Glossary Of Terms

Business

Trips during the course of work, including a trip in course of work back to work. This includes all work trips by people with no usual place of work (e.g. site workers) and those who work at or from home.

Car club

Car owned by a short-term hire car company, made available on-street to members paying a subscription to share the use of the car with other members of the community.

Car share

A journey which is shared in whole or part with another person(s) carrying out a journey which has its own independent purpose. Also known as: Lift sharing.

Carnet

Batch of tickets, often for single journeys, bought in bulk at a discounted fare rate.

CO2 and ‘carbon footprint’

Amount of the carbon dioxide gas emitted as part of an activity. This includes the emissions of gas from exhaust pipes, as well as that ‘embodied’ in the manufacture and disposal and/or recycling of products or vehicles. For electrically-powered vehicles, the emissions associated with providing energy at the electricity-generating power station should be counted. In transport terms, CO2 is usually described in terms of the amount emitted for each passenger transported – CO2 per passenger km (or gCO2/pkm).

Commuting

Trips to a usual place of work from home, or from work to home.

Conditions (Planning)

Conditions regulating the development or use of land are normally used where the land is completely within the control of the applicant (usually confined to the application site).

Grampian conditions are used where there are requirements set out which must be adhered to before (in most cases) development commences, rather than via a S106. This is normally where there is no financial outlay relating to the condition on the part of developers and no interdependence of the condition with other aspects of the planning application, e.g. site design.

Reserved Matters are conditions set at the time of granting of an 'Outline' planning permission, for which further approval must be granted before any development works can commence.

Providing a travel plan by condition is usually inappropriate as conditions are unsuitable for securing financial contributions or the longer term management of a travel plan.

Daytime population

The day-time population is defined for people aged 16 to 74, as those people who live and work in the area (or do not work) and those people who live outside the area and work inside the area. ‘No fixed place of work’ is counted as if working in the area.

Demand responsive transport (DRT)

Transport, often buses, that respond to the needs of customers rather than running to a predefined route or timetable. Services are often booked in advance by telephone. Also known in Somerset as:

• Slinky bus
• Nippy bus
• Community transport or ‘dial-a-ride’

Many of the services in Somerset are aimed at all sections of the population, in addition to those with mobility difficulties.

Distance Travelled

The length of any trip stage is the distance actually covered as experienced by the traveller (not the distance ‘as the crow flies’). Note, however, that Census data transport indicators use straight lines, e.g. KS15, UV45, UV80, UV37, UV39.

Education

Trips to school or college, etc. by full time students, students on day-release and part time students following vocational courses.

Escorting

Used when the trip has no purpose of its own, other than to escort or accompany another person; for example, taking a child to school [without going onward to work]. Escort commuting is escorting or accompanying someone from home to work or from work to home. Similarly, other escort purposes relate to the purpose of the person being escorted.

Holidays or day trips

Trips (within GB) to or from any holiday (including stays of 4 or more nights with friends or relatives), or trips for pleasure (not otherwise classified as social or entertainment) within a single day.

Household

A household consists of one or more people who have the sampled address as their only or main residence and who either share at least one main meal a day or share the living accommodation. Excluded are people who are not living in households, such as students in halls of residence.

Journey

A sequence of trips starting and finishing at the same place.

Just walk

Walking trips for pleasure or exercise along public highways, including taking the dog for a walk and jogging.

Modal ‘share’ or ‘split’

Percentage of journeys using each mode of transport (taken as main mode by distance) over the course of a year, usually measured in terms of arrivals to a site. It can also be used to measure visitor arrivals and business trips. When measured as a percentage, rather than actual employee numbers, this helps with organisations that are increasing or decreasing total numbers employed but not the overall proportion of those driving as compared to other modes.

Modal shift

Change in percentage of journeys using each mode of transport, judged by comparing before and after figures or using data collected annually over a number of years. (We do not advise that relative measures are used, such as car trip reduction by 5%, as confusion can arise as to what is meant by these measures; e.g. as five percentage ‘points’, or five per cent of the original starting modal share.)

Mode of travel

The main choice of travel that used for the longest part of the journey (by distance). The phrase ‘multi-modal’ refers to a number of travel methods within one journey.

Other work

Trips to work from a place other than home or in course of work, e.g. coming back to work from going to the shops during a lunch break.

