About shelter points

Shelter points protect people walking, wheeling and cycling from adverse weather conditions.

Regular shelter points encourage people to travel by walking, wheeling or cycling. They invite people to dwell, socialise and enjoy their surroundings while providing protection from the weather. Covered spaces and shelters outside of buildings enable people to use outdoor spaces throughout the year. Ideally, there should be no more than 50 metres between shelter points on routes.

The use of colonnades, covered walkways and shelters are one way to help extend the outdoor season. They can be used alongside sustainable drainage systems and street trees, considering solar orientation and microclimates. 

Additional resources

The ATE route check tool considers shelter points and supporting social and activity space

The ATE route check assesses the distance between resting points on active travel routes and advice on shelter points on ST35, SP02, SP03 and SP14.

ATE route check tool

Covered spaces to support activity in Active Design by Sport England

Principle 8 of Active Design considers how space around buildings can be utilised to support activity.

Active Design

Traffic-free paths

Guidance on active travel paths that are free from motorised traffic

Residential

Guidance on active travel features on streets that mainly serve residential properties

Low volume streets

Guidance on active travel features on streets with lower volumes of motorised traffic

High volume streets

Guidance on active travel features on streets with high volumes of motorised traffic

Site-wide considerations

Guidance on how to plan and design active places at a site-wide level