Urban Settlements have much greater accessibility than rural settlements. Is this so?
Urban Settlements have much greater accessibility than rural settlements. Is this so?
This issue has come up because as commuters move out of the cities and into rural settlements, accessibility can become a factor as they go to and from work. This problem is experienced all over the country, especially around London and other conurbations. This problem is called counter-urbanisation. It happens with industry, housing, and other infrastructure. My study area is centred in the SE of England, in SE London. It is between Bexley, and South Darenth, two villages roughly the same size and place. Refer to the maps on the other page for exact locations, and local road networks. Although they are both roughly the same size, Bexley has many more shops than S Darenth, which may cause the accessibility to be slightly better or be the result of better access in the first place, because of the need for good parking, etc... I will investigate this as part of the report.
S Darenth is 4 miles from Bexley, and Bexley is approx 14 miles from Charing Cross, the centre of London. Bexley is a much older village, which explains why it is slightly more developed than S Darenth. They have roughly the same industry history, both of them having a major industry in its day. Today, Bexley is a much more industrial town. It has an industrial estate in the centre of the town, with over 20 different industries operating alone.
As the subject of my study is accessibility, I will perform traffic counts and pedestrian counts in the area. This data will make up the core of my project, because it will show how easy it is to move between towns. I will analyse bus and train timetables, and the percentage of footway to road. Also, I will analyse the road widths. The counts will be in the form of tally charts and diagrams, and the timetables will be analysed for frequency, and routes served.
The traffic/pedestrian counts will show the need for accessibility in the towns, by relating the accessibility to the results. The timetables will show me the need for a frequent public transport service in the area. Coupled with the traffic counts, the road widths will give me an accurate picture of how often the roads are used, and if any improvement was needed in the subject areas.
Maps to show Location of Study
Methodology
Which Data Collected
How Data was Collected
Problems with Collection
Solutions to Problems
Traffic Counts
The data was written as a tally chart, and then a count of how many cars there were on one side of the road was taken for 5minutes each time.
This did not happen in S Darenth, but in Bexley, on the High Street a large volume of traffic was noted. I had to get help from my dad with the count.
A rethink of where the traffic counts were performed, and possibly help from more people.
Pedestrian Counts
Much the same as traffic counts, the data was in a tally chart. They were taken on each side of the road for 5 minutes each.
There were not many problems with this, but in S Darenth, there was hardly anyone around!
None needed, maybe a reconsideration of the places where we performed the counts.
Bus Frequency
I rang the bus company, and they sent me timetables. Before I could do this, I had to note which buses ran through the villages, and who to ring.
None, apart from being put on hold for 15minutes before I could get the timetable.
Maybe a rethink of where I could get the timetable.
Housing Surveys
On the maps of the villages, I marked on the different types of housing that was found. It was done by age
Not many problems, but the houses could have fallen into two categories in some cases.
Different and more specific housing types should be recorded, to erase recognition problems.
Road Surveys
I have reviewed the width of roads and used the data from traffic counts to make an accurate summary of the road system.
Not much. If the traffic count data is incorrect, an overall picture cannot be formed accurately
Not much. More measurements and counts could be taken.
Traffic & Counts
Traffic Counts will give a rough idea on how busy the roads are in a town. By taking a number of counts in different places, a complete road network can be assessed. I chose to use the traffic counts for my study, because the results will show me how much the roads are used at different times of day, and how easy it is for traffic to pass through them. Because the subject of my study is accessibility, the use of these roads and the frequency of traffic will show how easy it is to move about the town and how easy it is to reach certain destinations. I will have to take into account the use of 'Double Decker' buses going through Bexley, because they will slow traffic. Also, roadworks were in place in Bridgen Road, which may have affected my counts.
How to Take a Traffic Count
Traffic counts are recorded in the form of tally charts. In order to record the data, it is set out to record the number of cars, vans/lorries, buses, mopeds/motorbikes and pushbikes. A sample of a tally is below.
Find a spot to carry out your traffic count. In my case, I chose one in a main road, one in a minor road, and one in a sometimes-busy road. Select a suitable period to do your traffic counts, and a suitable time of day. I did mine on a mid-afternoon on a Sunday. Each count lasted 5 minutes. Once your variables have been chosen, go to that spot, and record on your tally chart the number of vehicles that pass your point in your time. I.e. record how many cars, buses etc... In order for an overall ...
