Do you need a Transport Statement?
Many sites do not need a full report. We will tell you what your council will actually ask for, and give you a fixed fee for it.
Three steps, no wasted effort.
Technical note
A few pages on access, visibility, parking and servicing. Often all a small scheme needs.
Transport Statement
Adds the trips the scheme will generate and how people will walk, cycle or catch the bus.
Transport Assessment
Adds junction testing, road safety, mitigation and usually a Travel Plan, for schemes with wider effects.
What decides which you need.
Read: Transport Statement or Transport Assessment? How to tell →
- The size and type of the scheme
- The council’s own thresholds
- Busy or sensitive junctions nearby
- The local collision record
- Walking, cycling and bus access
- Other development on the same roads
Questions we get asked
Is there a fixed threshold?
No. National policy leaves it to councils. Many still use the Department for Transport’s 2007 figures as a starting point, around 50 to 80 homes for a Statement, but local rules vary.
Can you agree the scope with the council first?
Yes, and we recommend it. Agreeing the scope in writing at pre-application stops you paying for evidence nobody needs.
How long does a Transport Statement take?
It depends on whether surveys are needed. We give you a programme with the fixed fee.
How councils decide
There is no single national threshold. Government guidance says transport evidence should be proportionate, and each highway authority sets its own expectations, often in a local design guide or validation list.
Small schemes often need only a short note, or nothing beyond the planning statement. Larger schemes, or smaller ones in sensitive locations, need a Transport Statement or a full Transport Assessment.
- Size and use of the development, and how many trips it will create.
- The location: a busy junction, a poor collision record or a narrow lane can tip the balance.
- What the council’s validation list asks for, which we check before anything is written.
Last reviewed October 2026 by Ripple Development Planning. Policy and guidance change; for advice on a specific site, send us the details.
From our insights.
Send us your site.
We'll read it and come back to you with what it needs and a fixed fee.