New towns programme
The government set up a New Towns Taskforce in 2024 to begin work on finding sites for prospective new towns …
High housing targets in areas with poor public transport
In many of the local authority areas which have been given high targets, more people are dissatisfied with the quality …
Where is the money for public transport to the thousands of new homes built outside the cities?
New metros in England are not possible without funding …
Another way of building new homes and faster too
There is another way to build new homes quickly and sustainably …
Poundbury is a case study in getting transport right
Poundbury is mixed development built around streets and walkable community facilities …
Safe and convenient cycling networks must go beyond development boundaries
New housing needs to be connected to safe and convenient cycle routes …
Trams and light rail are not reaching out of the cities
Tram networks should reach out of cities to connect with new developments …
Rail is missing from new housing estates
We found that large new housing areas in England were very rarely built with a new station to cater for …
What places designed around the car look like
Urban form follows the transport modes that are available …
New metro for a hidden city of 350,000 people
We need to build new homes around mass transit systems …
Apartments can offer everything on your doorstep
Apartments offer so much compared to lower density estates …
Convenient town centre housing in every town
We are exploring how swathes of land given over to parking could be put to better use …
Is it really planning when the Treasury decides if a new station opens?
We have some ideas about how strategic planning could work better in practice …
Three recommendations for planning reform
Based on our most recent report we suggest three changes …
‘Jigsaw puzzle’ developments are creating car-dependent estates
New housing estates have some of the most important pieces missing …
Housing targets direct new homes to public transport deserts
Car dependency is caused by a system that puts houses in unsustainable location …
Unseen power of engineers and transport planners
Guest post from Mark Philpotts, the founder of City Infinity, …
The Swedish solution – sustainable transport and new apartments
Two development areas on the outskirts of Uppsala are good examples of the completely different Swedish approach …
New homes conveniently situated on the bypass
Join us on a visit to a new housing estate on the edge of Warminster …
Transit-oriented development built without the transit
The curious case of the transit-led scheme that is missing the transit …
Converting retail barns to housing
Conversion of large obsolete car dependent out-of-town retail barns to new uses looks good on paper …
UPDATED: Proposed reforms to the NPPF
Changes are proposed to the NPPF and the planning system. Find out how to have your say …
Where to find us on social media
Starting August 2024 we will no longer post to Twitter/X and our account there will close …
Event: What next for planning and transport?
Join us for this event, four weeks after the general election to discuss the future of planning and transport. We …
New homes, wildflowers and a railway station: a visit to Kidbrooke Village
Kidbrooke Village is a large new development of some 4,700 homes in the borough of Greenwich, South East London. The …
Wichelstowe: a visit to Swindon’s new urban extension
We started from Swindon station. Swindon’s Signal Point building stands above the town’s train station, but has beeb unused and …
Come to our event for volunteers
The event is an opportunity for us to say thank you to everyone who went on a site visit in …
A very different model of development
Freiham is specifically designed as a green and pleasant place for walking and cycling and for using public transport …
Call for volunteers
We are calling for volunteers to visit sites around England as part of the fieldwork for our research …
Upside-down geography
Locations for new housing are not considered in terms of sustainable transport, access to services, employment or environmental impact …
New “cowpat” housing developments are adding to traffic congestion and locking communities into car-dependency
New research has found that greenfield housing estates are adding hundreds of thousands of new car journeys to our roads, …
Transport for New Homes: a story told in postcards
John and Jill have been house-hunting in some recently-built developments. They sent these postcards back to show what they found …
Decarbonising transport: let’s get planning reform right
All over the country, local authorities are preparing local plans for the future, many of these spanning 15 or 20 …
Decarbonising Transport: land use planning is key
Press release: 15 July 2021 Responding to the Government’s Decarbonising Transport plan published yesterday, 14 July 2021, Jenny Raggett from …
Planning in the spotlight: the implications of THAT byelection
Blog by Jenny Raggett, Transport for New Homes There has in recent days been much talk about the Chesham and …
Alastair Hanton: a tribute
Alastair Hanton, who died last month, helped to found Transport for New Homes and was a wise and insightful presence …
‘Beauty’ alone won’t solve the climate crisis
This guest blog by Cycling UK’s policy director Roger Geffen argues that the Government’s draft National Planning Policy Framework makes …
Planning reforms risk adding “a tide of car traffic” to crowded roads, Housing Secretary told
As the Government prepares for a Planning Bill to be announced in next week’s Queen’s Speech, ten organisations have written …
Three changes we’d like to see to the plans for the planning system
By Steve Chambers and Jenny Raggett, Transport for New Homes When the government consulted on proposed upcoming changes to the …
Planning for transport demand through the Decide and Provide Approach
What will the likely transport impact of a new development be? How many trips is it likely to generate? To …
A tale of two developments: why new planning reforms threaten to entrench unsustainable lifestyles
This blog by Steve Chambers, sustainable transport campaigner at Transport for New Homes, was first published by as a guest …
How land value capture is being used to help communities
When infrastructure such as a new rail line is built, the value of the land around it goes up: suddenly …
For housing fit for the future, let’s get these policies right
The Government is consulting on changes to the National Model Design Code and National Planning Policy Framework. Together, these documents …
If conservation areas can have a mix of homes and amenities, why can’t newly planned communities?