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Find a spot to carry out your traffic count. In my case, I chose one in a main road, one in a minor road, and one in a sometimes-busy road. Select a suitable period to do your traffic counts, and a suitable time of day. I did mine on a mid-afternoon on a Sunday. Each count lasted 5 minutes. Once your variables have been chosen, go to that spot, and record on your tally chart the number of vehicles that pass your point in your time. I.e. record how many cars, buses etc... In order for an overall picture to be assumed, counts should be done in both directions.
My count results are shown on the next pages. I used exactly the strategy I have set out above, for both villages.
Bexley:
First count performed in Salisbury Rd at 14:15 on Sunday. Away from Bexley Village...
Cars:
Vans:
Buses:
Motorbikes:
Pushbikes:
||||
|
Total: 4
Total: 0
Total: 0
Total: 0
Total: 1
Second count performed in Salisbury Rd at 14:15 on Sunday. Towards Bexley Village...
Cars:
Vans:
Buses:
Motorbikes:
Pushbikes:
||
Total: 2
Total: 0
Total: 0
Total: 0
Total: 0
Third count performed in Bexley High Street at 14:35. Away from Sidcup...
Cars:
Vans:
Buses:
Motorbikes:
Pushbikes:
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
Total: 32
Total: 1
Total: 0
Total: 0
Total: 0
Fourth count performed in Bexley High Street at 14:35. Towards Sidcup...
Cars:
Vans:
Buses:
Motorbikes:
Pushbikes:
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
||||
Total: 43
Total: 4
Total: 0
Total: 0
Total: 0
Fifth Count performed in Bourne Road at 14:50. Away from Bexley...
Cars:
Vans:
Buses:
Motorbikes:
Pushbikes:
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
|
Total: 65
Total: 1
Total: 1
Total: 0
Total: 0
Sixth Count performed in Bourne Road at 14:50. Towards Bexley...
Cars:
Vans:
Buses:
Motorbikes:
Pushbikes:
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
||||
|
|
Total: 47
Total: 4
Total: 1
Total: 1
Total: 0
Overall Bexley has a high traffic density.
South Darenth:
First count performed in Holmesdale Rd at 14:15 on Sunday. Away from Dartford...
Cars:
Vans:
Buses:
Motorbikes:
Pushbikes:
|||||||
|
||
Total: 7
Total: 0
Total: 0
Total: 1
Total: 2
Second count performed in Holmesdale Rd at 14:15 on Sunday. Towards Dartford...
Cars:
Vans:
Buses:
Motorbikes:
Pushbikes:
|||||
Total: 8
Total: 0
Total: 0
Total: 0
Total: 0
Third count performed in New Rd at 14:35 on Sunday. Away from South Darenth...
Cars:
Vans:
Buses:
Motorbikes:
Pushbikes:
|||||||
|
||
Total: 7
Total: 0
Total: 0
Total: 1
Total: 2
Fourth count performed in New Rd at 14:35 on Sunday. Towards South Darenth...
Cars:
Vans:
Buses:
Motorbikes:
Pushbikes:
||||||||
Total: 8
Total: 0
Total: 0
Total: 0
Total: 0
Fifth count performed in Devon Rd at 14:50 on Sunday. Away from Dartford...
Cars:
Vans:
Buses:
Motorbikes:
Pushbikes:
||
Total: 2
Total: 0
Total: 0
Total: 0
Total: 0
Sixth count performed in Devon Rd at 14:50 on Sunday. Towards Dartford...
Cars:
Vans:
Buses:
Motorbikes:
Pushbikes:
||||||||
Total: 8
Total: 0
Total: 0
Total: 0
Total: 0
Overall South Darenth has a relatively low traffic density.
Sketch Maps to Show Count Locations (Traffic and Pedestrian):
Bexley:
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2.
3.
South Darenth:
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2.
3.
Graphs to show comparisons between Traffic in S Darenth & Bexley.
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2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
Conclusions:
In comparison to South Darenth, Bexley has a very high density of traffic. Even accounting for the roadworks in Bridgen Road, It shows that either Bexley has horrendous traffic management, or that it has a highly used road network. Bexley is a major route centre, with many buses running through it. Refer to the Bus Timetables section for more details. At the roundabout in the centre of the village, a lot of traffic was recorded. This is because one of the exits leads to the A2, one to Dartford and one to Sidcup. When there are accidents on the A2, Bexley is used as a diversion. This creates even more traffic, which leads to enormous queues. At one stage, a bypass was proposed, a map of which is attached. This would have taken the strain off the roundabout in the centre of the village, easing Bexley's traffic problems.
