---
title: South Hampshire Local Economic Impact Model (LEIM)
url: "https://www.systra.com/uk/project/south-hampshire-local-economic-impact-model-leim/"
type: projects
date_published: 2023-06-20
date_modified: 2026-05-07
schema:
  @type: WebPage
language: en-GB
word_count: 756
reading_time: 4 min
canonical: "https://www.systra.com/uk/project/south-hampshire-local-economic-impact-model-leim/"
featured_image: "https://www.systra.com/uk/wp-content/uploads/sites/11/2023/06/southampton-docks-solent-scaled.jpg"
type-market:
  - "Cities &amp; Urban Mobility"
  - Sustainable Transport
project-market:
  - "Cities &amp; Urban Mobility"
  - Transport
project-location:
  - England
  - South East
type-service:
  - "Business Case, Funding &amp; Strategy"
  - Data Modelling
---

# South Hampshire Local Economic Impact Model (LEIM)

![South Hampshire Local Economic Impact Model (LEIM)](https://www.systra.com/uk/wp-content/uploads/sites/11/2023/06/southampton-docks-solent-scaled.jpg)

### A NEED FOR ECONOMIC EVIDENCE

Solent Transport needed an evidence-based land-use transport interaction (LUTI)
model to understand and forecast travel demand and behaviour of key travel modes
in South Hampshire including road traffic, bus, rail, ferries and active modes.

The model was required to test land-use and transport policies and strategies
and tests individual scheme interventions to provide transport economic evidence
for Business Case development.

![South Hampshire Local Economic Impact Model (LEIM)](https://www.systra.com/uk/wp-content/uploads/sites/11/2023/06/srtm_model.png)

_South Hampshire Local Economic Impact Model (LEIM) Main Demand Model_

### cREATING A Sub Regional Transport Model

SYSTRA was commissioned to support the development and application of Solent
Transport’s Sub Regional Transport Model (SRTM). The TAG compliant, Land Use
Transport Interaction (LUTI) model represents the travel demand and behaviour of
key travel modes in South Hampshire (road traffic, bus, rail, ferries and active
modes).

The model also contains processes to examine travel demand at the region’s key
international gateways – the primary seaports at Southampton and Portsmouth, and
Southampton Airport. The model was updated by SYSTRA in 2016-17 and 2021-22 to
refresh the underlying traffic survey and land use data.

The model consists of five main elements including the Local Economic Impact
Model:

- Road Traffic Model built in SATURN
- Public Transport Model built in CUBE Voyager
- Local Economic Impact Model (LEIM) built using the DELTA land-use modelling
  package
- Gateway Demand Model to represent port and airport demand built using CUBE
- Main Demand Model built in SYSTRA’s demand model software using C# and SQL
  databases

For each zone of the modelled area, the Local Economic Impact Model (LEIM)
forecasts:

- detailed demographic characteristics including the number of households and
  population by person type;
- detailed economic characteristics including the number of jobs, by sector and
  socio-economic level;
- the amount of residential and commercial floor space as well as vacancy rates
  and prices;
- the uptake of planning permissions by use class

The model forecasts each year of the forecast period (2020 with 2041), and both
local and model wide results are influenced by a range of factors, including,
importantly, the performance of the transport network and the impact that has on
accessibilities. The changes in the supply of housing and employment floorspace
are controlled in line with local planning policies when and where appropriate
as well as being varied to test individual development schemes.

![South Hampshire Local Economic Impact Model (LEIM)](https://www.systra.com/uk/wp-content/uploads/sites/11/2023/06/srtm_plans.png)

_South Hampshire Local Economic Impact Model (LEIM) SRTM Plans_

The model’s overall demographic and economic growth can be allowed to vary, to
test the impact of transport and planning policies, or fixed to test the
consequences of higher or lower growth and understand within model displacement.
The outputs of the LEIM are used by the transport models to predict the demand
for travel to and from areas within South Hampshire and they can be compared to
assess the land-use/economic impacts of different planning and transport
policies.

### Predicting Travel Demands

The Local Economic Impact Model (LEIM) forms part of Solent Transport’s
Sub-Regional Transport Model, an evidence-based land-use and transport
interaction model which provides a strong analytical basis for the development
of coherent, objective-led implementation plans to bring the change in provision
required to deliver prosperity to the area.

The model has been used for projects including Portsmouth and Southampton
Transforming Cities Fund bids and Waterside Rail Restoring Your Railway fund
business case.

Some examples of projects in Cities & Urban Mobility, Transport

[  Transport for the North: Spatial Data Visualisation Platform  ](https://www.systra.com/uk/project/transport-for-the-north-data-visualisation-platform/)
[  IAMP: Building an advanced manufacturing park for Sunderland and South Tyneside ](https://www.systra.com/uk/project/iamp-building-an-advanced-manufacturing-park-for-sunderland-and-south-tyneside/)
[  Derby – Nottingham Future Transport Mobility Zone ](https://www.systra.com/uk/project/derby-nottingham-future-transport-mobility-zone/)
[  Transport Decarbonisation Strategy for Dalton Industrial Estate ](https://www.systra.com/uk/project/transport-decarbonisation-strategy-for-dalton-industrial-estate/)
[  Transport North East: Bus Fare Scheme Attracts More Passengers ](https://www.systra.com/uk/project/transport-north-east-bus-fare-subsidy-scheme-attracts-more-passengers/)
[  Evaluation of the TfGM: Cycle and Stride for Active Lives Programme ](https://www.systra.com/uk/project/evaluation-of-the-tfgm-cycle-and-stride-for-active-lives-programme/)

[ See a selection of SYSTRA's projects ](https://www.systra.com/uk/project/evaluation-of-the-tfgm-cycle-and-stride-for-active-lives-programme/)