TfSE update
Transport for the South East Lead Officer RUPERT CLUBB tells PAUL STEPHEN about the sub-national transport body’s bid for devolved powers, as it prepares to implement an ambitious 30-year Transport Strategy
Transport for the South East Lead Officer RUPERT CLUBB discusses the sub-national transport body‘s bid for devolved powers.
To trace the short history of subnational transport bodies (STBs), we must go back four years to the passing of the Cities and Devolution Act 2016.
Paving the way for the introduction of directly elected mayors to combined authorities in England and Wales, it was this piece of legislation that also made provision for the creation of STBs, to provide strategic transport governance and to identify investment priorities at a regional level.
The Act’s provision for STBs was not intended to apply to Scotland or Wales, where transport is already a devolved matter.
Meanwhile, no further provision was required for London, where Transport for London has been exercising its various devolved responsibilities for the past 20 years.
But elsewhere in England, it was recognised that a large gap existed between strategic planning and investment decisions conducted at a national level, and the power of individual local authorities to effectively influence them.
A total of seven STBs have therefore been created in the past few years, grouping together local authorities, Local Enterprise Partnerships (LEPs), businesses and other stakeholders in order to provide a single voice on behalf of the regions they represent.
To date, the most high-profile STB has undoubtedly been Transport for the North. Bringing together 20 local and combined authorities from across the north of England, it became the first STB to transition from shadow form to full statutory status in April 2018.
This move to statutory status required the passing of secondary legislation that enshrines a wide range of devolved powers into law, in areas including franchising and smart ticketing.
It also means that government must formally consider TfN’s recommendations and the STB’s 30-year Transport Strategy, when making future strategic transport investment decisions.
Following closely behind Transport for the North are six other emerging STBs that cover the length and breadth of England. The most mature of these are Midlands Connect ( RAIL 877), England’s Economic Heartland ( RAIL 851) and Transport for the South East, while Transport East, Western Gateway and Peninsula Transport are still in earlier stages of development.
In pole position to become the second STB to achieve statutory status is Transport for the South East ( TfSE), which submitted its proposal to government in July.
Established in 2017, the STB and its transport forum comprise 16 local transport authorities, five LEPs, plus representation from Network Rail, Highways England and a host of other organisations (see panel, page 59), in a region that stretches from Berkshire and Hampshire in the west to the Kent coast in the east.
The TfSE area contains some 7.5 million people and 300,000 businesses that are largely centred on a number of key transport corridors linking London to the coastal towns and cities of Southampton, Portsmouth, Brighton, Dover, Folkestone and Margate (see map, page 60).
The area also encompasses the major international gateways of Gatwick and Heathrow Airports, the ports of Southampton and Dover, plus the Channel Tunnel and HS1.
According to TfSE Lead Officer Rupert Clubb, the powers currently being sought by the STB would enable it to implement a 30-year Transport Strategy for the region.
These powers include the ability to deliver region-wide smart ticketing and to implement road charging schemes and clean air zones. However, they do not include the same sort of powers that were secured by TfN to co-manage the Northern and TransPennine Express franchises.
Clubb explains: “Since our first board meeting in 2017, we’ve stepped our way through the publication of an Economic Connectivity Review and a Transport Strategy. For us it was a crucial starting point to identify the economic opportunities in the South
East, without which it would have been very difficult to develop a Transport Strategy that genuinely facilitates economic growth.
“More latterly, we have submitted both our Transport Strategy and a proposal for powers to make that strategy a reality. Those are both with government, but the emphasis of what we’re about is basically to have a future that is a benefit to people, businesses and the environment.”
Published in July, the Transport Strategy sets out a vision of how this future may look, with commitments to achieving net zero carbon by 2050 and to fully integrate transport, digital and energy networks. Key to achieving this will be skills, innovation, commercial and housing development, plus investment in
The emphasis of what we’re about is basically to have a future that is a benefit to people, businesses and the environment.
Rupert Clubb, Lead Officer, Transport for the South East
transport and other civic infrastructure.