We’re concerned that a proposed change to ‘permitted development rights’ would make it harder for local authorities to plan communities …
Our joint letter to the Telegraph about high street planning
We urge the Government to think again about its proposals to allow high street businesses to be changed to housing …
Planning white paper risks more car dependent sprawl
Our country needs more homes. What we don’t need is more sprawling, car-dependent estates far from town centres and public …
Sustainability Through the Looking Glass
Guest blog by Richard Tamplin ”When I use a word,’ Humpty Dumpty said in rather a scornful tone, ‘it means …
So, what else could we build?
In our recent report, Garden Villages and Garden Towns: Visions and Reality, we explain that, although the visions for garden …
Planning reform is on the way
Planning reform is on the way. But will it lead to better development in the right places, and stop car-based …
If Active Travel England is set up right it could increase walking and cycling for residents of new homes
On 28 July 2020 the UK Government announced the creation of Active Travel England, a funding body for walking and …
Planning and COVID-19
Back in the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic we noticed that planning and development were continuing. We asked you …
Green promises broken: Garden Villages and Garden Towns will be dominated by the car
Far from being vibrant, green communities, Garden Villages and Garden Towns are at high risk of becoming car-dependent commuter estates …
Let us know how changes to the planning system are affecting your area
Planning and the making of planning decisions have not stopped because of the COVID-19 (Coronavirus) crisis. The Coronavirus Act 2020 …
Looking to the UN Sustainable Development Goals to guide good urban growth
Guest blog by Camilla Ween, RIBA, MCIHT, AoU, Harvard Loeb Fellow The planet is in a climate crisis and the …
Transport for New Homes Award: Royal Arsenal Riverside
Royal Arsenal Riverside was announced as winner of the Transport for New Homes Award 2019 in the metropolitan category. Judge …
Transport for New Homes Award: Bath Riverside
Bath Riverside was announced as winner of the Transport for New Homes Award 2019 in the non-metropolitan category. Judge Tim …
Transport for New Homes Award: Poundbury
Poundbury is an urban extension to the Dorset county town of Dorchester, built according to the principles of Charles, Prince …
Transport for New Homes Award 2019: winners announced
The winners of the Transport for New Homes Award 2019 are: Royal Arsenal Riverside, south east London (metropolitan winner) Bath …
Transport for New Homes Award: shortlist announced
Over the summer, we asked members of the public, professionals and developers to nominate recent UK developments of more than …
New Checklist to help root out car-dependent housing developments
In the rush to build new homes, too many estates are being built without public transport, local facilities or even …
How new housing developments can benefit from car clubs
Guest blog by Rebecca Townend, Co-wheels Car Club. A car club based within a community can have a whole host …
It’s difficult to produce sustainable travel patterns if you don’t build in the right places
Guest blog by Gordon Stokes, Visiting Research Associate at Transport Studies Unit, University of Oxford Finding the right places to …
In Memoriam Simon Norton
We were deeply sad to learn that Simon Norton, a supporter of Transport for New Homes since its inception, passed …