Lochgilphead Town Centre to Joint Campus Active Travel Route: Developed Design and Future External Funding
Argyll and Bute Council · 5 March 2025
Back to Mid Argyll, Kintyre & the Islands Area Committee — 5 March 2025 and its agenda
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ARGYLL AND BUTE COUNCIL Mid Argyll Kintyre and the Islands DEVELOPMENT AND ECONOMIC GROWTH 05 March 2025 Lochgilphead Town Centre to Joint Campus Active Travel Route: Developed Design and Future External Funding 1.0 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 1.1. This report provides an update to Members on the progress made to date on the Lochgilphead Town Centre to Joint Campus Active Travel Route and seeks support from Members for the continuation of the project. 1.2. A developed design (RIBA stage 3) has been produced and consulted on for an active travel route linking Lochgilphead Front Green and Town Centre with the Lochgilphead Joint Campus. A technical design (RIBA stage 4) is currently in the process of being finalised. 1.3. The design work to date has been fully funded through the Sustrans administered Places for Everyone Programme. This programme is coming to an end in 2025 and is to be replaced with Transport Scotland’s Active Travel Infrastructure Fund. 1.4. The design proposal has been progressed through the RIBA design stages 0-3 and has been subject to a series of consultations with key stakeholders and members of the public. 1.5. The stage 3 developed design is primarily for mixed traffic streets along Lorne Street, Union Street, part of Manse Brae and part of Kilmory Road. Mixed traffic streets promote the use of road space to be shared with cyclists and motor vehicles through lining and signing and traffic calming measures that help raise awareness and improve road safety. 1.6. The traffic survey data obtained indicate that Cycling by Design would consider a shared street design to provide a high level of service for the majority of the route. The only exception to this is a short section of Lorne Street (between Argyll Street and the Lorne Street car park entrance) where a higher number of vehicle movements were recorded and as a result Cycling by Design would consider this section to offer a medium level of service. 1.7. The scheme also includes improved road crossing facilities (including a new toucan crossing), additional double yellow lining for improved road safety on Lorne Street and Union Street, new lining to demarcate on street parking bays on Lorne Street and Union Street, footway and path widening, introducing blue/ green infrastructure and an improved accessibility link between Kilmory Road and Whitegates Road.
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1.8. A public consultation on the developed design was held between 19th September 2023 and 20th November 2023. Although well-advertised and prompted the consultation only received 48 comments from 21 participants. 59% of responses were positive. 1.9. The Lochgilphead Community Council have stated that they are supportive the proposal. 1.10. A Stage 2 Road Safety Audit on the design has been completed and signed off by Roads and Infrastructure Services subject to specifications for surfacing materials, bollards and signage being agreed with local Roads Officers. This agreement will be met before the conclusion of Stage 4 which is anticipated to be March 2025. 1.11. The majority of the route is either along the adopted road corridor or within land owned by Argyll and Bute Council and it is anticipated that the work can be carried out through the Councils Permitted Development Rights; however for certain aspects of the design (introduction of designating on street parking bays and new double yellow lining) Traffic Regulation Order(s) (TRO) will be required. 1.12. A short section of the route is on the National Forestry Estate and Scottish Land and Forestry have not raised any objections to the proposal. 1.13. The new Active Travel Delivery Fund is a competitive challenge fund open to all Local Authorities, National Parks and Regional Transportation Partnerships in Scotland. Although there is no confirmation of levels of funding for 2025/26 Transport Scotland have indicated that there will be £20 million available for this financial year. 1.14. The Active Travel Delivery Fund closes for new applications on 14th February 2025 and will not reopen for applications this financial year. 1.15. As a TRO will not be required for the whole route a funding application for the construction of the section of the route that does not require a TRO (the section between the Joint Campus and Manse Brae) has been submitted for the 2025/26 ATIF application round. As part of the application assessment process Transport Scotland are seeking assurance that projects have the support of the local authorities relevant Committee. RECOMMENDATIONS 1.16. It is recommended that the Mid Argyll Kintyre and the Islands members: 1.16.1. Welcome the progress made to date. 1.16.2. Support the continuation of the project and the submission of the 2025/26 Active Travel Infrastructure Fund funding application for the
