Colin Buchanan (town planner)
Encyclopedia
Professor Sir Colin D Buchanan (22 August 1907 – 6 December 2001) was a British
town planner. He became Britain's most famous planner following the publication ofTraffic in Towns
in 1963, which presented a comprehensive view of the issues surrounding the growth of personal car ownership and urban traffic in the UK.
, India, a descendant of a long line of Scottish civil engineers. He was educated at Berkhamsted School in Hertfordshire, before studying engineering at Imperial College, London. His first work was on bridges and roads for the Public Works Department in Sudan
. Returning to the UK he then worked on regional planning studies, joined the Town Planning Institute
, and in 1935 joined the Ministry of Transport where he worked on trunk road schemes and road safety.
After serving in the Royal Engineers
during World War II
and attaining the rank of Lieutenant-Colonel, he left to join the new Ministry of Town and Country Planning, overseeing planning enquiries into slum clearance and reconciling traffic, planning, and environmental policies.
In 1960 the Minister of Transport, Ernest Marples
, appointed Buchanan to head a working group in the Ministry of Transport. In 1963 the group produced the influential Buchanan Report, which proposed how British towns could be redesigned to accommodate growing motor car use. Car numbers in the UK were expected to quadruple over the coming decades. In 1964 Penguin Books
published Traffic in Towns
, which was a concise version of the 1963 Buchanan Report. Buchanan's policy recommendations were widely accepted and became a blueprint for urban redevelopment until the end of the century.
He retired from the Ministry in 1963, and held the new Chair of Transport at Imperial College London
, and formed a successful consultancy, Colin Buchanan and Partners, that developed into a limited company employing around 300 staff and was subsequently chaired by his son, Malcolm Buchanan. From 2011 it became SKM Colin Buchanan Between 1973 and 1975 Colin Buchanan was head of the newly established School of Advanced Urban Studies at Bristol University.
In the 1960s he was a member of the Roskill Commission that reviewed economists' proposals for a third London airport. He totally rejected the 146-page economic analysis proposing Cublington
, a site near Aylesbury
and Oxford
, because of the policy need to protect the open countryside around London: "It is simply unthinkable that an airport and all it implies should be brought here", and recommended Maplin Sands
to the east of London. (The third airport was later built at Stansted
.)
Between 1980 and 1985 Buchanan was the President of the Council for the Protection of Rural England. He was also President of the Royal Town Planning Institute
, which honoured him with a Gold Medal. Buchanan was appointed a CBE in 1964 and knighted in 1972.
Buchanan died at his home in Oxford on 6 December 2001 of bronchopneumonia
.
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
town planner. He became Britain's most famous planner following the publication ofTraffic in Towns
Traffic in Towns
Traffic in Towns was an influential report and popular book on urban and transport planning policy produced in 1963 for the UK Ministry of Transport by a team headed by the architect, civil engineer and planner Professor Sir Colin Buchanan....
in 1963, which presented a comprehensive view of the issues surrounding the growth of personal car ownership and urban traffic in the UK.
Life
Buchanan was born in 1907 in SimlaSimla
-Politics/History:Simla , the summer capital of British India, often refers generically to the government of the British Raj.-Places:* Shimla , city in the Indian state of Himachal Pradesh...
, India, a descendant of a long line of Scottish civil engineers. He was educated at Berkhamsted School in Hertfordshire, before studying engineering at Imperial College, London. His first work was on bridges and roads for the Public Works Department in Sudan
Sudan
Sudan , officially the Republic of the Sudan , is a country in North Africa, sometimes considered part of the Middle East politically. It is bordered by Egypt to the north, the Red Sea to the northeast, Eritrea and Ethiopia to the east, South Sudan to the south, the Central African Republic to the...
. Returning to the UK he then worked on regional planning studies, joined the Town Planning Institute
Royal Town Planning Institute
The Royal Town Planning Institute is a body representing planning professionals in the United Kingdom and Republic of Ireland. It was founded in 1914.-Members:...
, and in 1935 joined the Ministry of Transport where he worked on trunk road schemes and road safety.
After serving in the Royal Engineers
Royal Engineers
The Corps of Royal Engineers, usually just called the Royal Engineers , and commonly known as the Sappers, is one of the corps of the British Army....
during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
and attaining the rank of Lieutenant-Colonel, he left to join the new Ministry of Town and Country Planning, overseeing planning enquiries into slum clearance and reconciling traffic, planning, and environmental policies.
