Amey Consulting has announced a partnership with Worcestershire County Council to develop and deliver a new five-year strategic transport model designed to help transform future strategic transport planning in the Worcestershire area.
The Worcestershire Strategic Transport Model (WSTM) will be a predictive, responsive software that can accurately forecast future transport needs and help transport planners to make evidence-led decisions in transport investment.
Benefits include reducing congestion and improving connectivity, air and quality assessments, as well as informing local and national funding decisions.
The model covers the urban areas of Worcester, Redditch, Kidderminster, Malvern, Bromsgrove, Evesham and Droitwich Spa – and a buffer area extending into neighbouring counties and authorities – informing transport options for 600,000 people in Worcestershire.
The WSTM will be built and developed by Amey Consulting, with support from Sweco, to help the council understand transport patterns and impact of regional developments, underpinning all future funding applications.
Alex Gilbert, managing director of Amey Consulting, said: “Understanding and adapting to new travel patterns is crucial to supporting local authorities navigate a new post-Covid 19 reality.
“Our experienced team of transport planners, and our use of data analytics, means we can support Worcestershire County Council grow its transport network sustainably to meet the needs of the local population – now and into the future.”
According to Amey, the model will help the council understand how far people need to travel for employment, as well as how they’ll access key services such as places of education, medical and community facilities and how this differs by different groups.
It will also help assess public transport schemes, including rail improvements for faster links to key economic centres, connectivity to HS2, and developments at Worcestershire Parkway station.
Nearby local authorities will also benefit, as they’ll be able to understand the transport impact of any scheme or large development on the Worcestershire network, such as need for additional housing.
What’s more, the model will be able to test the transport and environmental impacts of different land-use scenarios to inform air quality and noise assessments.
It will also integrate with the National Highways’ Midlands Regional Transport Model and help assess the effectiveness and manage the impact of Strategic Road Network schemes and land use developments.
