Candidates find some agreement – but not on the CAZ
CANDIDATES to be the first North East mayor have backed the creation of an integrated transport system for the region.
The candidates were speaking at a hustings event at Newcastle University organised by the North East Transport Users Group.
While there were differing views on how this would look, it was felt that integrating bus travel with rail and Metro services was key to improving the region’s public transport.
The event was the second hustings ahead of the election in May, and the first time all candidates have shared a stage after Reform UK’s Paul Donaghy was forced to miss Monday’s event after suffering car trouble.
The North East devolution deal is due to be formally ratified in Parliament this month, allowing an election to be held on May 2. The new mayor will serve a population of around two million people in Northumberland, County Durham, Gateshead, North Tyneside, South Tyneside and Sunderland.
Labour’s Kim McGuinness told the hustings: “For many people the system holds them back. To fix this in our region the public transport has to work for passengers, not for profit.
“We need to take the buses back under public control – that’s how we get them to go where we need them to go. We need a fully integrated transport system – one payment from Bishop Auckland to Berwick.
“We need a safe, reliable, affordable public transport system. The money in the deal is not enough.”
Serving North of Tyne Mayor Jamie Driscoll said: “We will make public transport so good people will chose to use it. We will make it free for everybody 18 and under – if you have only ever been dropped off at school in cars, that’s how you think adults get around.
“Integration is about moving people rather than vehicles. Every time somewhere has integrated their transport system, there has been a massive increase in usership by up to 40%.”
Conservative candidate Guy Renner Thompson also backed an integrated system – but did not back public ownership. The Northumberland county councillor said: “We need to link up the buses we have got.
“My real passion is the railways, I had all the Thomas the Tank trains when I was little and I haven’t grown out of it. Railways are the main arteries of the rural region.
“We need more trains and buses to interlink. The problem we have is trying to convince the rail companies – we have to get everyone round the table.”
Liberal Democrat candidate Aidan King said bus services needed to be improved. However, he was concerned that his fellow candidates were over-promising given the budget that would be available to the mayor.
He said: “The main thing to do is rebuild our bus service so people can rely on them. They have atrophied to the point people don’t use them.
“Where do we get the money for improving all the different transport infrastructure?
“My plan is to build the largest onshore wind farm in the North East with a development area from Newton Aycliffe to Barnard Castle up to Hexham.”
Reform candidate Paul Donaghy said transport needed to work “for the people”. The Sunderland city councillor also suggested a 50/50 ownership model between the private and public sector.
He said: “We must not reward failure. Some networks haven’t acted in the best interest of the people – that needs to stop.
“Big bus companies aren’t interested in running the services because it is not financially viable. That’s where we can have part-public ownership and build a network around people. I want a transport network that works for the people.”
Andrew Gray, the Green Party candidate, felt that the region needed to reduce its overall dependency on transport by improving neighbourhoods. He expressed support for the idea of “15 minute neighbourhoods”, where daily necessities and services are within walking distance.
Newcastle’s Clean Air Zone was a clear dividing line among the six candidates.
Ms McGuinness said: “We need fewer cars – but they will always have a role to play.
“We need a plan for the whole region for cycling and walking. We need to incentivise bus users and incentivise those in cars to move into greener vehicles.”
On clean air zones, Ms McGuinness said: “Someone in a £70,000 Range Rover won’t have to pay, but a person who can’t afford a new car will. It’s a regressive tax.”
Coun Renner Thompson meanwhile reiterated his opposition to Newcastle’s clean air zone. He has previously said he would scrap the policy, although this would not be in his power as mayor.
He said: “I’m not a fan of the Newcastle clean air zone. The Government said air quality had to be improved but they didn’t say how to do it – that was up to Newcastle City Council.
“There are many people, like me, with pick-up trucks and light goods vehicles that now get charged for driving into the city centre. I’m not a believer in restricting people’s freedoms.”
However, Dr King – a doctor at the Royal Victoria Infirmary in Newcastle – disagreed. He said: “This is a public health matter. Having clean air isn’t to be conflated with the climate crisis – they’re two completely different issues.
“My patients dying early because of dirty air is something I’m not keen on at all. In dense urban areas clean air zones are absolutely essential public health measures to improve the lives of our people.”
Mr Driscoll said the clean air zone was a “very bad way of achieving a very good thing”.
He added: “The solution is better public transport, more active travel, and a far better charging network.”
Coun Donaghy also argued for the public to have the ability to chose. However, he said that public transport should be improved to make it the better choice.
He said: “The low emission zone is a Labour stealth tax on the working class and on businesses. You take cars off the road by providing a working transport network that works for people, not profit.”
Mr Gray disagreed, saying: “One person’s choice is somebody else’s asthma or injury.
“We do need to use sticks as well as carrots. We need to really start to move away from road traffic and reduce transport so people don’t have to travel as much as they do.”