Abley Transportation Consultants offer highly specialised and technical consulting services including:
Geographic Information Systems (GIS) provide an effective method for storing, analysing and presenting spatial data as well as finding solutions to technical transportation issues.
GIS development has revolutionised and changed the ways that individuals are capable of capturing, managing and manipulating spatial data. GIS is a methodology widely used to understand, represent, manage and communicate information effectively and is highly valued for improving information accessibility, communication and collaboration in decision making. GIS enables you to integrate data, understand and identify patterns and trends, answer hypothetical questions and find solutions to technical problems.
Abley Transportation Consultants have specialized staff using GIS as a practical and effective method for data analysis, storage and presentation. Abley Transportation Consultants continually seek new ways to analyse and communicate transportation information to our clients.
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Private Plan change proposals require expert advice from transport specialists who can anticipate problems before they eventuate and mitigate issues where possible.
A Private Plan Change revises or introduces new provisions into the District Plan and can involve zone changes, or amendments to rules. As any new development will effect the community in some way the plan change is required to go through public notification, submission and hearing processes, including the right of appeal to the Environment Court.
Abley Transportation Consultants assess effects against good engineering practice and rules of planning documents. Our expert staff have experience throughout the entire Plan Change process from reading through submissions to presenting evidence at hearings or, if necessary, in Environment Court.
Resource Management proposals require expert advice from transport specialists who can anticipate problems before they eventuate and mitigate issues where possible.
Establishing the viability of a new development or extending an existing development includes determining the transport effects on the existing road network and the ongoing requirements of policy from local to national levels. Good advice, mitigation and representation are essential to enable ongoing good planning in New Zealand cities.
Abley Transportation Consultants provide independent advice for developers and planning authorities when analysing transport effects of new or existing developments. This includes reviewing effects against local, regional and national policy documents and providing recommendations and strategic thinking to solve problems. Our specialist team can also present expert witness at hearings and to the Environment Court.
Safety and accessibility are fundamental when planning new roads and the management of existing transportation infrastructure.
Traffic management is the planning, monitoring and control or influencing of traffic to maximise effectiveness of the transport network and to ensure safety for all road users. The increasing number of more vulnerable road users leads to a need for more pedestrian friendly transport networks. Traffic management schemes such as traffic calming can create environments where all modes can function safely at the same time.
Abley Transportation Consultants prepares traffic management schemes to provide better amenity and environmental quality including lessening traffic speeds, providing for all modes of transport, identifying vulnerable roads users and special needs such as for schools.
Safety of all road users is the principal concern when managing existing or potential transport networks.
A Safety Audit is a proactive formal safety performance examination of an existing or future road or intersection by an independent audit team. Council procedures require capital infrastructure projects to undergo a safety audit by an independent team to ensure safety issues are appropriately considered prior to project construction. They are also carried out post construction to identify potential crash sites or hazards unforeseen in the design phase of the project.
Abley Transportation Consultants regard road user safety as the highest priority for a transport system and regularly undertake safety audits for government agencies at all stages of the design process.
Road safety forms an intrinsic part of traffic and transportation planning, engineering and management.
Road safety is often a key determinant for the design or analysis task and improving road safety can often be achieved through good engineering. Road safety must be taken into account during the designing stage of a project when potential road safety hazards are highlighted and removed. There must also be ongoing monitoring of all road networks to ensure continued safety for all road users.
Abley Transportation Consultants regularly undertakes work for government agencies, and others in the development of road safety audits, scope approvals for new works, design layouts for improved intersections, crash and other studies that focus on the human behaviour of crashes and how engineering solutions could improve or lessen the consequence of these behaviours.
Roads and vehicles are a part of everyday life for all of us and unfortunately so are crashes.
Road user safety is of great importance so sites that have a high rate of accidents need to be studied in order to find the underlying problem. After investigations of these locations, safety improvements will be designed and implemented that will attempt to prevent the likelihood of similar accidents occurring in the future. In a more forgiving transport environment the severity of crashes is greatly reduced. Treatments could include increasing the level of control at intersections, speed limit reductions, widening roads or installing features like rumble lines.
At Abley Transportation Consultants safety of road users is a priority. Our staff are experienced in the field of safety and undertake crash reduction studies so that the transport network can be improved for road users.