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construction of the section of the route between the Joint Campus and Manse Brae
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ARGYLL AND BUTE COUNCIL Mid Argyll Kintyre and the Islands DEVELOPMENT AND ECONOMIC GROWTH 05 March 2025 Lochgilphead Town Centre to Joint Campus Active Travel Route: Developed Design and Future External Funding 2.0 INTRODUCTION 2.1. This report provides an update to Members on the progress made to date on the Lochgilphead Town Centre to Joint Campus Active Travel Route and seeks Members support for the continuation of the project. 3.0 RECOMMENDATIONS 3.1. It is recommended that the Mid Argyll Kintyre and the Islands Members: 3.1.1. Welcome the progress made to date. 3.1.2. Support the continuation of the project and the submission of the 2025/26 Active Travel Infrastructure Fund funding application for the construction of the section of the route between the Joint Campus and Manse Brae 4.0 DETAIL 4.1. The Council’s Active Travel Team, 1.7 FTE (Full Time Equivalent employees), is part of the Strategic Transport Team within the Development and Economic Growth Service. No Council funding is currently received by the Active Travel Team. All project costs, including internal staff costs, have to be funded via successfully securing highly competitive external challenge funds. 4.2. Transport Scotland’s Active Travel Infrastructure Fund (ATIF) programme is a competitive challenge fund, with the 32 local authorities, 7 regional transport partnerships, and two national parks across Scotland competing against each other to secure the funding each project requires. 4.3. The ATIF programme replaces the Sustrans administered Places for Everyone (PfE) programme as Transport Scotland’s flagship model to deliver active travel projects in Scotland. ATIF funded projects are required to follow the same 8 stage process that was used for PfE. These project stages are (0) Strategic Definition, (1) Preparation and Brief, (2) Concept Design), (3) Developed Design, (4) Technical Design, (5) Construction, (6) Handover & Close Out and (7) In Use.
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4.4. Lochgilphead Town Centre to Joint Campus Stages 0-3 (work completed to date) 4.4.1. An active travel route linking the Lochgilphead Front Green and Town Centre with the Joint Campus was identified as part of a wider community aspiration in the 2016 Rethink the Link Charrette that identified the desire for safe cycling infrastructure between pier Square in Ardrishaig and the Lochgilphead High School. 4.4.2. A route options appraisal and feasibility study (stage 0-1) was carried out in 2021 to identify a preferred route option to take onto concept design. Part of this initial work included public consultation on all three route options. The three route options were: • Option 1: Followed Lorne Street and Union Street before passing though the former primary school site and linking into Kilmory Road. This option was identified as the preferred route and formed the basis for the current deign. • Option 2: followed the A83 road corridor before connecting into Whitegates Road- this is the most direct route however it was discounted due to the high volume of motor vehicles and existing constraints within the road corridor that would not allow the required infrastructure to be built without the demolition of buildings and realignment/redesign of the A83/Whitegates Road mini roundabout. • Option 3: followed the coastline around Loch Gilp from the Front Green and behind the existing housing to meet and cross the A83 before linking into the existing path to the Joint Campus- this option was discounted due to the very high cost- both capital and revenue. The options appraisal and feasibility consultation concluded in May 2021 and allowed for work to commence on a concept design (stage 2) for the route. 4.4.3. A consultation on the proposed concept design was held between 29th June and 27th August 2021. Due to Covid restrictions during this period the consultation was limited to online consultation only. The consultation asked people to tell us what they thought about the proposal and received 98 responses. Generally the comments were positive; however there was a concern over the loss of available on street parking along Union Street and to a lesser extent along Lorne Street. 4.4.4. As part of the design process a 7 day parking survey was carried out between 28th June and 4th July 2021 between 05.30hrs- 1930hrs. This survey indicated that the on street parking on both Lorne Street and Union Street did not reach its maximum capacity. The existing available parking space, excluding illegal parking, was calculated as 58 spaces on Lorne Street and 74 spaces on Union Street based on an available lengthwise distance of 300m and 397m respectively. In addition both Lorne Street and Union Street each have 1 disabled parking bay. The survey found a peak level of occupancy of 38 legally parked vehicles plus regular occupancy of the disabled bay on Lorne Street and 40 legally parked vehicles plus regular occupancy of the disabled bay on Union Street.
