Southampton City Council · Unitary authority
Transport Statements and Assessments in Southampton
What transport evidence a Southampton planning application needs, the parking standards that apply, and the policies an assessment should address.
Which document do you need?
National policy asks for a Transport Statement or a Transport Assessment wherever a development will generate significant amounts of movement.
Transport Statement
A shorter document for smaller schemes where transport issues are limited: access, parking, trips and sustainable travel.
Transport Assessment
A full assessment for larger schemes: trip generation, network impact, junction capacity and mitigation.
Parking standards
The standards Southampton City Council applies, taken from the source document below and checked against it row by row.
| Use | Area and size | Car parking | Maximum car parking |
|---|---|---|---|
| C2 Residential Schools | Level to be determined via transport assessment | – | |
| Nursing Homes | High accessibility | – | 1 per 10 beds |
| Nursing Homes | Standard accessibility | – | 1 per 4 beds |
| B1 Business-light industrial use | High accessibility | – | 1 per 300m2 |
| B1 Business-light industrial use | Standard accessibility | – | 1 per 45m2 |
| B1 Business-offices | High accessibility | – | 1 per 200m2 |
| B1 Business-offices | Standard accessibility | – | 1 per 30m2 |
| A1 Shops- Covered Retail area | High accessibility | – | 1 per 66m2 |
| A1 Shops- Covered Retail area | Standard accessibility | – | 1 per 20m2 |
| A1 Shops- Uncovered retail area | High accessibility | – | 1 per 100m2 |
| A1 Shops- Uncovered retail area | Standard accessibility | – | 1 per 30m2 |
| Car workshops-customer parking | High accessibility | – | 3 per service bay |
| Car workshops-customer parking | Standard accessibility | – | 3 per service bay |
| Car workshops-staff parking | High accessibility | – | 1 space per 130m2 |
| Car workshops-staff parking | Standard accessibility | – | 1 space per 45m2 |
| Food Retail over 2500M2 GFA | High accessibility | – | 1 per 25m2 |
| Food Retail over 2500M2 GFA | Standard accessibility | – | 1 per 14m2 |
| 2 beds | High accessibility | 1 space | – |
| 2 beds | Standard accessibility | – | 2 spaces |
| 3 beds | High accessibility | 2 spaces | – |
| 3 beds | Standard accessibility | – | 2 spaces |
| 4+ beds | High accessibility | 2 spaces | – |
| 4+ beds | Standard accessibility | – | 3 spaces |
| A2 Financial/ professional services (eg banks) | High accessibility | – | 1 per 130m2 |
| A2 Financial/ professional services (eg banks) | Standard accessibility | – | 1 per 20m2 |
| A3 Cafés / restaurants- covered area | High accessibility | – | 1 per 200m2 |
| A3 Cafés / restaurants- covered area | Standard accessibility | – | 1 per 20m2 |
| A3 Cafés / restaurants- uncovered area | High accessibility | – | 1 per 300m2 |
| A3 Cafés / restaurants- uncovered area | Standard accessibility | – | 1 per 30m2 |
| A4 Public Houses- covered area | High accessibility | – | 1 per 200m2 |
| A4 Public Houses- covered area | Standard accessibility | – | 1 per 20m2 |
| A4 Public Houses- uncovered area | High accessibility | – | 1 per 300m2 |
| A4 Public Houses- uncovered area | Standard accessibility | – | 1 per 30m2 |
| A5 Takeaways- covered area | High accessibility | – | 1 per 200m2 |
| A5 Takeaways- covered area | Standard accessibility | – | 1 per 20m2 |
| A5 Takeaways-uncovered area | High accessibility | – | 1 per 300m2 |
| A5 Takeaways-uncovered area | Standard accessibility | – | 1 per 30m2 |
| All other uses | Level to be determined via transport assessment | – | |
| B2 General Industry | High accessibility | – | 1 per 300m2 |
| B2 General Industry | Standard accessibility | – | 1 per 45m2 |
| B8 Storage & Distribution/ Warehouses | High accessibility | – | 1 per 600m2 |
| B8 Storage & Distribution/ Warehouses | Standard accessibility | – | 1 per 90m2 |
| B8 Wholesale Cash & Carry | High accessibility | – | 1 per 30m2 |
| B8 Wholesale Cash & Carry | Standard accessibility | – | 1 per 30m2 |
| Bedsit/ 1 bed | High accessibility | 1 space | – |
| Bedsit/ 1 bed | Standard accessibility | – | 1 space |
| Bowling Alleys | High accessibility | – | 1 per lane |
| Bowling Alleys | Standard accessibility | – | 3 per lane |
| C1 Hotels, Boarding & Guesthouse | High accessibility | – | 1 per 3 bedrooms |
| C1 Hotels, Boarding & Guesthouse | Standard accessibility | – | 1 per bedroom |
| Car sales- Customer Parking | High accessibility | – | 1 per 10 cars |