South Darenth has a very different traffic layout. It has one road that weaves through the whole town, with roads leading off of it. I chose to do my traffic counts on the main road and on the feeder roads because that will give and accurate impression of how the system works in South Darenth. I did the same in Bexley village. South Darenth has more or less the same road network as Bexley, but it does not have as much traffic. It also has only one bus route. There are not as many cars because it is a smaller village further away from London. Bexley is a very commuter orientated village; so more people use their cars to get to work. Also, Bexley has a school whereas South Darenth does not.
Bexley and South Darenth villages are very much alike in road system, but Bexley is more developed. This accounts for the lack of traffic in South Darenth and the amount of traffic is Bexley.
Pedestrian Counts
Pedestrian Counts are more or less the same as Traffic counts. The only difference is that instead of measuring the different types of vehicle, pedestrian counts measure the age of the pedestrians. This gives an indication as to the approximate percentage of residents in an area. I will use this to determine the percentage of residents that are probably at a driving age. It is only a rough outline in my case, because the length of the count was not long enough. Also, the age categories are only estimates. Pedestrian counts are also useful to determine whether the local council / authority are providing enough footpaths / pavement to cater for the needs of the towns people. This would give an indication as to whether the village is accessible to the residents, not only vehicles.
How to Take a Pedestrian Count
Pedestrian counts are recorded in the form of tally charts. In order to record the data, it is set out to record ages of the townspeople. I.e. under 18, 31-45, etc... A sample of a tally is below.
Find a spot to carry out your pedestrian count. In my case, I chose one in a main road, one in a minor road, and one in a sometimes-busy road. My pedestrian counts were in the same place as my traffic counts. Select a suitable period to do your counts, and a suitable time of day. I did mine on a mid-afternoon on a Sunday. Each count lasted 5 minutes. Once your variables have been chosen, go to that spot, and record on your tally chart the number of people that pass your point in your time. I.e. record how many OAP's, Teenagers etc... In order for an overall picture to be assumed, counts should be done in both directions.
My count results are shown on the next pages. I used exactly the strategy I have set out above, for both villages.
Bexley:
First count performed in Salisbury Rd at 14:15 on Sunday. Away from Bexley Village...
Under 18:
9-30:
31-45:
46-60:
61+:
|
||
Total: 1
Total: 0
Total: 2
Total: 0
Total: 0
Second count performed in Salisbury Rd at 14:15 on Sunday. Towards Bexley Village...
Under 18:
9-30:
31-45:
46-60:
61+:
Total: 0
Total: 0
Total: 0
Total: 0
Total: 0
Third count performed in Bexley High Street at 14:35. Away from Sidcup...
Under 18:
9-30:
31-45:
46-60:
61+:
|||
|||||
|
Total: 0
Total: 3
Total: 5
Total: 1
Total: 0
Fourth count performed in Bexley High Street at 14:35. Towards Sidcup...
Under 18:
9-30:
31-45:
46-60:
61+:
|
|
Total: 0
Total: 0
Total: 1
Total: 1
Total: 0
Fifth Count performed in Bourne Road at 14:50. Away from Bexley...
Under 18:
9-30:
31-45:
46-60:
61+:
Total: 0
Total: 0
Total: 0
Total: 0
Total: 0
Sixth Count performed in Bourne Road at 14:50. Towards Bexley...
Under 18:
9-30:
31-45:
46-60:
61+:
Total: 0
Total: 0
Total: 0
Total: 0
Total: 0
Overall Bexley has a low-ish pedestrian density overall.
South Darenth:
First count performed in Holmesdale Rd at 14:15 on Sunday. Away from Dartford...
Under 18:
9-30:
31-45:
46-60:
61+:
|
|
Total: 1
Total: 0
Total: 1
Total: 0
Total: 0
Second count performed in Holmesdale Rd at 14:15 on Sunday. Towards Dartford...
Under 18:
9-30:
31-45:
46-60:
61+:
|
Total: 0
Total: 0
Total: 1
Total: 0
Total: 0
Third count performed in New Rd at 14:35 on Sunday. Away from South Darenth...
Under 18:
9-30:
31-45:
46-60:
61+:
Total: 0
Total: 0
Total: 0
Total: 0
Total: 0
Fourth count performed in New Rd at 14:35 on Sunday. Towards South Darenth...