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4.4.5. In late December 2021 the project was awarded PfE funding to progress with the design through Stage 3 and 4. In 2022 Civic Engineers were appointed as the consultant design team to progress the project through these design stages. However prior to this appointment the design guidance- Cycling by Design- had been updated and a full review of the concept design was required to ensure that it complied with the new design guidance 4.4.6. An early design workshop between the design team and Argyll and Bute Council Roads in Infrastructure Services Officers was held where it became apparent the Roads Officers had a number of concerns about the concept design that were not picked up during the previous consultation. This resulted in the design team having to considerably rework the design to incorporate the comments and advice from Roads and Infrastructure Services. 4.4.7. Design workshops were held throughout 2022 and 2023 with Roads and Infrastructure Officers to arrive at a design that they were content could be presented for public consultation. The design and workshop meetings were also informed by a series of additional surveys, including a new parking survey which returned similar results to the first parking survey (peak occupancy Lorne Street 35 vehicles plus regular occupancy of 1 disabled bay and peak occupancy Union Street 40 vehicles plus regular occupancy of 1 disabled bay), automatic traffic counts, junction turning counts, none motorised user survey and swept path analysis for a range of vehicle types including HGV’s and refuse vehicles. 4.4.8. An additional risk to the project that was identified was the uncertainty over the future use of the former Lochgilphead Primary School site and Whitegates Office site. Regular meetings with the Councils Estates Team have been taking place and the proposed active travel route through the former school site aims to deliver a light touch improvement by widening and resurfacing the existing path and resurfacing, lining and signing the existing road through the site. The proposed intervention for Whitegates is to make the existing access ramp between Whitegates Road and Kilmory Road more accessible and inclusive for use, with a new section of path and retaining structure along the northern boundary of this site. All the proposed work follows or is close to the perimeter of the site to maximise any future development of the site. 4.4.9. The developed design that went out to public consultation is primarily for mixed traffic streets along Lorne Street, Union Street, part of Manse Brae and part of Kilmory Road. Mixed traffic streets promote the use of road space to be shared with cyclists and motor vehicles through lining and signing and traffic calming measures that help raise awareness and improve road safety. The traffic survey data obtained indicate that Cycling by Design would consider a shared street design to provide a high level of service for the majority of the route. A high level of service which is described as a facility that is suitable for most users. The only exception to this is a short section of Lorne Street (between Argyll Street and the Lorne Street car park entrance) where a higher number of vehicle movements were recorded in the base line survey and as a result Cycling by Design would consider this section to offer a medium level of service which is
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described as a facility that may not be suitable for some users, particularly novice users. 4.4.10. The scheme also includes improved road crossing facilities (including a new toucan crossing), additional double yellow lining for improved road safety on Lorne Street and Union Street to prevent vehicles parking at or close to junctions or locations where visibility splays could be impeded as well as to provide areas of road space to allow for vehicles to pull in and pass one another on Union Street, new lining to demarcate on street parking bays on Lorne Street (39 plus 1 disabled bay) and Union Street (51 plus 2 disabled bays), footway and path widening, an improved accessibility link between Kilmory Road and Whitegates Road as noted in point 4.4.8 above and blue green infrastructure in the form of rain gardens to provide sustainable urban drainage systems that aid with street drainage. 4.4.11. The public consultation on the developed design (RIBA Stage 3) was held between 19th September 2023 and 20th November 2023. The public consultation included a public drop in event held in the Lochgilphead Baptist Church on the 28th September between 2pm and 7pm. Despite the event being advertised through the Councils web page, by local stakeholders, posters and a press release only 25 people attended the event. The majority of responses to the proposal were positive. The only negative comments towards the design came from 2 attendees who were concerned about the proposed changes to Union Street. 