The Future of Sustainable Transport

“We are making record investment in transport, which will see the key roads upgraded, and the North’s railways improved with new trains and electrification”. – George Osborne, May 2015

The drive to cut carbon emissions from our transport system has never been greater. The UK still needs to meet its legally binding carbon reduction targets under the Climate Change Act 2008 and poor air quality in our urban areas risks becoming a serious public health issue. For these reasons, there is a need to have a transport infrastructure in place that will be cleaner and more energy efficient.

These international commitments have been taken seriously in the UK, with a 2013 Department for Transport report titled, Transport: an engine for growth concluding “Transport is an engine for growth and essential for everything we do, high-performing networks are essential for the UK to compete in the global race”. The report went on to outline how improving transport infrastructure could be achieved to deliver new transport in our towns and cities, which is a more sustainable model to the one we already have.

The new government aims to turn the report’s recommendations into a reality by implementing the Buses Bill, the High Speed Rail Bill, and empowering regional and local actors to move towards a more sustainable future through the Cities and Devolution Bill.

The High Speed Rail Bill will give ministers the powers to construct and operate phase 1 of the controversial HS2 railway between London and Birmingham. Criticisms do arise; HS2 is estimated to cost £80 billion pounds- a huge cost- although even in the face of opposition the government hopes HS2 will make the UK a world leader in rail travel. 

There has been £1 billion planned for the expansion of terminal 2 at Manchester Airport, this will aide in technological advances, also creating jobs and investment to Manchester. With a billion pounds of investment, the airport could potentially become a global asset for the North of England and could see passengers rise from 22 million per year to 50 million making it a strong competitor to Heathrow. Already bringing £1.8 billion to the regional economy; this ambitious plan can only increase this figure.    

The Buses Bill will give powers to an elected mayor and will support the bus industry by encouraging more passengers to use its services. This will enable cities to have an integrated bus transport system and support the growth and development of the communities that they serve.

The Cities and Local Government Devolution Bill will give new powers to a newly created Metro Mayor in Greater Manchester and other devolved powers to Birmingham are in preliminary stages, granting new powers and £1 billion for transport and control over buses with the new Buses Bill to be implemented. This legislation is also designed to help realise the Government's Northern Powerhouse plan of creating a super-connected region supported by strong metropolitan areas that could help close the north-south divide.

International pledges have led the UK to introduce a raft of new transport legislation that is now soon to be implemented. The Future of Sustainable Transport Conference 2015 will bring together UK experts to discuss and explore this new legislation and the implications of it for the UK’s commitments to cutting emissions and providing a more sustainable transport system for future generations, while also examining the consequences of this legislation on the distribution of power and inequalities across the UK.