project scope will extend to investigating and determining solutions to those issues that impact on the decisions people make in choosing walking and cycling as a form of sustainable transport and/or as a way to access other forms of transport.

The overall objectives of the whole project (investigation and implementation) are to:

• improve connectivity and mobility in the area
• improve safety for pedestrians, cyclists and shared mode users
• contribute to the health and vibrancy of the community
• contribute to increasing the number of pedestrians, cyclists and shared mode users in the project area
• contribute to a reduction in environmental emissions by reducing the number of short-distance car trips
• contribute to an improved transport environment that may assist economic development in the area.

The project aims, with community involvement, to provide solutions to address issues such as (pick and choose issues as appropriate to the study area):

• actual and perceived risk of injury or death to pedestrians and/or cyclists caused by conflict with motorised vehicles
• actual and perceived risk of injury or death to pedestrians and/or cyclists caused by personal assault
• actual and perceived risk of loss of personal property caused by theft
• walking and cycling access to key destinations, including access for those with mobility disadvantages
• community inactivity and obesity
• the desirability or liveability of the area in terms of getting around on foot or by cycle
• [any other issues, as determined by the community, that impact on the desirability of walking and cycling in the project area]

Methodology

The NZTA guidelines on undertaking neighbourhood accessibility planning projects will be utilised throughout the course of this project.

Project set-up

Several working groups will support the neighbourhood accessibility planning project. These groups will help to provide project direction and project resources, while various members will be involved in project tasks.

Three main groups will support the project (subtract or add as appropriate to your area):

• An inter-departmental council working group.
• A cross-agency road safety action planning committee.
• A community working group.

Community stakeholders will be determined through key contacts and community consultation. Appropriate and interested stakeholders will be invited to join the relevant project working group.

The inter-departmental council working group will facilitate coordination and information sharing between related projects. The group will also be involved in the planning of implementation initiatives and how they may be coordinated. Relevant projects that will need to be coordinated will include (add and subtract to the following list as appropriate):

• school travel planning
• workplace travel planning
• walking school bus programme
• carbon emission reduction initiatives
• community education initiatives
• road safety campaigns
• town centre upgrades
• planned kerb and channel upgrades
• park revitalisation schemes
• CPTED design initiatives
• [any other relevant projects] .

Information collection

To form an accurate picture of the issues prevalent in the neighbourhood area, the following information will be collected:

• Community profile information relevant to community events, consultation requirements, etc.
• Key audience demographic statistics.
• Information on key origins and destinations that local residents access or would like to access on foot, by bicycle or by using shared transport.
• Crash statistics.
• Supplementary information from the public on non-reported injury frequencies.
• Crime statistics or information.
• Number or representation of pedestrians and cyclists using the area.
• Passenger transport usage.
• Traffic volumes [only include if traffic volume is an issue in the project area].
• Traffic speeds [only include if speed is an issue in the project area].
• Behavioural observations of walkers and cyclists.
• Results from mobility user surveys.
• Information from professional assessments.
• Community perceptions and ratings from community walking and cycling audits.
• Community perceptions and opinions on access and safety in the transport environment.

If necessary, additional information may be collected throughout the course of the project. This will depend on the issues identified in the community and the needs of other community stakeholders.

The methods used and results of the information collection will be recorded in a neighbourhood accessibility plan report.

Community engagement

One of the principles of the neighbourhood accessibility planning process is that it involves actively engaging with community stakeholders and community members. Active involvement has several benefits. It helps to:

• bring about an increased awareness of sustainable transport issues in the community and the factors impacting on sustainable transport use
• bring about an improved community understanding of council operation and budget constraints
• secure external stakeholder and community ‘buy-in’ to the process
• increase the potential for additional time and monetary investment in the implementation of the action plan
• facilitate community ownership of the issues. (Following project completion they may be interested enough to independently run projects that continue to support the project objectives.)

Community engagement is essential to the long-term success of the project and involves a substantial investment in time and effort to ensure success.

The neighbourhood area where this is project is planned has a history of [outline any considerations relevant to consultation – for example, past experiences of engaging with the community, any relevant community characteristics that might impact on consultation].

Community members will be engaged through the community focus group, public meetings, additional focus groups, data collection exercises and other forums that are appropriate to the audience.

Action planning

Action planning will involve presenting the investigated issues to community groups and getting their input to possible solutions. A balanced range of interventions will be considered, including roading and environmental infrastructural improvements, education, enforcement, policy provision and promotion.

Consultation will be undertaken to confirm if the action plan interventions are relevant to the pedestrian and cycling issues in the neighbourhood.

Once this information is obtained, the council and professional stakeholders will review and revise the interventions. This process of consulting with the community and reviewing the plan will continue until there is a reasonable level of community ‘buy-in’ for the proposed actions.

The final version of an action plan will consist of a list of actions that are agreed, specific, realistic and timetabled. Each action will have a comment as to how it will be evaluated, what it will cost and who will be responsible for carrying it out.

At this stage councillors, if they have not been involved previously, will be approached to confirm their commitment. Depending on timeframes, council committee approval processes and the NZTA application processes will also be initiated.

Timeframe

[Please put in your own timeframe.]

Deliverables/outputs

The main output of the investigation stage of a neighbourhood accessibility plan will be a neighbourhood accessibility information collection report and action plan. The key components of this report will be:

• baseline information collection methodology and results (sufficiently detailed to allow replication of work)
• a record of agreed implementation outcomes
• a list of evidence-based SMART (specific, measurable, agreed, realistic and timetabled) solutions that form a project action plan.

Cost estimate

[Please put in your own cost estimate (for all the community-focused activity work required to be done up to and including the action planning phase).]

[The cost estimate will vary depending on the scope and size of the project area and any consultation considerations.]

Page updated: 6 May 2009