4.4.12. The design team also undertook two workshop events with secondary and primary school pupils at the Joint Campus on the 28th September. The workshops were attended by 31 pupils with pupils highlighting some of the barriers they face to walking or cycling to school which included the weather, laziness and the lack of provision of an attractive and safe route. One pupil highlighted a concern over personal safety from passing through the former school site after dark. 4.4.13. A workshop was also held with 8 members (including 2 staff) of MS Argyll Snowdrop Resource Centre who highlighted some the difficulties they face navigating Lochgilphead, these were primarily to do with volume of road traffic, on street parking creating blind spots for road crossing, distance from car park to amenities. 4.4.14. Presentations on the design were also give to: Lochgilphead Community Council; Forestry and Land Scotland; Mid Argyll Youth Development Services, Fyne Futures; Argyll and Bute Council Sensory Impairment Officer and the Project Engagement Group (which comprised of members of the community who had expressed an interest in the project during the previous design stages and consultation) 4.4.15. Due to the poor turn out to the consultation drop in event a flier advertising the consultation was mailed out to 3967 addresses with the PA30 and PA31 postcodes
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4.4.16. Despite all the promotional actives a total of 48 comments from 21 participants were received to the online consultation. 59% of responses were positive with respondents saying the proposals would encourage them to walk and cycle more often 4.4.17. Following the presentation to the Lochgilphead Community Council the Community Council stated that they are supportive of the proposal. 4.4.18. A Stage 2 Road Safety Audit on the design has been completed and signed off by Roads and Infrastructure Services subject to specifications for surfacing materials, bollards and signage being agreed with local Roads Officers. This agreement will be met before the conclusion of Stage 4- anticipated in March 2025. 4.4.19. The Road Safety Audit identified an issue with a crossing on Lorne Street and in order to address this issue 1 parking bay on Lorne Street has had to be removed from the design. This leaves 38 regular parking bays and 1 disabled parking bay on Lorne Street. The highest peak occupancy recorder on Lorne Street was from the 2021 survey that recorded 38 parked vehicles plus occupancy of the disabled bay. The 2022 survey recorded a peak occupancy of 35 parked vehicles plus occupancy of the disabled bay. 4.4.20. The majority of the route is either along the adopted road corridor or within the ownership of Argyll and Bute Council and it is anticipated that the work can be carried out through the Councils Permitted Development Rights; however for certain aspects of the design (introduction of designating on street parking bays, additional disabled parking bay and new double yellow lining) Traffic Regulation Order(s) (TRO) will be required. The TRO application will be made once the specifications for surfacing materials, bollards and signage (noted in the Stage 2 RSA) have been agreed with the local Roads Officers. 4.4.21. A short section of the route is on the National Forestry Estate. Forestry and Land Scotland have been briefed on the project and have not raised any objections to the proposal. 4.4.22. Part of the route incudes an uncontrolled crossing of the A83 Trunk Road. Transport Scotland have been involved in the development of the design and have not raised an objection to the proposal. 4.4.23. The new Active Travel Delivery Fund is a competitive challenge fund open to all Local Authorities, National Parks and Regional Transportation Partnerships in Scotland. Although there is no confirmation of levels of funding for 2025/26 Transport Scotland have indicated that there will be £20 million available for this financial year. 4.4.24. The Active Travel Delivery Fund closes for new applications on 14th February 2025 and will not reopen for applications this financial year. 4.4.25. As a TRO will not be required for the whole route a funding application for the construction of the section of the route that does not require a TRO (the section
