Who is Agent Plan-it?

Agent Plan-it is a town planning superhero!

She knows all there is to know about town planning and is helping us learn all about how to plan a town!

Watch this video all about things to think about when deciding what transport to use in your new town…

After that you should have a better idea about different types of transport a town can use and why some can be better then others in some situations.

Why do town planners need to think about different types of transport?

Transport is really important to any town or city.

You need to make sure everyone their can get to where they need to go.

For example, are there roads for people to drive on so they can get to work? Can you easy and safely walk to your local park? If you want to cycle to town are there any cycle paths?

It’s important to make sure everyone can get to where they need to go otherwise the town wont work!

Why don’t town planners just put every type of transport everywhere?

Well there’s a balancing act planners have to consider, if you put everything everywhere then it would become crowded and unsafe.

For example, if the route to the park had a walking path, a cycle lane, a road, a train track and a tram then it would be very crowded and probably wouldn’t be a very nice walk to the park.

Planners must balance what the people living there want, what is necessary and what’s best for the environment.

How do you consider what’s best for the envirnment?

Well you have to think about how much pollution might be caused and reduce it.

For example London is very busy so if everyone who lived there had a car the streets would be jammed all the time and a lit of cars means a lot of pollutions.

London reduces the amount of cars by having lots of public transport options like the underground (which is a train underneath London), buses and cycle routes.

How do you know when to use which type of transport?

You can usually work this out by thinking about what people need and what each type of transport is good for.

For example trains are good at going long distances fast so they are great to travel from one town to another, whereas footpaths are good for short distances letting people walk to the local shops or school.