| Car sales- Customer Parking | Standard accessibility | – | 1 per 10 cars |
| Car Sales- Staff Parking | High accessibility | – | 1 per 6 full time staff |
| Car Sales- Staff Parking | Standard accessibility | – | 1 per 2 full time staff |
| Convenience stores up to 500M2 GFA | High accessibility | – | 1 per 50m2 |
| Convenience stores up to 500M2 GFA | Standard accessibility | – | 1 per 30m2 |
| Convenience supermarkets up to 2500M2 GFA | High accessibility | – | 1 per 30m2 |
| Convenience supermarkets up to 2500M2 GFA | Standard accessibility | – | 1 per 18m2 |
| D1 Health Centres/ Doctors Surgeries/ Vetinary Surgeries etc | High accessibility | – | 1.5 per consulting room |
| D1 Health Centres/ Doctors Surgeries/ Vetinary Surgeries etc | Standard accessibility | – | 3 per consulting room |
| Use | Long-stay cycle parking | Short-stay cycle parking |
|---|---|---|
| Convalescent/Nursing Homes (C2) | 1 space per 10 employees (minimum 1 space provided) | – |
| Residential care and other care establishment (C2) | 1 space per 10 employees (minimum 1 space provided) | – |
| Sheltered Homes (C3) | 1 space per 10 employees (minimum 1 space provided) | – |
| A1 Shops- Covered Retail area | Greater of 1 space per 10 employees (part and fulltime) or 1 space per 200 m2 GFA | 1 space per 100 m2 GFA |
| Shops (A1) | Greater of 1 space per 10 employees (part and fulltime) or 1 space per 200 m2 GFA | 1 space per 100 m2 GFA |
| A2 Financial/ professional services (eg banks) | Greater of 1 space per 10 employees (part and fulltime) or 1 space per 200 m2 GFA | 1 space per 100 m2 GFA |
| A3 Cafés / restaurants- covered area | Greater of 1 space per 10 employees (part and fulltime) or 1 space per 200 m2 GFA | 1 space per 100 m2 GFA |
| A3 Cafés / restaurants- uncovered area | Greater of 1 space per 10 employees (part and fulltime) or 1 space per 200 m2 GFA | 1 space per 100 m2 GFA |
| A4 Public Houses- covered area | Greater of 1 space per 10 employees (part and fulltime) or 1 space per 200 m2 GFA | 1 space per 100 m2 GFA |
| A4 Public Houses- uncovered area | Greater of 1 space per 10 employees (part and fulltime) or 1 space per 200 m2 GFA | 1 space per 100 m2 GFA |
| A5 Takeaways- covered area | Greater of 1 space per 10 employees (part and fulltime) or 1 space per 200 m2 GFA | 1 space per 100 m2 GFA |
| A5 Takeaways-uncovered area | Greater of 1 space per 10 employees (part and fulltime) or 1 space per 200 m2 GFA | 1 space per 100 m2 GFA |
| Day nurseries/Playgroups/Infant Schools | 1 space per 10 employees (minimum 1 space provided) | – |
| Financial & Professional Services (A2) | Greater of 1 space per 10 employees (part and fulltime) or 1 space per 200 m2 GFA | 1 space per 100 m2 GFA |
| Flats | 1 secure space per unit | 1 space per 10 units |
| Food & Drink (A3, A4, A5) | Greater of 1 space per 10 employees (part and fulltime) or 1 space per 200 m2 GFA | 1 space per 100 m2 GFA |
| Further Education Colleges, Universities | 1 space per 4 students and 1 space per 10 employees under cover, secure, and located where overlooked. | – |
| General Industry (B2) | Greater of 1 space per 10 employees (part and fulltime) or 1 space per 250 m2 GFA | 1 space per 500 m2 GFA |
| Hospitals (C2) | 1 space per 10 employees, under cover, secure, and located where overlooked | 1 space per 10 beds |
| Hotels, Boarding & Guest Houses (C1) | 1 space per 10 employees | 1 space per 10 beds |
| Houses | 1 secure space per unit | – |
| Primary Schools | 1 space per 15 students and 1 space per 10 employees under cover, secure, and located where overlooked | – |
| Secondary Schools | 1 space per 4 students and 1 space per 10 employees under cover, secure, and located where overlooked. | – |
| Storage & Distribution (B8) | 1 space per 500 m2 GFA | 1 space per 1000 m2 GFA |
Source: Parking Standards Supplementary Planning DocumentAdopted 3 October 2011Figures checked against the published document on 5 November 2026Selected tables: the source document has the full standards
Policies your assessment should address
The transport policies of the development plan documents in the summary panel. A neighbourhood plan, or a plan for one part of Southampton, may also apply to your site.
Core Strategy (amended 2015)
- CS 18Transport: Reduce – Manage – Invest
- CS 19Car & Cycle Parking
- CS 25The Delivery of Infrastructure and Developer Contributions
This page summarises adopted policy and links to the source documents. It is not legal advice: always confirm a figure against the adopted document before relying on it.