An effective, efficient and sustainable transport network for the North of England is a fundamental part of everyday life – connecting people to jobs, health, education, and leisure opportunities, connecting businesses to each other and employees, and allowing the efficient movement of goods and services.
Our Head of Major Roads, Owen Wilson, was at this year’s Highways UK event in Birmingham, on 18 and 19 October. He set out the challenges and opportunities faced in the region by our transport system, and the role our road network has to play now, and in the future, to enable growth, help us decarbonise and improve opportunities.
One of the biggest issues facing the North of England remains the need to address the decades of underinvestment in our transport system: poor and unreliable connectivity is holding our people and businesses back, constraining growth, and hampering accessibility and social mobility.
Our vision at Transport for the North is that by 2050 the North of England will have become a thriving, socially inclusive region. Our communities, businesses and places will all benefit from sustainable economic growth, improved health and wellbeing, and access to opportunities for all. This can only be achieved through a transformed zero emission, integrated, safe and sustainable transport system, which will enhance connectivity, resilience, and journey times for all users.
We believe that with sustained investment, the right policy levers together and enabling behaviour change, we can ‘level up’ the North with inclusive, sustainable growth.
In August 2023, we finished consulting on the North’s second Strategic Transport Plan (STP) and expect to publish it in 2024.
The Plan represents the North speaking with One Voice on how transport should help shape a positive future for our citizens and businesses, and our environment.
There are no magic bullets but by focusing on plans that are evidence led, user centric, place-based, outcome-focused and take a systems approach, we are stepping in the right direction. This why our Strategic Transport Plan is grounded in these principles.
And it is why our work on decarbonisation and transport-related social exclusion focusses on the needs of the user, as well as enabling economic growth.
As every journey involves a road at some point, our highways need to be reliable, resilient, safe, be conducive to public transport and active travel options and reduce their environmental impact.
Having an effective, efficient and reliable public transport network is central to unlocking potential, enabling more choice in how people and business travel. For example, the need for significant and strategic investment in the bus network has been a theme throughout the consultation on the second STP. We need reliable buses which are frequent, affordable and go to the places people want to go – and when they want to go.
We need to think differently about our highway network, which is used by pedestrians, cyclists, buses, vans and lorries, as well as cars. As we look to the future, we must consider how the space available is used best, and the priority we give to those different users. This will enable us to achieve better outcomes for communities living alongside major roads, biodiversity gains and faster action towards achieving a fair transition to near zero for surface transport.
By focusing on the outcomes we need for people and places, working together across boundaries and securing the investment needed, we can transform the North.