Highways Agency

• A650 Bingley Traffic Impact Study
• Executive Summary
• 1. Introduction
• 2. Data Collected
• 3. Summary of Results
• 4. Local Impacts
• 5. Conclusions

2. Data Collected

2.1 The Traffic Impact Study (TIS) for the A650 Bingley Relief Road included the following surveys:

'Before' Surveys

• 5 Highways Agency permanent Automatic Traffic Count (ATC) sites;
• 2 Highways Agency temporary ATC sites;
• 8 City of Bradford Metropolitan District Council (CBMDC) temporary ATC sites;
• 1 CBMDC Manual Classified Count (MCC) on Main Street in Bingley;
• 1 journey time survey along the old A650, undertaken in June 2003; and
• 1 journey time survey undertaken in May 1999.

'After' Surveys

2.2 The 'After' surveys mirror the 'Before' surveys with the addition of:

• 2 Highways Agency permanent ATCs on the new A650 Bingley Relief Road;
• A further temporary ATC on Main Street in Bingley town centre; and
• A journey time survey along the new road.

2.3 The A65 at Ilkley has been detrunked and is now maintained by City of Bradford Metropolitan District Council (CBMDC). CBMDC therefore undertook the 'After' surveys at this site.

2.4 Further surveys were undertaken to evaluate the impact of the opening of the Relief Road on residential areas in Bingley and these are described in Chapter 4.

2.5 The details of the 'Before' and 'After' surveys are described below.

Automatic Traffic Counts (ATCs)

2.6 ATC information for the 'Before' scenario was collected in June 2003 as this month is regarded as a 'neutral' month in that it is largely unaffected by holidays. For the 'After' scenario, road works in Bingley precluded any surveys after scheme opening in early 2004, and therefore ATC information was collated in April and May 2004 (19 April . 16 May).

2.7 Traffic levels in Bingley, prior to the scheme opening, were monitored by undertaking manual counts as queueing traffic affects the results obtained by the pneumatic tubes used for ATC's.

2.8 Traffic data from ATC surveys undertaken by City of Bradford Metropolitan District Council, to monitor the effects of the scheme opening on other routes in Bradford District, and data from permanent Highways Agency count sites was obtained to ensure a comprehensive evaluation of any local traffic routeing changes in the area.

2.9 The City of Bradford Metropolitan District Council sites used were as follows:

• B6265 Bradford Road, Stockbridge;
• Carr Lane/Swine Lane, East Morton;
• B6429 Harden Road;
• B6144 Wilsden Road;
• Otley Road, Baildon Moor;
• Glovershaw Lane, Baildon Moor;
• B6146 Bradford Old Road, Cottingley;
• A6037 Valley Road/Canal Road; and
• A650 Main Street, Bingley (between Ferncliffe Road and Park Road).

2.10 Traffic data was obtained from seven Highways Agency permanent count sites on trunk roads, namely:

• A629, Airedale 1, East of A6034;
• A650 Hard Ings Road, Keighley (A629 . A6035);
• A650, Airedale 2, Airevalley Road (A6035 . Aireworth Road);
• A65 Skipton Road, West of Ilkley (A6034 . A660) ('After' CBMDC);
• A650 Bradford Road, Shipley (A6038 . Frizinghall Road);
• A650 Bingley Relief Road, North-west of Bingley; and
• A650 Bingley Relief Road, South-east of Bingley.

2.11 Also, two temporary Highways Agency count sites:

• A650 Keighley Road, Crossflatts (South of Morton Lane); and
• A650 Bingley Road, Nab Wood (West of Nab Lane).

2.12 All count sites referred to above are illustrated in Figure 2.1 overleaf.

Figure 2.1 - Location of Traffic Count Sites around Bingley

Journey Time Surveys

2.13 Journey time surveys were also undertaken on the A650, on the existing route and the new relief road, between Thwaites Roundabout, in Keighley, and Saltaire Roundabout, in Shipley. Figure 2.2 overleaf shows the two routes.

2.14 The 'Before' surveys were conducted in May 1999 and then repeated in June 2003. The 'After' surveys were undertaken on the old A650 and the new bypass in April 2004.

2.15 The May 1999 journey time survey followed a shorter route, from Crossflatts Roundabout to Saltaire, whereas the 2003 and 2004 surveys were from Thwaites to Saltaire. When comparisons are made between 1999 and other years, appropriate adjustments in survey length have been made.

Figure 2.2 - Journey Time Survey Routes along the A650

2.16 Journey time surveys were undertaken for morning (07:00 - 10:00) (07:30 - 09:30 in 1999) and evening (16:00 - 18:00) peaks as well as the inter-peak period (14:00 - 16:00). The unusually long morning peak period is due to the nature of traffic in this corridor. When comparisons are made between 1999 and other years the morning peak journey times reflect the period 0730 - 0930.

Screenlines

2.17 Traffic information from ATCs is grouped into screenlines. Traffic crossing screenlines represent vehicular movement across a wider corridor and thus can represent traffic flow changes better than just looking at individual roads. The screenlines are defined as follows and are depicted in Figure 2.3 overleaf.

• Screenline 1 - North of Keighley: B6265, A650;
• Screenline 2 - West of Bingley: A65, Carr Lane/Swine Lane, A650 old road and relief road, B6429, B6144;
• Screenline 3 - East of Bingley: Otley Road, Glovershaw Lane, A650, B6416, B6144; and
• Screenline 4 - South of Shipley: A650, A6037.

Figure 2.3 - Location of Screenlines in Survey Area

2.18 The site on the Main Street in Bingley does not form part of the above screenlines, as it is west of the junction at Ferncliffe Road, as shown below. However, it is included as part of a local screenline within Bingley monitored by CBMDC - see Chapter 4. This screenline comprises the HA site on the relief road to the north west of the town centre as well as the site on Main Street. Total flows across this screenline represent traffic volumes through the Bingley corridor. For clarity, Figure 2.4 below depicts the location of traffic count sites on the old road and relief road.

Figure 2.4 - Location of Traffic Count Sites in Bingley