The design of traffic facilities and transport infrastructure is a specialised task requiring the application of appropriate standards and sound judgement.
Traffic Engineering encompasses a range of projects including shopping centre and industrial site layouts, residential subdivisions, freight vehicle movements and truck loading bays, intersection layouts, road safety audits of designs, car park layouts, signage and line marking but the overall concern is with designing transportation systems aiming to create safer, more efficient, and more cost-effective systems for the world.
Abley Transportation Consultants has a strong group of professional engineers that allows us to tackle projects from the smallest site layout task to the largest and most complex road design. Abley Transportation Consultants operates various specialised software for the consistent and high quality design advice and presentation for both private and public sector work.
With ever increasing demand on the transport system it is imperative that the behaviour and the origin/destination of road users is known in order to develop solutions that meet the needs of the users.
Traffic surveys are undertaken to better understand issues in a transport network. Survey data informs transportation professions as to the existing environment and human behaviour, quantifies problems and sometimes identifies potential solutions. A large range of traffic data can be collected including traffic volumes, speed and modal classification, origin-destination, queue length and patronage surveys.
Abley Transportation Consultants undertake various traffic surveys to better understand issues. This includes designing survey methodologies, undertaking surveys and reducing and analysing data.
Cycling is now rightly recognised as fundamental to an integrated transportation system and must be considered in the design and retrofitting of communities.
Health authorities increasingly emphasise the need for exercise to retain fitness and health and government policy consistently targets cycling as part of a sustainable approach to good transport planning. Cycling provides one mechanism, along with other active transport modes to achieve these outcomes. If designed well cycling networks can also support the increased use of walking and public transport as well as improving the amenity and safety of the road network for more vulnerable road users.
Abley Transportation Consultants is a proud corporate sponsor of the Cycling Advocates Network (CAN) and have helped create safe walking and cycling networks around the country that will entice users into cycling more often.
The traffic effects developments create need to be quantified and assessed as to the appropriateness for granting resource consent.
New development brings with it fresh demands and opportunities for our transport system. Assessing the transport impacts of a development contributes towards understanding how more sustainable travel patterns might be achieved through changing travel behaviour. Combining access to the right data, experience with a broad range of land uses, relationships with the right people and the ability to understand the development process from both sides allows the full impact of the development to be assessed.
Abley Transportation Consultants has a highly-regarded reputation for excellence in undertaking multi modal transportation assessments with our experience encompassing all forms of residential, commercial, retail, industrial, community and mixed-use developments.
Being able to store a user's mode of transport, regardless if it is a private motor car, bicycle or truck, at the users destination influences a user’s choice of travel.
Parking policies have a large impact on residential and commercial properties, so detailed public consultation forms an essential part of any parking study, adding more difficulty to already complex parking issues. Typical assignments include the development of car parking policy, research into the parking characteristics of specific land uses, preparation of car park management plans for multi-use sites and parking precinct plans for major areas where the sharing of uses results in unique demand profiles.
Abley Transportation Consultants is recognised as an industry leader in the understanding of parking issues. Our work is based on a unique appreciation of the issues, sound theoretical principles, comprehensive land use survey data and an integrated approach to the planning of the public and private parking resource.
Heavy transport is a vital component in successful supply operations because nothing moves without efficient transport links.
Whilst heavy vehicles do not make up a huge percentage of the total vehicle mileage, they do have a tendency to impose large impacts on the transport system. They can cause congestion due to slow acceleration, air and noise pollution and significant damage to other road users if they are involved in a crash. Managing the movement of heavy vehicles will greatly increase the safety of road users and improve the efficiency of the transport network.
Abley Transportation Consultants are committed to ensuring safe and efficient access to the local road network so strategic freight routes are maintained and that proposals do not compromise the movements of others on the network. In order to do this our work consists of surveying current heavy vehicle routes and creating models of the flow of heavy vehicles to transport commodities.
The ability to provide good quality advice and then communicate that advice to decision makers is critical for every project.
Technical work almost always means communicating the results of an analysis to decision makers. Sometimes this can be as simple as reporting opinions in a technical letter, including communicating the results of analysis and any recommended actions. Often the technical analysis may need to be converted into written evidence, presented and subjected to cross examination.
