Beyond Poundbury
An adopted highway in Poundbury
Removing the roadblocks: Highways, hierarchy and shared surfaces
10 June 2010
A.K. Bell Library; 2-8 York Place, Perth, Scotland
Discover how sustainable low carbon communities based on linked walkable neighbourhoods, mixed uses and compact urbanism, should be intimately linked to the design, construction and maintenance of roads and streets.
At a time of economic stringency, infrastructure investment must be intelligent and future-proof. Policy guidance has begun to align with this thinking. ‘Manual for Streets’ (2007) recognised the fact that there was a need to transform the quality of residential streets. The Scottish Government has also recognized the deficiencies of standard forms of development, summarized in the publication ‘Designing Streets’. Similar themes are explored in ‘Manual for Streets 2’ (working title), expected to be released later this year.
Recent conferences on street and highway design point to a missing link between the new recommended standards and putting them into practice. Overcoming the roadblocks to delivery is now of crucial importance if we are to respond to the significant pressures presented by climate change, energy supply and population growth by building low carbon communities.
This conference examined the contents of the new publications; what is new or amended, what remains the same and how is the guidance going to affect what happens in reality. From the design of highways to the maintenance of infrastructure, this event takes a pragmatic approach to delivering the highest quality places. Road and street design carried out with awareness of urban context is essential for producing sustainable low-carbon communities for the future. These concerns have remained in separate compartments for too long. Breaking down these barriers will be a first step away from car dominated suburbia, enabling the creation of world class places.
Speakers and presentations:
1
Designing Streets
Setting the context on planning reform, SSCI and place making.
Jim Mackinnon, Chief Planner, The Scottish Government
Download the presentation by Jim Mackinnon [7.6 Mb]
2
Designing Streets
An overview of the Scottish Government policy document.
Sandy Robinson, Principal Architect, Scottish Government
Download the presentation by Sandy Robinson [7.6 Mb]
3
Perth: Natural settlement patterns and their disfigurement
Understanding the Scottish Main Street. Inspiration from the past for the designs of the future.
David Bowler, Director, Scottish Urban Archaeological Trust
Download the presentation by David Bowler [4.9 Mb]
4
Removing the Roadblocks
Implementation of change; making it work; maintenance, services, Local Development Guides and other roadblock.
John Thomson, Chair Municipal Group Scotland, Perth & Kinross Council and The Prince’s Foundation
Download the presentation by John Thomson [3.6 Mb]
5
Manual for Streets 2
What’s new and the effective influence of government guidance at local level
Andy Cameron, Director WPS contributor of Manual for Streets 1&2
Download the presentation by Andy Cameron [7.7 Mb]
Speakers' Biographies:
Jim Mackinnon, Chief Planner, The Scottish Government
Jim Mackinnon was appointed Chief Planner and Head of Planning and Building Standards Group in November 2000. Prior to this post, Mr. Mackinnon received a Diploma in Town Planning with Distinction from the University of Strathclyde in 1977. He joined the former Scottish Office from Motherwell District Council in 1979 and has held a wide variety of posts and responsibilities in planning. He was a member of the UK delegation to the Committee on Spatial Development and was appointed as an expert advisor on the National Spatial Strategy for Ireland. As Chief Planner, Mr. Mackinnon has led the reform of the planning system and a range of measures to promote culture change in planning. In January 2008 he became Director for the Built Environment with responsibility for architecture and place making, building standards and planning. He serves as critical friend to the Planning Service in Northern Ireland. Mr. Mackinnon is a member of the Royal Town Planning Institute and in November 2008 was made an Honorary Member of the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors.
Andrew Cameron, Director, WSP
Andrew Cameron is an engineer with a background in transportation, architectural engineering and urban design. He has experience in how we can plan for movement whilst at the same time creating great streets and enjoyable places. Mr. Cameron has acted as an advisor to Government with The Urban Task Force and for The House of Commons Select Committees on Housing and Sustainable Communities. He is co-author of national and local design guidance, including Places, Streets and Movement, The Urban Design Compendium and Manual for Streets. Mr. Cameron is presently Director of Urban Design at WSP Group.
Sandy Robinson, Principal Architect, The Scottish Government
Sandy Robinson has been a Principal Architect in the Architecture and Place Division of the Scottish Government since February 2009. Currently, Mr. Robinson is responsible for a range of projects and policy initiatives including the Scottish Sustainable Communities Initiative and the Scottish Government street design policy ‘Designing Streets.’ Prior, Mr. Robinson worked in a private practice as an Architect and Urban Designer delivering projects with a focus on sustainable place-making and the fostering of strong communities and local economies. This included projects across the UK and Europe including the masterplanning of major town expansions and new settlements, regeneration schemes and neighbourhood renewal projects, urban strategies and visioning processes, as well as a range of detailed architectural commissions.
John Thomson, Team Leader, Perth and Kinross Council
John Thomson is a Team Leader with Perth & Kinross Council, and has over 30 years construction experience ranging from Architecture, Road Design, Construction and Maintenance both as Resident Engineer and Contractor, Structures Design, Network Management, Asset management, Flooding, Development Control and Transport Planning. Mr. Thomson is a Chartered Engineer and Chartered Environmentalist, and he is Chairman of the ICE Municipal Group Scotland. Mr. Thomson is also Chairman of the Institute of Asphalt Technology in Scotland and represents the Scottish Government on the National Underground Asset Steering Group. He is also Vice chairman of SCOTS Research & Development, and he is a member of SCOTS Roads group and lead the development of the new Development Control sub-group. Mr. Thomson was on full time secondment in 2009 to “The Prince’s Foundation for the Built Environment” as their Civil Engineering representative.
David Bowler, BA, MPhil, FSA Scot, MIfA, Director, Scottish Urban Archeological Trust
David Bowler has been working in Scottish archaeology since 1983. He holds a BA Honours in Classics and Classical Archaeology from McGill University in Montreal, and an MPhil in Roman Archaeology from the University of Oxford. Mr. Bowler began his career in the Department of Urban Archaeology of the Museum of London, excavating and directing complex multi-period sites from Roman to early modern. Between 1983 and 2009 he worked for SUAT, designing, directing and reporting on excavations in Perth, Dundee, Dunbar, St Andrews and other towns. In 2009 Mr. Bowler formed Alder Archaeology Ltd, an practice based in Perth. He has a long association with the European Urban Conservation course in the School of Planning in the University of Dundee. He has a particular interest in urban morphology and topography. Mr. Bowler is currently the Publications Convener for the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland, and Vice-President of the archaeological and historical section of the Perthshire Society of Natural Science.
share this page
