By Tim Slater, Director of Transport Planning and Chris Carr, Associate Transport Planning
This briefing note provides an updated summary of Pegasus Group’s initial views on transport planning matters set out in the new National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF).
Since the draft NPPF in December 2025, there has been additional clarity given to the key change on promoting housing near well-connected railway stations. However, the core concepts of our work in transport planning remain the same, with policy seeking developers to promote sustainable transport. ‘Vision-led’ based principles continue to remain open to interpretation.
The following provides the headlines from the update:
- Railway Stations play a pivotal role in future housing and mixed-used development growing. Where a development location is 1) supported by a well-connected station, 2) within a reasonable walking distance and 3) of an appropriate scale, then authorities should offer in-principle support. This is a positive stance from the Government, seeking to minimise local pushback on such developments in well-connected areas. Compared to the 2025 draft, there is now a defined ‘reasonable walking distance’ as ~800m / -10 minutes. (Policy S5.1.h)
- Refusal on transport grounds now goes beyond safety or network issues. Paragraph 116 of the 2024 NPPF previously identified that development should ‘…only be refused or prevented on highways grounds if there would be unacceptable impacts on highway safety or the residual cumulative impacts…would be severe…’. The updated position on this is more definitive now: identifying refusal should be given where developments would have ‘a severe adverse impact on the transport network…or…an unacceptable impact on highway safety’ (Policy TR6)
- Travel Plans need to have fallback strategies. There is now more about what needs to be specified in a Travel Plan, and this includes monitoring and management and the need for fallback options to help achieve the expected outcomes of the transport vision. (Policy TR6)
- Large scale residential/mixed-use development should not be too self-contained. Greater scrutiny will be given to vision-led principles where ‘self-containment’ is proposed. In transport planning terms this means sufficient access to services and employment opportunities within the development itself, without expecting an unrealistic level of self containment. The evidence base shall need to be robust and have the support of the local highway authority. (Policy HO4 1.b)
- Embedding ‘vision-led’ approaches to development. Since 2024 the Government has been moving forward with the vision-led approach to planning for transport. This NPPF adds to this by defining what a vision-led approach is, in order to reduce the interpretation of this
meaning. It refers to the Department for Transport Connectivity Tool, which should be used to inform the assessment and selection of sites for development alongside other relevant evidence. Our view is that this tool will be useful to some extent but that it does not take into account such elements as multi-modal journeys, user experience, reliability or quality of destinations for example, so it should not be regarded as a single defining point of reference. The NPPF does recognise this at TR3.2. (Policy TR1 & TR3) - Design Standards need to be more consistent at the local level. The new NPPF refers to ‘national design guidance’ and now specifically lists Manual for Streets and the Design and Place Making planning practice guidance at footnote 46. (Policy TR4)
- Easing Parking Standards. The new NPPF amalgamates elements of the previous 2024 Framework and introduces a more permissive approach to maximum parking standards. It removes the requirement for ‘a clear and compelling justification’ where such standards support efforts to encourage the use of sustainable transport modes and shared transport, optimise the density of development in well-connected locations, or where they are necessary for managing road network. (Policy TR2)
- Other Notable Changes:
- Managing Patterns of Growth. Paragraph 110 of the previous NPPF stated that opportunities to maximise sustainable transport solutions will vary between urban and rural areas. This helpful context is not in the new NPPF, and instead refers to Policy S4, when development is located within settlements, and Policy S5 when located outside of settlements.
- Rural Business/Services, including tourism. Where developments can only be delivered in rural areas, this should carry additional weight over issues such as transport infrastructure concerns. (Policy S5)
- Specialist accommodation (such as housing for the elderly, students, etc.). Such facilities should have access to services appropriate to the needs of the residents, by walking, wheeling, cycling and public transport. (Policy H09).