Abley Transportation Consultants professional staff present at Council Hearings, seminars and to the Environment Court. Our ability to transform technical transportation arguments into understandable evidence and our use of graphics to impart technical analysis are well known. Combining our technical analysis with our spatial skills using Geographic Information Systems means we have a leading edge in communicating information.
Pedestrians and cyclists make up a large number of the users on the transport networks. Safety of these vulnerable users is of the utmost concern.
For some vulnerable road users, such as the elderly, young children or those with a disability, their only modes of transport is walking or cycling. New or existing transport networks need to encourage safe and accessible travel for all vulnerable users. To ensure the safety of these users vulnerable road user audits are carried out at all stages of the design process ensuring their needs are catered for.
Abley Transportation Consultants are strong advocates of walking and cycling as modes of travel and are committed to developing a transport system that is secure and well suited to vulnerable road users. We can undertake Vulnerable User Audits at any stage whether it be in the design or post construction phases.
Increasing population density and road congestion, coupled with government funding commitments are driving the renewed investment in public transport.
Public Transport has a vital role to play in reducing congestion as well as the associated environmental effects without hindering people’s freedom to travel. The creation of public transport priority and more attractive interchange sites will increase the appeal of the public transport system to commuters. Less traffic on the roads will not only make a positive impact on the environment but will also increase the safety of vulnerable road users.
Abley Transportation Consultants has a strong group of engineers that are committed to finding sustainable transportation solutions. Our work includes bus priority scoping studies and safety audits along with the assessment of public transport interchange sites.
Good quality transportation policy is critical for the long term development of a sustainable transportation network.
Visions, policies and objectives provide direction for transportation. Developing, assessing and implementing best practice policy is essential for the betterment of transport at a strategic and local level. Considering transportation at a very strategic level and quantifying the positive and negative transportation effects of policy change allow policy makers to fully understand the consequence of the changes.
Abley Transportation Consultants work demonstrates proactive thinking and active encouragement for Council to incorporate leading edge analysis techniques into planning and policy development. Our work has involved District Plan Rewrites and the creation of management strategies for Council.
Transport networks are used every time someone leaves their house so it is critical that the networks are planned and developed in a way that allows them to function effectively.
Efficient transport networks are key to the success of any urban environment. These networks are vital for the movement of people, products and services from the inner city to the outer developments. They need constant maintenance and development so that they remain efficient as the needs of the people and the environment around them changes. Today, more and more cycling and walking networks are being planned and developed to accommodate the increase in non-motorised road users.
Abley Transportation Consultants are at the forefront of the country’s network development with our work on the development of a detailed Christchurch central city core walking network being the first of its kind in New Zealand.
Access is the ultimate goal of most transportation planning however, the type of land use will affect the nature of access provided.
Land use planning has traditionally been treated independent of the transport system but the relationship between the two is actually a complicated feedback pattern. Increasing the accessibility to an area will lead to new developments which increase the number of vehicles and accessibility is once again hindered. The key is to focus on the entire transport system and provide convenient proximity, roadway access, public transport services and walkability.
Abley Transportation Consultants have an innovative ability to see the whole picture and understand the access needs of all users. We carry out evaluations and reviews of networks and our specialist staff use purpose built models utlilising GIS technology to assess and communicate accessibility issues.
Today most companies are under pressure to increase productivity while at the same time budgets are being cut. Good management is therefore key to the success of any project.
Project Management is the discipline of planning, organizing and managing resources that leads to the conclusion of a project. The use of project management techniques provides improved initial planning and assessment of risks. It offers a greater chance of anticipating problem areas while there is still time to remediate them and also presents the opportunity for alternative methods.
Abley Transportation Consultants works in collaboration with our clients from the very beginning of a project to minimise cost, optimise efficiency and offer the necessary expertise to produce high quality final products for the most simple or complex projects.
Behind every successful project is an efficient administration team that allows the projects to run smoothly and efficiently.
Good management is an essential facet of any successful consulting company. The planning, organising, and allocation of resources, staff, finances and time contribute to the success of projects. A well organized company will have happy staff and when the staff are content, the work is high quality. Therefore it is important to find the correct balance between staff needs and economic production.
