Footpaths / Pavement & Roads

The design of pavements, road crossings and footpaths should allow for the needs of older and ambulant disabled people, wheelchair users, people with visual impairment and people manoeuvring a pram or pushchair. This section focuses on street and road design, giving consideration for how to design permeable layouts that are Connected well to the existing transport, walking and cycle networks both inside and outside of the development.

Pavements and paths should be welcoming, inclusive, Beautiful and Accessible to all providing a step free route around the neighbourhood with regular spaces for rest along the route. They should be easy to navigate and of a generous size to allow wheelchair users and able bodied users to move side by side.

The design of pavements and paths should create an urban form that establishes suitable grids and patterns and creates relationships between street widths and building heights. They should prioritise pedestrians, cycling and use of public transport to promote sustainable travel and a healthy and active lifestyle. The design should also promote the ethos of walkable neighbourhoods furthering the sustainable and healthy lifestyle goals.

Pavement and paths also need to be designed to deal with and respond to environmental factors such as sun, shade, wind, noise, and air quality. They should be resilient, Affordable and have a positive impact on the environment over their life-cycle.

The design of pavements and paths should be designed to keep crossfalls to a minimum consistent with good water run off to prevent wheelchair users drifting or slipping. The surface of paths should be safe, secure and slip resistant therefore material choice is a very important factor in the overall design.

Pavements and paths should also be designed for future adaptation of spaces, enabling them to accommodate changes in the way we use streets and transport. They should also be designed to accommodate future technology infrastructure, such as smart street lights, street furniture, cycle parking and electric vehicle charging infrastructure.

Design Principles

• Pavement and Paths should be Accessible and designed to the following: level, considered to be a gradient of not more than 1 in 50, gently sloping, considered to be a gradient of more than 1 in 50 and not more than 1 in 20, or ramped, with a gradient of more than 1 in 20 and not more than 1 in 12
• Continuous slopes can be utilised provided that the gradient is no steeper than 1:30. For gradients steeper than 1:30 but less than 1:20 there should be rest areas at intervals no greater than 18m.
• A minimum width of 1800mm but a minimum of 1200mm is acceptable for short lengths or in paths leading to no more than 4 dwellings.
• A gradient no steeper than 1:100 but a maximum of 1:40 should be achieved for pavement cross falls.
• Overall length of an Accessible route to an entrance of a building should be limited to 45m.
• Paths should not have unprotected drops at any size and edge as these are a hazard to anyone. Where footpaths are not level with the adjoining ground, they should have an upstand of at least 100mm or a protective barrier that extends to within 100mm above the surface.
• Road crossing points should have a drop kerb to assist disabled people, particularly those in wheelchairs more easily. Drop kerbs should have a camber no steeper than 1:20 in the direction of travel with crossfalls at right angles no greater than 1:40. The area in front of the drop kerb should be free of any channel, gully or grating
• Kerb level changes provide guidance for visually impaired people conflicting with the above point. Tactile surfacing should be used to help indicate the presence of a road.
• All access routes should be well lit for safety and security
• All kerbs alongside parking for wheelchairs users must be dropped to allow access from road to pavement
• Design permeable layouts Connected with existing walking, cycling and passenger transport networks within and outside of the development.
• Prioritise walking, cycling and public transport access, to maximise sustainable access between areas.
• Paths should be Beautiful and distinctive. They should use materials that respond to and complement the specific built/landscape settings, with greater place-making emphasis in sensitive locations such as relating to conservation areas, protected landscapes, and strategic open space.

The above information should be read in conjunction with the Scottish Technical Building Regulations as well as the relevant local authority design guidance for footpaths, pavements and roads.