Outline planning applications

Outline applications may be made where:

• It is intended to erect a building, but all the necessary information is not available to make a full application.
• You wish to test the principle of a development without preparing detailed plans and drawings for every aspect of the development.

If outline planning permission has been granted you will usually then need to submit a full application, or get reserved matters conditions approved.

You will be expected to submit a full travel plan even for outline planning applications.

Park and glide

Car trip combined with a waterborne trip.

Park and ride

Car trip combined with a bus trip.

Parkway

Remote rail station with car parking to allow combine car and rail journey.

Passenger kilometres

This is the total distance travelled annually by passengers by all modes of transport. 1 passenger kilometre = 1 person travelling 1 kilometre. For vehicles with multiple occupancy the distance travelled is multiplied by the number of vehicle occupants.

Personal business

Trips to services, e.g. hairdressers, launderettes, dry-cleaners, betting shops, solicitors, banks, estate agents, libraries, churches; or for medical consultations or treatment; or for eating and drinking, unless the main purpose was entertainment or social.

Personal travel

Any travel by a person, by any mode of travel, for commuting or leisure purposes between a point of origin and a point of destination whether for a specific purpose or not.

Prince2

Prince 2 is a generic, structured project management method that can be applied to all types of project. If is particularly well suited to the initial stages of travel plan development up to implementation, and allows for the planning & review of travel plan outcomes.

Resident population

The usual resident population aged 16 to 74.

Ride and stride

Bus or rail trip combined with a walking trip.

Section 106

Section 106 Agreements are legal documents for matters not covered by Planning Conditions.

Agreements would be used where land is outside the control of the applicant (e.g. off-site highway works) or where a community need arising from the development is to be provided or maintained by others, either on or off-site. In general, it will be reasonable to seek a planning obligation if either:

(1) it is need from a practical point of view to enable the development to go ahead and in the case of a financial payment, will meet or contribute towards the cost of providing such necessary facilities in the near future (sum paid by the developer would normally be repaid if they have not been used by a specified date);

(2) it is so directly related to the proposed development that the development ought not to be permitted without it.

Section 38

Agreements between developers and Somerset County Council pertaining to the design, testing, adoption and maintenance of highway-related infrastructure.

Shopping

All trips to shops or from shops to home, even if there was no intention to buy.

Smarter choices

“a range of mainly revenue funded initiatives for influencing people’s travel behaviour towards more sustainable options”

May also be known as and/or include:

• Sustainable transport
• Active/healthy/green travel
• Travel alternatives
• Green travel
• Responsible car use or non car–based travel

Social or entertainment

Trips to meet friends, relatives, or acquaintances, both at someone’s home or at a pub, restaurant, etc.; all types of entertainment or sport, clubs, and voluntary work, non vocational evening classes, political meetings, etc.

SOV

Single occupancy vehicle use. I.e. when one person (the driver) makes a car journey on their own. Also known as:

• Solo car use
• Single occupant car trip
• Car alone or lone car driver

Stage

A trip consists of one or more stages. A new stage is defined when there is a change in the form of transport, or when there is a change of vehicle requiring a separate ticket.

Travel hierarchy

Prioritisation of travel choices in terms of their positive contribution to sustainability. This should be applied to all corporate policies which influence travel choices as well as the provision of information and travel directions on websites etc. A travel hierarchy favouring smarter travel choices might be:

1. walking
2. cycling
3. public transport
4. motorcycling/lift sharing
5. car use alone

Travel in the course of work

Any travel to fulfil the job role during work time (usually covered by expenses payments, where these apply). The primary purpose of such journeys will usually be for the transportation of a person(s), but may sometimes include delivery tasks and the provision of mobile services.

Travel plans

This is a long-term management strategy for the community that seeks to deliver sustainable transport objectives through positive action. It will be articulated in a planning document and its contents will be implemented and subsequently regularly reviewed and revised.

Trip

The basic unit of travel defined as a one-way course of travel with a single main purpose.

An outward and a return half of a trip are treated as two separate trips.

A trip cannot have two separate purposes, and if a single course of travel involves a mid-way change of purpose then it, too, is classified as two trips. (However, trivial subsidiary purposes, e.g. a stop to buy a newspaper, are disregarded.)

Workplace population

The workplace population is defined as the people aged 16 to 74 who are in employment and whose usual place of work is in the area. People with no fixed place of work are treated the same as people who work mainly at or from home and are counted as working in their area of residence.