Abley Transportation Consultants have an experienced financial and administrative team that manages our resources and staff wisely. This allows our staff to focus on delivering innovative and high quality deliverables to our clients, maintaining Abley Transportation Consultants place as one of the leading providers of strategic transportation advice in New Zealand.
The speed limit along a road greatly influences the function of that road and the behaviour of all road users so it is vital that it is set at the correct speed.
Speed limit reviews are carried out to ensure that the speed limit best reflects the needs of all road users, not just motorised users. A change in the speed limit can improve quality of life for local communities and can introduce an enhanced balance between accessibility, road safety and environmental aims. The introduction of new speed limits could cause issues for the community so consultation with the public throughout the review process is essential to produce a safe and acceptable solution.
Abley Transportation Consultants have worked on speed limit reviews across the country and know the importance of community acceptance. To allow all members of the community to fully understand the proposed changes Abley uses maps of the proposals as a simpler way to communicate with the community.
High quality information, focused analysis of specific issues and involvement of stakeholders all combine to underpin the development of robust and defensible plans and recommendations for the future.
Developments often create adverse affects on the community so keeping them informed throughout the entire design process is imperative. The correct consultation technique for each stakeholder is crucial to obtain the desired outcome. Being able to clearly identify key issues, communicate problems and the apply the most appropriate solutions to rectify problems is essential to successfully delivering projects.
Abley Transportation Consultants is very experienced at listening to the communities concerns, elected officials requirements and developing processes and information that enhance solutions and buy in of the respective groups including land owners, special interest groups and client organisations.
Developing the confidence and capability to give good presentations offers an alternative way to present information but is also helpful for self-development.
Conferences provide an important channel for exchange of information between professionals. To be able to present at a conference allows the chance to pass on your expertise to others in your field, but it also provides an opportunity to further your leadership skills.
At Abley Transportation Consultants we are committed to developing the personal competency of our people to their full potential. Presenting allows our staff the opportunity to grow. Our staff are regularly presenting at conferences both nationally and internationally.
Walking is the first and last leg of every journey but it is often the forgotten transportation mode.
More and more people are choosing walking as their transportation mode. This means that there are a greater number of more vulnerable users on the transport system. The transport network now has to have the appropriate facilities to accommodate pedestrians. Footpaths and intersections need to be pedestrian friendly with amenities such as seats and drinking fountains becoming more common place. To monitor the performance of walking networks Community Street Reviews are undertaken as they are an ideal method for determining pedestrian satisfaction.
Abley Transportation Consultants are strong advocates for walking and are a founding signatory to the Walk 21 International Charter for Walking and a corporate sponsor of Living Streets Aotearoa. We have developed specialist techniques such as Community Street Reviews to quantify the quality of street environments for pedestrians, a ground breaking first for New Zealand.
Miscommunication and misunderstandings between the developer and the public can lead to significant delays on projects and sometimes put an end to the development altogether.
Creating and sustaining good relationships with the community is the core of all successful projects. The views of the community must be listened to and the issues dealt with. Economically it is not in a developer’s best interest to overlook the public’s point of view as it could delay the project. By involving the community, decisions can be made that reflect both the community and the developer’s wishes.
Abley Transportation Consultants believe that your success depends on the quality of your relationships. Our work involves understanding the views of the community with regards to plan changes, resource consents, surveys and addressing their concerns in order to retain healthy relationships.
The world of transportation engineering continues to evolve and so to must the engineers themselves.
The ever changing needs of the transportation network requires the continual development of skills and knowledge of transportation engineers. The need for new skills and techniques arises from the constant improvement and progress of road systems, assessment methods and software. Workshops and training courses are the ideal way for experts to pass on knowledge and contribute in the growth of other professionals.
Abley Transportation Consultants is committed to professional development and the training of a new generation of transportation professionals. Our staff have carried out workshops and training in the use of software packages and have lectured at the University of Canterbury to help shape the future of New Zealand’s transportation engineers.
Ports, regardless if they cater for sea, land or air travel, are a crucial link in the transportation supply chain.
A freely functioning and unconstrained port is a key advantage for the local and national economy and the transportation of goods and people both to and within ports is critical for the overall success of the transportation system. With increasing passenger volumes there is increasing demand on the transport network to the port. These networks have to be managed so they provide effective and reliable access to the ports.
