Primary street corridor (NDR)

The northern distributor road (NDR), or primary street corridor, is a key component of the master plan and a policy requirement. This street will be fundamental to the character of the new neighbourhood and the ‘front window’ of the scheme. In order to create interest along the c.1.5km route it is important that its form changes to reflect the wider place-making and character objectives.

The sketch below highlights these key areas of change, demonstrates how they change and the rationale for the form of the street in these locations. The concepts and illustrations set out here are all based on the guidance in Oxfordshire County Council’s Street Design Guide. The main parameters, carriageway, footway, cycleway and verges, are consistent dimensions in accordance with the stated design guidance.

Western section

The central landscape strip will create a distinctive character difference along this section of the street. Consistent building lines with set backs from the footway/cycleways will provide a high degree of continuous frontage clearly emphasising the hierarchy of the street at the entrance to the neighbourhood from Hailey Road.

Western-central section

On the approach to the western hill-top space the primary street will revert to an avenue form, providing consistency along the route. As the street passes through the space this consistency will break down, with more informal planting arrangements that will help emphasise this nodal point and aid legibility.

Eastern-central section

This section of the street will retain a consistent avenue form, which is maintained through the local centre space. This urban character seeks to emphasise the urban nature of the local centre, which is further reinforced by continuous building frontage, taller building heights, tighter urban grain and increased densities relative to the prevailing urban forms.

Western-central section

The eastern approach from New Yatt Road utilises a landscape verge switching to either side of the carriageway, creating an informal feel, which becomes a more formalised avenue on the approach into the local centre.