Transport plan Minister ‘impressed’ but warns on mass transit system
❝
We want to make sure the support is there: the policy support, the freedoms, the devolution and the funding Transport Minister George Freeman
THE Government minister in charge of future transport planning has vowed to help Bristol meet its zero carbon target but says he is “not going to write a blank cheque”.
Transport Minister George Freeman was in Bristol yesterday to speak with city mayor Marvin Rees and West of England Combined Authority mayor Tim Bowles about their ambitions for transport in the region.
The meeting came ahead of the launch by the minister of a transport decarbonisation plan which will require each mode of transport in the UK – road, rail, shipping and aviation – to have a net zero plan.
Due in a matter of weeks, it will be part of a wider plan for the UK to meet its target of going carbon neutral by 2050.
Bristol has set its own target of 2030, and is one of the areas that the Government will help in a ‘place-based’ approach to decarbonisation, the minister said.
“I want to look at the 10 most polluting railway stations, airports, ports and railway lines,” Mr Freeman said.
Support for places like Bristol will include policy “freedoms” and funding, he said.
“We’ll be looking at all their plans, but I’m not going to write a blank cheque here, obviously, and that’s the reason for coming… to see the city and the region and talk to both mayors.”
Mr Freedom described Bristol as “leading” in transport terms. He said he was impressed with the “ambition” and the “clarity of leadership” from the council and Weca.
But he sounded a warning about the affordability of big transport projects when asked whether the Government would commit to funding a mass transit system for the city.
A mass transit system, incorporating buses, trams and underground rail, is one of the key visions set out in the region’s Joint Local Transport Plan.
Mr Freeman said: “We’re absolutely committed to supporting innovative and strategic urban management solutions that help with decarb [sic] and decongestion.
“I’ve been talking this morning about what the mayors want to do, and we just need to get it right and it needs to be strategic.
“It needs to link the right centres of employment, it needs to tackle the travel-to-work blackspots, and it needs to be affordable and sensible.
“We’ve had a history in the UK of very expensive grand projects that never get off the ground.”
Asked what the Government was prepared to do to tackle Bristol’s transport woes, Mr Freeman said: “We are not going to sit in London and tell Bristol what the best way for people to get around Bristol is.
“But what we do want to do is make sure the support is there: the policy support, the freedoms, the devolution and the funding.”
He said a Government commitment to spend £220 million on buses would not only see the greening of the national fleet but a move towards digital, demand-led services that responded to passenger need rather than ran to timetables.
“We think we’re running too many old, dirty, diesel buses on sometimes inconvenient routes or not convenient enough for most people,” he said.
The Government is also supporting the “electrification revolution” by rolling out electric vehicle charging points, he said.
It has funded more than 200 fastcharge points in Bristol and has committed to introducing superfast charging points to make sure electric vehicle fleets, taxis and buses can charge quickly.
“We’re on the cusp of a profound, quiet revolution in the way people get around,” Mr Freeman said.
“We’re deeply committed to getting this right, but here in Bristol it’s got to be a partnership because unless we’re working together we’re going to be pulling in different directions.”