Abley Transportation Consultants has been involved in the design of freight and logistic centres, container terminals, port road layouts, freight train activity, freight vehicle movement patterns and truck design matters for a range of land uses and clients.
Finding sufficient funding for a development is a time consuming procedure and can take a lot of effort, especially if you are not familiar with the funding application process.
The better your project and funding planning is, the greater your chance of funding success. Any project can fail due to lack of funding because the funding planning was inadequate so it is imperative that the developer has a well constructed plan. Funding applications need to be prepared in such a way that they showcase the benefits that the project will offer to the community. This will enhance the likelihood that the funding agency will agree to the funding.
Abley Transportation Consultants have experience throughout the funding process. Our work includes revising economic evaluations and assisting with the preparations for funding applications.
Maintaining and enhancing the transport network is an essential requirement for all Councils but the question of who pays is a complicated one.
The Transport differential rating attempts to address rating inconsistencies within the locality and ensure that no one is unfairly disadvantaged. It is an effects based transport cost system that allocates charges depending on the surrounding land use. Land uses that generate higher traffic volumes, such as dairy farming, are deemed to receive greater benefit from the expenditure and so they are charged higher than those that recieve less benefits.
Abley Transportation Consultants are committed to delivering the community safe and efficient transport networks with rates that fairly reflect the benefits the user will receive. Our team has experience dealing with District and Regional Councils with regards to transport differential rates.
A successful event requires the right mix of strategic planning, detailed implementation and consultation coupled with the flexibility to adapt to changing circumstances.
Major events attract large numbers of people and this increase of visitors can overextend the existing transport infrastructure. To minimise the effects of the rise in traffic volume, in-depth assessments and careful planning need to be undertaken prior to the event. Particular attention is paid to pedestrian and public transport arrangements in addition to car-based forms of transport, along with liaising with the stakeholders responsible for delivering the transport service.
Abley Transportation Consultants has a wide range of experience planning, designing and implementing the traffic and transport aspects of major events.
Growing urbanization leads to new developments. With this comes an increased demand on the transport system.
New retail developments will have great impact on the community and its transportation system. Retail Assessments are required to be undertaken to evaluate the significance of the impacts and whether they are adverse or not. They should justify the need and scale of the development, consider the availability, appropriateness and feasibility of all preferred sites and assess the consequences on the vitality of the existing retail environment and on the community.
Abley Transportation Consultants have comprehensive understanding of the impacts of new developments. This knowledge is used to carry out retail assessments and our professional staff are often called upon to present expert evidence on retail issues at Planning Hearings.
New developments bring with them a significant amount of necessary infrastructure and associated funding.
For a region to grow it needs to be able to increase capacity of its transport networks. This requires significant financial backing. Development contributions assist Council in funding new network and community infrastructure which is essential to support a growing neighborhood. Where the effects of a development require Council to provide new assets necessary to service new growth, development contributions are applied. They are only spent on the activities for which they are collected for example on new roads for subdivisions.
Abley Transportation Consultants have worked alongside Council to determine the transport impact inputs for development contribution models and therefore have an profound knowledge of Development Contribution Policies.
The road network often undergoes change due to safety improvements, capacity enhancements or changes in priority given to different road users.
Computer modelling is an effective tool that allows changes to be tested and evaluated. SIDRA Intersection is an advanced micro-analytical traffic evaluation tool that employs lane-by-lane and vehicle drive cycle models. It can be used to evaluate and assess intersection capacity, level of service and performance analysis for different types of intersections including priority lanes, roundabouts and traffic signals.
Combining Abley Transportation Consultants traffic engineering skills along with computer modelling tools such as Paramics and SIDRA Intersection mean our specialist staff are able to test, communicate and present the results of hypothetical testing. The performance of an intersection often determines the overall road network efficiency so the results enable Abley Transportation Consultants to determine whether the existing network can accommodate new developments.
A Community Street Review is a nationally recognized standard for measuring walkability of the transport networks. They contain not only a qualitative consumer audit but also a quantitative rating.
With increasing pedestrian numbers it is essential that the footpaths and intersections are walking friendly. Community Street Reviews consist of the surveying community members in conjunction with the collection of physical and operational variables. This allows practitioners to identify areas of poor performance, improvement methods and a tool to prioritise walking schemes.