Under 18:
9-30:
31-45:
46-60:
61+:
|
Total: 1
Total: 0
Total: 0
Total: 0
Total: 0
Fifth count performed in Devon Rd at 14:50 on Sunday. Away from Dartford...
Under 18:
9-30:
31-45:
46-60:
61+:
||
|
||
Total: 2
Total: 1
Total: 2
Total: 0
Total: 0
Sixth count performed in Devon Rd at 14:50 on Sunday. Towards Dartford...
Under 18:
9-30:
31-45:
46-60:
61+:
|
|||
||
Total: 1
Total: 3
Total: 2
Total: 0
Total: 0
Overall South Darenth has literally no pedestrians!
Graphs to show comparisons between Pedestrian's in S Darenth & Bexley.
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2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
Conclusions:
Both South Darenth and Bexley have hardly any pedestrians. Most of the townspeople are obviously using their cars to move around. A large part of the population in South Darenth is made up from the residents of 'South Downs' - An OAP's residential area. This explains why there are hardly any pedestrians in most areas of South Darenth. This also explains the lack of traffic. South Downs has its own shop and has its own entertainment. South Darenth does not have an awful lot of pavement around the area; this may be to preserve the natural beauty of some of the sections.
Bexley is a major route centre, with many buses running through it. This may explain lack of pedestrians because they have got on the bus! The bus network from Bexley extends to Bexleyheath (another bus route centre), Eltham, Bluewater and Dartford. Because the roads through Bexley are very busy, it is sometimes dangerous to attempt to cross, which may also be a factor in the lack of pedestrians. Although I was not recording, I noticed that there were more pedestrians when the local train arrived than at normal times.
South Darenth is a very picturesque village with not a lot of residents. There are only a few shops, which explains why the town is nearly deserted (even on a Sunday). Bexley is much more active, but villagers prefer to make use of their cars and public transport than their own feet. This is all speculation, but it explains why there is hardly anyone in both villages.
Bus Frequencies
If there are a lot of bus routes going through a certain village then it will be more accessible, therefore it could be argued that the number of bus routes going through a village indicates how accessible it is. In this part of the study I will investigate this. I know from the results I obtained from my traffic counts that there is an awful lot of traffic going through Bexley village at most times of day. This may slow buses down. Bexley has many more bus routes than South Darenth, suggesting that there is not enough demand for a varied amount of bus routes. In South Darenth, one bus, the 414 takes passengers to Bluewater, where they can catch connecting buses. In Bexley's case this is not so. There are 7 bus routes linking Bexley to the adjoining communities. All but one of the town's buses goes or terminates at Bexleyheath, where more buses can be caught (including Night Buses) to the entire borough. South Darenth is very self-contained, with its own parade of shops, and although Bexley has these facilities, it is so big they cannot handle all the residents on their own. This may be why most buses terminate at Bexleyheath, because Bexleyheath has its own Shopping Mall.
With the construction of Bluewater, most buses in the area that are within reach have been diverted to Bluewater to accommodate the extra passengers. In South Darenth, this has occurred with the 414 being extended to reach. Although not in Bexley, the 96 (Woolwich-Bexleyheath-Bluewater) has been extended to cope with the extra demand that Bexley has put on it.
The bus routes for both towns are included in the following pages...
London Borough of Bexley - All Routes
Please Refer to Appendix A
South Darenth - Route 414
South Darenth - Route 414 Map
Comparison of Route Networks:
Conclusions:
The number of buses does not suggest how accessible a village is. I found this when comparing the road networks of South Darenth and Bexley and found that they have similar structures. South Darenth's roads are more or less the same width, but there are sharper bends that 'Double Decker' would not be able to use without falling over! Although the same can be said for Bexley's sharp bends, they are wider than South Darenth's, meaning they are easier for the buses to get around. In South Darenth, the type of bus operated is a 'City Hopper' - which is suited for the role it performs. Not a lot of people use the bus in South Darenth, mainly people going shopping to Bluewater for the day. In Bexley, all different types of buses are operated. The majority and single deck buses, but most of the 229's are double. I noticed that the 321 goes through Bexley on route to the bus garage, and this journey may be turned into revenue service in the near future.
It is not a case of being accessible this time, but is the bus network suited to the task it has to perform? Bexley and South Darenth both have very different services, which both serve the people of their respective towns adequately.
