In 2017, Bayside City council announced their plans to build a large netball centre, and as the project gathered momentum, Quantum Traffic were engaged to undertake a Traffic Impact Assessment (TIA) to determine the suitability and viability of the proposed yield in this location from a traffic engineering perspective.
The key involvement from Quantum Traffic was to determine the level of car parking required, undertake traffic surveys and model the surrounding intersections using SIDRA (intersection modelling software).
The proposal has Council and Federal Government funding with a commitment of over $28 million so far for the construction of Stage 1 and Stage 2 works. Accordingly, with funding locked away, a Planning Permit is required.
The Council proposal is to build up to 15 outdoor and 3 indoor netball courts, over 2 stages, inclusive of approximately 280 car spaces. The future site of the netball centre is located in Wangarra Road, Sandringham and is currently used as a golf driving range.
A Netball Centre of this scale will attract significantly more players/spectators compared to the existing golf driving range which equates to a higher car parking demand and more traffic movements associated. Therefore, local residents have some level of concern relating to the potential negative impacts of the parking and traffic in the relatively quiet pocket of Sandringham.
Undertaking a full review of critical elements, Quantum Traffic established the car parking and traffic generation for the netball centre, including peak and average car parking demands, number of car spaces needing to be provided on-site and how to accommodate the traffic movements (arrival and departure) of a filled netball centre.
Our job was not only to establish the traffic impacts of the new facility above the existing conditions but also to identify how those additional traffic movements can be appropriately accommodated to ensure residents that it will not have a negative impact on the surrounding area's livability.
This is a common issue with large scale projects that transform neighbourhoods. When traffic is involved, it automatically becomes a concern for residents who believe that more traffic will negatively impact their day to day lives. Traffic and parking are the most common issues that people take up with their local councils and we came prepared with the answers that would help residents feel comfortable with change.
When you're working on behalf of the council, residents are powerful stakeholders as the Council effectively answer to them. You can't just go ahead with a council project without talking to the locals!
We at Quantum Traffic were lucky enough to be able to attend a Council held consultation meeting one evening at the Bayside Council Offices, which resulted in great dialogue with the local community and resolved a large number of their concerns while focussing in on some further concerns that more time and effort could be put into investigating/addressing.
With all planning projects, communication is key. After all, the reason we are often involved is to determine the best outcome in accommodating future traffic, not to try and convince people that they just have to deal with heavier traffic!
Traffic engineers should know that there is a lot to be gained on all sides by engaging in genuine, transparent communication with all stakeholders. Having everyone informed and able to voice concerns early in a project means you can resolve any potential points of contention before they multiply and threaten to derail a project.
If your project needs a traffic engineer who will work with the community to get the best result for your planning application or development, get in contact with us today.
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