St David’s College, Cardiff

Apex provided transport planning and highways advice to support development proposals at St David’s College, Cardiff.

The proposals formed part of the ongoing enhancement of an established education campus and comprised the demolition of an existing teaching block and construction of a new two-storey teaching facility in its place. The development was brought forward to modernise teaching accommodation while maintaining the effective operation of the campus.

Apex f.was appointed to provide transport advice to inform the planning application, with a particular focus on understanding existing travel behaviour and the sustainable connectivity of the site for students and staf

The key transport challenges related to managing access, parking demand and movement associated with staff and students within an urban environment, both on the surrounding highway network and internally within the site.

A particular issue related to peak drop-off and pick-up periods and the management of parking activity on nearby streets.

We prepared a Transport Statement to support the planning application, informed by parking surveys and a detailed assessment of existing parking demand and usage patterns.

The assessment considered the operational characteristics of the college, including peak arrival and departure times, and demonstrated that the proposed development could be accommodated within the existing site without material adverse impacts on parking stress, highway safety or network operation.

We provided masterplanning advice on vehicular and pedestrian circulation within the site, ensuring that movements could be managed safely and efficiently. In addition, we prepared a Travel and Car Parking Management Plan, setting out measures to maximise the use of sustainable modes of travel and ensure effective management of on-site parking.

The transport strategy also included off-site mitigation to improve parking conditions on surrounding streets, secured through a Section 106 contribution.

Planning permission was successfully granted in August 2022, with the local planning and highway authorities satisfied that the proposals could operate safely and without unacceptable impacts on the surrounding highway network.