There’s no doubt that the way we travel in the future is going to be very different. A combination of technological advances and the desire for pollution prevention are all shaping new possibilities for vehicles and transportation. From driverless cars through to electric and hybrids, as well as airborne transport including airships and drones, the potential is really starting to unfold.
First up, let’s define our terms. In the United States, car sharing is the term given to a scheme where several people have the shared use of one vehicle (this is known as a car club in the UK). Here in the UK, car sharing is the practice of sharing costs and reducing environmental impact through more than one person travelling together in the same vehicle, as seen in the recent hit BBC sitcom, Peter Kay’s Car Share. It’s that UK definition that we’ll be talking about here.
The Route Consultation on the Lower Thames Crossing was the largest ever consultation for a UK road project. It received 47,034 responses. The Consultation was regarding proposals for a new road crossing connecting Kent and Essex. New road design and transport infrastructure are needed to relieve congestion at the Dartford Crossing and support economic growth. Following this Consultation, a preferred route was published in April 2017.
As internet shopping and online ordering grow, so consolidated deliveries and servicing are becoming a more frequent way of managing the process.
“Professional Practice Guidance on Planning and Noise” (ProPG) has been published. The guidance has been produced by the Association of Noise Consultants (ANC), the Institute of Acoustics (IOA) and the Chartered Institute of Environmental Health (CIEH) and is intended to provide a blueprint for acoustic consultants, planners and developers for minimising the impacts of noise on new residential development.
While headline aspects of HS2 are never out of the media, here at Mayer Brown we’re working on the fine detail of the complexities of HS2, changing the way the new high-speed railway will impact on individuals and businesses.
There is some opposition currently to cycling schemes in London with critics saying that the traffic build up is causing a problem. However, research tells us that huge numbers of Londoners will choose to cycle if they feel safe doing so. London's Cycle Superhighways are striving to do this. We have created this infographic to help highlight some of the statistics around why we need to encourage more cycling in our capital. The main benefit being less pollution and a healthier future for Londoners.
The impact of climate change on environmental assessments is primarily related to flood risk. Rising sea levels and increased rainfall all increase flood risk (and associated water contamination) from the sea, sewers and rivers.
In the world of roads and junctions, changes are occurring at an increasing pace, both in the UK and globally. Gone are the days of the highway engineer churning out ill-considered road schemes that merely serve to increase the number of trips by car each year in our towns and cities.
It is suggested that traffic congestion is on the rise in the UK and it’s going to get worse.
Please leave us your details and we will endeavour to call you back as soon as we can.
