The Department links with the Department for Transport with regard to transport planning and the provision of supporting guidance for the national health service. Guidance document ‘Health Technical Memorandum 07-03 Transport management and car parking’ provides advice about effective transport management, emphasising the importance of collaboration with local authorities and public transport coordinators on a community strategic networking basis. A copy of the document has been placed in the Library.
Effective public transport networks to serve health care facilities, including general practitioner practices, are achieved through local discussion between transport providers, local authorities and local health care organisations. The effective provision, which is determined at local level, takes into account the availability of public transport networks in the required area. In addition, this may be achieved through the town planning system.
The Department has recently been engaged with Department for Transport to produce the ‘Active Travel Strategy’ (February 2010), which advocates that healthy activity such as walking and cycling should also be positive options to access health care facilities. A copy of the document has been placed in the Library.