Road Widths
Road widths will give me an indication of how much a road is used. Most major roads are wide and therefore easier to use (e.g. Motorway's). By measuring the different qualities of he roads in my area's of study, I can determine how often the are used, which will give an indication of how accessible the road is. By examining the road surface, I can determine if the road has been widened (possibly to make it more accessible), whether it is used often (to give an impression of the traffic density / road usage) and whether it is under constant maintenance by the council.
How to Measure Road Widths
In South Darenth the roads are not as busy (as proven in my traffic counts), so I was able to measure the roads with a tape measure. In other cases (such as Bexley High Street) this option is not available. I had to take an estimate of the road widths. This was not as difficult as it sounds because I practised with roads in South Darenth. The different measurements were taken at the same points as the traffic counts for uniformity. My results are shown below...
Bexley:
Road
Measurement
Salisbury Rd
5m E
Bexley High Street
6.5m E
Bourne Rd
7.5m E
South Darenth:
Road
Measurement
Holmesdale Rd
6.54m
New Rd
5.24m
Devon Rd
5.46m
Graph to show Comparisons between S Darenth and Bexley's Road Width
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2.
3.
Conclusions:
Although estimates, the roads around Bexley are considerably wider to cope with the extra traffic that passes through each day. South Darenth does not need wider roads because it does not have buses and a large amount of traffic passing through each day. Therefore, Bexley would be more accessible than South Darenth, but due to traffic it is not.
Overall Conclusion:
In conclusion, no definite conclusion can be drawn as to which village I more accessible. Bexley's road network and public transport services have the capability to make the area more accessible, but the traffic management in the area is appalling making sure no definite advantage is gained. On the other hand, South Darenth road structure is adequate, but it lacks certain public transport links. Both villages have road systems designed for the area, but because Bexley is older, the system cannot handle the weight of traffic with any success. It is interesting to take into account the proposed bypass in Bexley. If this were used, it would control traffic in a much better way. The problem at Bexley is the lack of co-ordination at the roundabout. The bypass would eliminate this, making Bexley more accessible. South Darenth is accessible, but only to the volume of traffic that is expected. If a major accident was to occur, South Darenth traffic system could not handle it.
What I found from the traffic counts was that the traffic in South Darenth was handled well because there was not any great quantity of it. In Bexley, traffic was heavy because the roads going through the town were old and narrow and could not handle 'Double Decker' buses and construction traffic.
The pedestrian counts show that there is a lack of people in both towns, but this is more noticeable in Bexley. This is probably because counts were performed on a Sunday. Both people who live in Bexley and South Darenth use their cars to move around the town, adding to the traffic problems. People use the bus, but the buses themselves are slow. South Darenth does not have many people to deal with and appeared to me to be a 'ghost' town, because there was hardly anyone around, even to ask me what I was doing (as happened many times in Bexley!)
The bus timetables gave me an insight into the frequency of buses through the villages, and how many people were on them. In Bexley's case I could not physically count them, but most buses were nearly full. Again poor traffic management was to blame, even with the buses being full (helping the environment) they were routed through the centre of the town. Passenger loads were increased, but they held up traffic. South Darenth does not have this problem, as there is only one bus! Also, Bexley has a train station, but S Darenth does not. The nearest station to Darenth was Farningham Road, which had a greatly reduced timetable than Bexley because again, it does not serve a wide enough area to necessitate a continual service.
The road widths were used to backup findings about the village's infrastructure. South Darenth has a good structure, with adequate width, but if the town were to expand, the roads would become overloaded with traffic and buses. In Bexley the roads were too narrow. Even if
More yellow lines were introduced, it would not affect the situation a great deal. I think the bypass (now scrapped) would have been a good idea. (See map)
Something that I did not study in this project is shops. In both towns, the accessibility largely depended on how many shops there were, i.e. the reasons for the accessibility. From what I observed while doing my counts was that Bexley village had many more shops than S Darenth, and this was the probable reason why more buses served Bexley than Darenth.
If I had to say which village was more accessible, I would say t hat it was South Darenth, because its infrastructure can cope with the demand. If the village were to expand, it would need a traffic contingency plan to avoid hold ups and bottlenecks. Bexley's problem is with traffic flow. If Thanet Road was expanded and buses were diverted via here, traffic would be eased.
Glossary:
* Accessibility - How easy it is for the public to travel around a town
* Commuters - People working away from towns who rely on accessibility to go to work
* Conurbation - A small village
* Counter-Urbanisation - The movement of people from towns to the countryside
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J Horgan Centre No: 14103 Candidate No: 6055
Page No: 1
