Brooklands Business Park Accessibility

Project description

The Brooklands Business Park is a sub regionally strategic employment area that is home to a mix of high quality a-grade office space, international headquarters, warehousing and light industrial buildings that have been developed inside the old Brooklands Racing Circuit.

To the west, separated by Green Belt, is the warehousing and light industrial Brooklands Industrial Estate. This has large warehousing operations with companies such as Amazon Fresh and BAE operating facilities in the estate. Large retail units of Tesco and Marks and Spencer are also located on the western half of the estate. Congestion and poor accessibility are a major concern to the businesses in and around the park, including access to Weybridge rail station. They present real barriers to growth and could eventually lead to migration of these businesses. The solution to congestion is a much bigger and complex issue, which will necessitate very significant investment. However this proposal focuses on the local potential for relieving pressure on the network and improving travel choice through sustainable measures in the short term.

The project consists of a range of transport measures to improve accessibility between Brooklands Business Park and Weybridge town centre via Weybridge rail station. This will include improved pedestrian, cycle and road infrastructure to benefit all users, and in particular encourage sustainable travel to and from Brooklands Business Park. The project involves improving bus provision, reducing journey times and improving reliability through junction improvements along the route and bus priority measures. The project will also consider the long term resilience and safety issues presented by the private road network (particularly Wellington Way), that is a strategic part of the network, and the risk to the wider network around this being restricted by the owners. This project will co-ordinate with infrastructure work that is planned to address the resilience issues caused by flooding when the River Wey surcharges.

Proposed measures for pedestrians and cyclists include a new riverside footpath linking Wellington Way and Locke King Road, a toucan crossing on the A318, southwest of Brooklands Business Park and a cycle hire scheme between Weybridge and Brooklands that has the potential for local business sponsorship.

Project output

Improved pedestrian and cycle accessibility between Brooklands Business Park and Weybridge rail station and town centre would encourage more sustainable trips. This would mean greater access for employees to the rail station and would reduce pressure on the road network, especially at peak travel times. Improvements to bus journey time reliability will also encourage more people to use this mode of travel. These improvements would lead to reduced congestion and improved air quality. The project would help support the retention and growth of around 200 existing companies on the business park and help provide infrastructure to support future intensification of the park that could deliver up to 10,000 sqm of additional a-grade office floorspace supporting between 800 -1,000 new jobs. The improvements in accessibility to Brooklands Business Park and Weybridge town centre will help improve the economic viability of the area and deliver LEP growth objectives. It will reduce gaps in the existing walking and cycling network which will improve sustainable travel connectivity within the Woking, Elmbridge and Runnymede boroughs.