Easy to get around

Opportunities

Building on research, design and testing at Cranfield and Milbrook seek to maximise the opportunity to develop cleaner and greener modes of travel, utilising technologies such as autonomous vehicles and drone distribution.

The rural nature of Central Bedfordshire means that private cars are popular; the implementation of an electric vehicle (EV) charging network will help to make EVs more accessible, and reduce the carbon impact of travel in Central Bedfordshire.

Cycle Networks could be developed on a major sale to support commuting across longer distances. The rise of e-bikes could make cycling a more popular option in Central Bedfordshire.

Challenges

Our elderly and rural residents may find it difficult to access digital and shared transport platforms (such as ‘mobility on demand’ services and car sharing). As such, reliance on private vehicles is likely to endure.

It is likely that more people will move and travel at different times in the future with changing employment patterns; there will be a challenge in predicting and understanding how movement in Central Bedfordshire will adapt.

Public sector spending cuts have had a negative impact on transport services; particularly on rural bus routes where low population density can make services financially unviable.

Trends

Limited rural transport

While Central Bedfordshire benefits from some excellent strategic connections (e.g. to London, The Midlands and the North), the public transport connectivity of local market towns and villages is limited - particularly in rural areas.

Parked cars

According to the International Garden Cities Institute, cars in the UK are parked for 96% of the time (80% at home and 16% elsewhere).

Car ownership

The proportion of people travelling to work by bus in Central Bedfordshire is very low – just 2.5%. Car ownership is high, with 87% of households owning at least 1 car.