In 1960 the Minister of Transport, Ernest Marples
Ernest Marples
Alfred Ernest Marples, Baron Marples PC was a British Conservative politician who served as Postmaster General and Minister of Transport. After his retirement from active politics in 1974 Marples was elevated to the peerage...
, appointed Buchanan to head a working group in the Ministry of Transport. In 1963 the group produced the influential Buchanan Report, which proposed how British towns could be redesigned to accommodate growing motor car use. Car numbers in the UK were expected to quadruple over the coming decades. In 1964 Penguin Books
Penguin Books
Penguin Books is a publisher founded in 1935 by Sir Allen Lane and V.K. Krishna Menon. Penguin revolutionised publishing in the 1930s through its high quality, inexpensive paperbacks, sold through Woolworths and other high street stores for sixpence. Penguin's success demonstrated that large...
published Traffic in Towns
Traffic in Towns
Traffic in Towns was an influential report and popular book on urban and transport planning policy produced in 1963 for the UK Ministry of Transport by a team headed by the architect, civil engineer and planner Professor Sir Colin Buchanan....
, which was a concise version of the 1963 Buchanan Report. Buchanan's policy recommendations were widely accepted and became a blueprint for urban redevelopment until the end of the century.
He retired from the Ministry in 1963, and held the new Chair of Transport at Imperial College London
Imperial College London
Imperial College London is a public research university located in London, United Kingdom, specialising in science, engineering, business and medicine...
, and formed a successful consultancy, Colin Buchanan and Partners, that developed into a limited company employing around 300 staff and was subsequently chaired by his son, Malcolm Buchanan. From 2011 it became SKM Colin Buchanan Between 1973 and 1975 Colin Buchanan was head of the newly established School of Advanced Urban Studies at Bristol University.
In the 1960s he was a member of the Roskill Commission that reviewed economists' proposals for a third London airport. He totally rejected the 146-page economic analysis proposing Cublington
Cublington
Cublington is a village and one of 110 civil parishes within Aylesbury Vale district in Buckinghamshire, England. It is about seven miles north of Aylesbury. The village name is Anglo Saxon in origin, and means 'Cubbel's estate'. In the Domesday Book of 1086 it was recorded as Coblincote.The...
, a site near Aylesbury
Aylesbury
Aylesbury is the county town of Buckinghamshire in South East England. However the town also falls into a geographical region known as the South Midlands an area that ecompasses the north of the South East, and the southern extremities of the East Midlands...
and Oxford
Oxford
The city of Oxford is the county town of Oxfordshire, England. The city, made prominent by its medieval university, has a population of just under 165,000, with 153,900 living within the district boundary. It lies about 50 miles north-west of London. The rivers Cherwell and Thames run through...
, because of the policy need to protect the open countryside around London: "It is simply unthinkable that an airport and all it implies should be brought here", and recommended Maplin Sands
Maplin Sands
The Maplin Sands are mudflats on the northern bank of the Thames estuary, off Foulness Island, near Southend-on-Sea in Essex, England, though they actually lie within the neighbouring borough of Rochford...
to the east of London. (The third airport was later built at Stansted
Stansted
Stansted usually refers to London Stansted Airport.Stansted may also refer to other places in England:*Stansted Mountfitchet, Essex*Stansted, Hampshire*Stansted, Kent*Stansted Park, West Sussex...
.)
Between 1980 and 1985 Buchanan was the President of the Council for the Protection of Rural England. He was also President of the Royal Town Planning Institute
Royal Town Planning Institute
The Royal Town Planning Institute is a body representing planning professionals in the United Kingdom and Republic of Ireland. It was founded in 1914.-Members:...
, which honoured him with a Gold Medal. Buchanan was appointed a CBE in 1964 and knighted in 1972.
Buchanan died at his home in Oxford on 6 December 2001 of bronchopneumonia
Bronchopneumonia
Bronchopneumonia or bronchial pneumonia or "Bronchogenic pneumonia" is the acute inflammation of the walls of the bronchioles...
.
External links
- SKM Colin Buchanan — formerly Colin Buchanan and Partners, now part of Smith Knight Merz