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between the Joint Campus and Manse Brae) has been submitted for the 2025/26 ATIF application round. As part of the application assessment process Transport Scotland are seeking assurance that projects have the support of the local authorities relevant Committee. 5.0 CONCLUSION 5.1. A developed design for a new active travel route between the Lochgilphead Front Green/Town Centre and the Joint Campus was put out for public consultation between the 19th September and 20th November 2023. The results from the consultation show that 59% of respondents were supportive of the developed design. However it is noted that the number of responses to this consultation was low. 5.2. Some of the negative comments received at consultation relate to the loss of availability of on street parking. The two parking surveys that have been carried out indicate that the design would provide sufficient on street parking for Lorne Street (38 regular bays plus 1 disabled bay) and Union Street (51 regular bays plus 2 disabled bays) to meet recorded demand. However the proposed change in road layout and on street parking arrangements may affect the TRO process. 5.3. A Stage 2 Road Safety Audit has been carried out on the developed design. The issues raised in the RSA have been addressed by the design team with their responses either being accepted or accepted in principle subject to technical design specifications by Roads and Infrastructure Services. The technical specifications requested will be provided as part of the design stage 4. Stage 4 will not be signed off until agreement has been reached with Roads and Infrastructure Services 5.4. The design for the section of the route through the former Lochgilphead Primary School site and the Whitegates Office site mostly follows the existing paths and road through these areas and is a light touch approach. Regular meetings with the Councils Estates Team have been taking place and will continue to ensure they are kept informed and up to date on this project. 5.5. Following conclusion of Stage 4 all necessary permissions, including a TRO will be sought. It is anticipated that this process will begin towards the end of March 2025. 5.6. The Active Travel Infrastructure Fund deadline was the 14th February and a funding application has been submitted for 2025/26 to progress the construction of the section of the route between the Joint Campus and Manse Brae and which does not require a TRO. However, the awarding of this funding is highly competitive and cannot be guaranteed.
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6.0 IMPLICATIONS 6.1. Policy Completion of this project will support the Argyll and Bute Local Outcomes Improvement Plan Outcome 1 and Outcome 3 and The Argyll and Bute Council Local Development Plan 2 Policy 32. The project also aligns with National Planning Framework 4 and National Transport Strategy 2 and supports the objectives of Transport Scotland’s Active Travel Framework 6.2. Financial The work will be funded by external competitive funding applications. The Council has not contributed any funding to design costs. There is strong evidence that people who are more active, for example by walking or cycling, have been physical and mental health and are less likely to require social care services in later life which could result in a future saving to the Council or HSCP. 6.3. Legal None 6.4. HR None. 6.5. Fairer Scotland Duty: 6.5.1 Equalities Completion of this project will provide enhanced opportunities for all between Lochgilphead and the Crinan Canal to travel more sustainably and actively by walking, wheeling and cycling. The route has been designed to provide a safe and accessible route for those with mobility aids including wheelchairs and parents/guardians with a child’s pram or buggy. 6.5.2 Socio- economic Duty The route will improve access to essential services, retail, leisure and employment opportunities for local residents, with studies demonstrating those who travelled actively had a higher monthly spend in local businesses than those who travel via motorised transport. The route will also offer opportunities for individuals to travel for leisure, again encouraging spend in local businesses connected by the route. 6.5.3 Islands There are no adverse impacts. 6.6. Climate Change Active Travel is the least carbon intensive mode of travel. Providing the opportunity for residents and visitors to consider an alternative to having to use a
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private car to travel between these communities will help lower Argyll and Bute’s carbon footprint. 6.7. Risk Part of the scheme will require a Traffic Regulation Order which is subject to public consultation. Part of the route is on vacant land that is currently owned by Argyll and Bute Council but could be sold in the future 6.8. Customer Services None. Executive Director with the responsibility for Development and Economic Growth: Kirsty Flanagan Policy Lead for Roads, Transport and Amenity: Councillor John Armour 03 February 2025 For further information contact: Fergus Murray, Head of Development and Economic Growth fergus.murray@argyll-bute.gov.uk Douglas Grierson, Sustainable Transport Coordinator Douglas.grierson@argyll-bute.gov.uk Please find the latest Stage 3 design drawings attached: • 1695–CIVIC–XX–XX–D-C-00040 • 1695–CIVIC–XX–XX–D-C-00041 • 1695–CIVIC–XX–XX–D-C-00042 • 1695–CIVIC–XX–XX–D-C-00043 Please note that these drawings are still in the process of being refined through continued discussion with Local Roads Officers in terms of the on street surfacing materials, street lining and street furniture to be used.