The government’s plans for a “generation of new towns” in England should be pedestrian- and public realm-friendly, two think-tanks have argued.
Labour pledged in its manifesto that a raft of new towns would be one of the keys to its ambitions to build 1.5 million new homes over the next five years.
While the report by Britain Remade and Create Streets does not specifically consider the role of street and public realm lighting within this, the think-tanks have urged the government to ensure the proposed new developments are “green places lined with gardens, garden squares, street trees”.
The discussion paper ‘Creating new towns fast and well’, has called for the new towns to be “sustainable places, not just sustainable buildings”.
They should be “healthy places in which it is easy and safe to move about by foot or cycle in addition to cars”, the report has added.
“New towns should encourage sustainable lifestyles. By creating new towns at very low densities far from reliable public transport, new towns risk locking in higher carbon emitting lifestyles for decades,” it recommended.
“People living in cities emit 50% less carbon than people who live outside cities. All the proposed towns encourage gentle densification and building in the most environmentally, as well as most economically, sensible areas.”
The new towns should be “richly layered with trees and gardens. Green spaces should be safely private or clearly public, not in-between.”
The report has recommended 12 sites for these new towns:
• Greater Cambridge. This would be an expansion to the city to unlock more homes, laboratory space and innovation.
• Tempsford, Bedfordshire. This would be a well-connected new town making the most of new infrastructure with excellent access to Cambridge, Oxford, and Central London.
• Winslow, Buckinghamshire. This, the report has said, would be an opportunity to “mirror” the town across the newly restored East West Rail that runs to Oxford and Milton Keynes.
• Cheddington, Buckinghamshire. This would be a new town built along the West Coast Main Line, which will greatly benefit from increased capacity once HS2 opens.
• Salfords, Surrey. This new town could relieve the housing crisis in Brighton and London while helping fund upgrades to the nearby Brighton Main Line and the M23, the report has said.
• Greater Oxford. This would be an expansion to the city to unlock more homes, laboratory space and innovation.
• Iver, Buckinghamshire. Here there is “plenty” of land right next to two Elizabeth line stations, the report has argued.
• Hatfield Peverel, Essex. This new town, again, would be “mirrored” across the railway line, which is well served by the A12 and the Great Eastern Main Line.
• Bristol Extension. This would help to alleviate the worst housing crisis outside the greater south east by building on one of the most restrictive green belts in the UK.
• Chippenham, Wiltshire. This would “organically” extend the market town to its east with a new gentle density expansion.
• York. By extending this beautiful city to its ring road, this would help to ease the worst housing shortage in the North.
• Arden Cross (Birmingham Interchange). This would create a new town adjacent to the new HS2 station, Birmingham airport, the M42, A45, and a potential tram extension to Birmingham centre.
Image: Pexels/Liam Gillan
