Sustrans is inviting views from transport, planning and engineering professionals on the next five chapters of its Cycle-Friendly Design Manual, which aims to inform best practice on road design.

The new draft chapters will cover Bridges, Streets & Roads, Junctions & Crossings, Community Engagement and Signing; adding up to a concise and visual guide to cycle-friendly design in these fields.

The consultation comes ahead of the final version to be released later this year, with Sustrans seeking feedback from professionals in the transport, planning and engineering sectors, amongst others.

Highlights of the newly-released guidance include:
• How to deliver quality community engagement as part of any highway alteration, including an innovative ‘ladder of engagement’ feature.
• Highlighting the need to consider place and movement when designing for cyclists.
• Pioneering examples of design and best practice to improve challenging and dangerous road junctions for cyclists.

The new draft chapters expand on the five core principles that lie at the heart of the Handbook for Cycle-Friendly Design – coherence, directness, safety, comfort and attractiveness.
 
The guide’s lead author, Sustrans’  transport engineering manager , Tony Russell, said: 'Walking and cycling can no longer be an afterthought in major infrastructure projects if the UK aspires to create an environment where everyone feels safer to travel actively, regardless of age or ability.

'These chapters aim to improve the standard of design and construction industry-wide by supporting engineers, planners and transport professionals to make our streets safe for people of ages to walk and cycle.

'We’re seeking feedback from the industry in order to ensure that the guidance provides an ambitious standard everyone can work to – helping to achieve wholesale change in the way we design our towns and cities.' 

The guidance is funded by the Big Lottery Fund  and has been developed drawing on Sustrans’ experiences of working with local authorities to deliver best practise infrastructure, in particular our recent work on extending walking and cycling routes in towns, villages and cities across the UK. It will integrate with Sustrans’ existing professional training courses.

The new draft chapters can be downloaded from the Sustrans website: www.sustrans.org.uk/routedesignresources

The consultation process will close on the 31st of May; feedback on the new documents can be submitted to designandconstruction@sustrans.org.uk