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Planning for Pedestrians: A Vision-Led Approach

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Project Overview

With the Government’s ambition to build 1.5 million new homes during this Parliament, the alignment of transport and planning policy has become increasingly important. The December 2025 redraft of the NPPF, the Planning and Infrastructure Bill receiving Royal Assent, and consultation on the Design and Placemaking Planning Practice Guidance all signal strong national momentum for change. CIHT is well placed to support professionals in delivering this vision on the ground.

For high-quality, well-connected developments to come forward, closer collaboration between highway authorities and planning authorities is essential. One of the aims of the new technical report is to encourage greater collaboration in the planning process so that both highway and wider transport implications are given appropriate weight when making planning decisions about the location of development both through plan making and development management.

The report will be designed for local practitioners involved in planning and development. This includes transport planners, development management officers, local authority planners, developers and consultants.

Project Chair

Sheila Holden OBE FCIHT CEng CTPP MRTPI

Project Updates

The project kicked off in February 2026
A project workshop was held with key stakeholders in April 2026, aiming to develop a greater understanding of the key barriers preventing the development of homes with access to walking links, routes and desire lines to the wide range of destinations that residents would have need to access and establish focus areas for the CIHT technical report to cover.
Building on the workshop findings, a survey was distributed in May 2026, a survey seeking feedback from local practitioners involved in planning and development, such as transport planners, development management officers, local authority planners, developers and consultants. The survey covers a variety of topics, including data sets, distance thresholds, transport assessments, pedestrian experience and guidance. The deadline for responses is cob Tuesday 26 May 2026.

Complete the survey here and make sure your voice is heard!

More Information

The report will be published later in 2026. If you are interested in the project, or have any questions about this survey, please email technical@ciht.org.uk