Abley Transportation Consultants appreciates the importance of walking and are the leading specialists in Community Street Reviews having researched, developed and carried them out across the country. We undertake these reviews to assist in meeting community and development goals for efficient and pleasant walking networks.
Every journey involves walking at some stage yet the quality of the walking environment is often overlooked.
The quality of walking networks plays a huge role in a person’s decision to walk or not. The improvement and maintenance of the networks should therefore be a priority. Physical and operational variable surveys are undertaken alongside a Community Street Review to determine areas of poor performance, improvement methods and a tool to prioritise walking schemes.
Abley Transportation Consultants are experts in the assessment of walking environments. As the leading specialist in Community Street Reviews our staff carry out physical and operational variable surveys across the country and use the online database, created by Abley Transportation Consultants, to identify and prioritise walking network improvements.
In today’s information saturated society being able to view data in meaningful ways to inform decision makers is critical. 3D visualization ensures any proposed developments can be scrutinised and viewed in detail before development begins. Abley Transportation Consultants 3D visualisation techniques are interactive allowing for an unlimited number of perspectives to be viewed before development commences.
Abley Transportation Consultants also incorporate 3D Visualisation techniques as a method of displaying GIS analysis results in an interactive and meaningful manor. The outputs can be used in publications, reports, presentations and edited into videos.
Abley Transportation Consultants have experience delivering 3D visualisation outputs at micro and macro scales, from individual street or intersection developments to visualization of GIS Accessibility results for entire regions. Abley Transportation Consultants continually endeavour to develop new and innovative methods to share complex and detailed information in simple and useful ways.
Travel is essential to nearly every aspect of our lives. Transport Planning considers the relationship between transport and land use, and how best to manage the interactions between modes to ensure an efficient and effective transport system.
The quality of transport provision for any proposed development is often key to the feasibility of the project as a whole. Solutions must be consistent with the needs of the client and provide the community with desirable economic, social and environmental benefits. As the number of road users, across all transport modes rises, it becomes increasingly important that good Transport Planning is practised in order to find solutions that meet current needs without compromising the needs of future generations.
Abley Transportation Consultants understands the competing stakeholder demands and the requirements of the community and can manage these to deliver a liveable and sustainable transport system.
The ever increasing price of oil and an awareness that public transport or non-motorised transport modes will help solve many transportation issues in our towns and cities means that investigation into transport modes is essential.
Effective transport planning requires knowledge of the number of people using each mode of transport and an understanding as to the reasons behind the choice. Transport mode investigations and studies are used to collect this information so that any problems with the network can be highlighted and then can be solved. The assessment of the accessibility to different transport modes involves network modelling using GIS as well as transportation engineering and planning components.
Abley Transportation Consultants can undertake transport mode investigations and our forward thinking staff can come up with innovative ideas to entice users to travel with alternative modes.
The seamless movement of people and goods around urban areas is typically a key determinant of economic strength and an indicator of quality of life for communities.
Undertaking the quantification of the economic benefits or dis-benefits that a transportation project may provide is done to test the efficiency of decision making but also to quantify difficult or less tangible concepts such as liveability. This way the probability of developing sustainable communities on good investment decisions is based on sound knowledge and rigorous analysis.
Abley Transportation Consultants often brings together outputs of strategic modelling with local issues to better inform and understand issues and consider economic issues within the context of the local community. Specific studies are often undertaken such as assessing commercial parking viability.
Road traffic micro-simulation is a computer modelling system that represents the behaviour of individual vehicles and their drivers in a road network. These modelled vehicles observe the rules of the road and interact with other road users through simple behavioural rules. The cumulative effect of modelling individual vehicles is to realistically represent road traffic flow on a physical road network. The term ‘micro-simulation' refers to the analytical detail of the model rather than simulation of a small area.
S-Paramics is the software system utilised by Abley Transportation Consultants to simulate the individual components of traffic flow and congestion. There are other micro-simulation software packages, but S-Paramics has the greatest market penetration in New Zealand and hence the greatest technical support.
Abley Transportation Consultants can create micro simulation models using a number of experienced forward thinking staff for any project that would benefit from this form of transportation modelling.