According to the Transport Strategy, the region has a Gross Value Added of £183 billion, which could grow to as much as £450bn and create nearly 500,000 extra jobs by 2050.
That’s provided the right interventions are made to improve connectivity, to make the transport network more resilient, to get people out of their cars, and to better integrate land use and transport planning.
TfSE describes the Transport Strategy as “a waypoint” in a journey that will culminate in 2022 with the publication of a strategic investment plan, to be implemented with national agencies such as Network Rail and
Highways England.
Five area studies have now begun to inform the strategic investment plan, by looking in more detail at exactly what interventions will best support the vision outlined in the Transport Strategy.
A joint team of WSP, Atkins and Steer was appointed in early August to deliver the area studies, while WSP has also been commissioned to carry out a future mobility study and action plan. A partner for a freight, logistics and international gateways study is due to be announced later this year.
“In effect, the Transport Strategy provides the framework that will allow us to build a strategic investment plan which we hope to publish in the next couple of years,” adds Clubb.
“That will set out the things that we believe need to happen in the South East to bring about growth.
“In terms of COVID-19, we absolutely
recognise that there is a strong focus on having a green recovery. We think that the strategic direction we’ve set out until 2050 is very much the right direction.
“We also know that road and rail corridors are very important to us. And although rail is going through some challenges at the moment, the need for a green recovery and to manage our carbon emissions presents a real opportunity if we get the right levels of investment.”
As the region with the highest number of rail journeys outside of London (300 million in 2018), but also with a heavy reliance on private cars (70% of all journeys, compared with 4% for rail and 5% by bus), increased investment to add capacity and to improve reliability on the main routes in and out of London can be expected to feature highly in the strategic investment plan.
TfSE is also likely to call for investment in rolling stock and in enhancing radial lines running from east to west, to speed up journey times and improve the customer experience.
Examples given in the Transport Strategy include extending Crossrail from Abbey Wood to Ebbsfleet, extending domestic high-speed services on High Speed 1 to call at additional stations, and improvements to the East and West Coastways that converge on Brighton.
Clubb describes journeys on the West Coastway Line from Brighton to Southampton as “like a throwback to the 1960s”, owing to Southern’s continued use of elderly Class 313s (actually built in 1976-77).
He also calls it “absolutely crazy” that it takes longer to travel by train from Brighton to Southampton (65 miles) than from London to York (200 miles).
Clubb also points to the Transport Strategy’s compatibility with the Government’s selfproclaimed ‘levelling up’ agenda, despite the region’s relative prosperity compared with the rest of the country.
Statistics reveal that when disaggregated from neighbouring London, transport spending per head of population in the South East is actually significantly lower than the national average in England (see graph, below).
It is also easy to overlook the fact that pockets of deprivation exist in places such as Hastings (ranked in 2019 by the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government as the 13th most deprived of
317 local council areas in England), Thanet (ranked 30th) and the Medway towns.
Clubb adds: “It is a challenge for us that London tends to get included in the South East, when infrastructure spending is a lot higher there than it is here. There are parts of the South East that are definitely prosperous, and we have some really strong businesses that are really productive, but there are also massive pockets of deprivation.
“Hastings, for example, is in the top 10% by most indices, and a number of other coastal communities really struggle. There are challenges around rural deprivation, too, so it’s not always the same picture as that which gets painted.
“Part of our job is that if we’re genuinely going to emerge with a stronger economy, then transport connectivity is vital - in particular how we better connect some of these deprived communities and attract inward investment.”
In terms of TfSE’s decision not to follow exactly the same route chosen by Transport for the North in its bid for statutory status, Clubb
There are parts of the South East that are definitely prosperous, and we have some really strong businesses that are really productive, but there are also massive pockets of deprivation.
Rupert Clubb, Lead Officer, Transport for the South East
says the proposal to government reflects the desires of the partner organisations.
It also reflects the vastly different geography of the TfSE region, where franchises are less self-contained when compared to the north of England and the Northern and TransPennine Express franchises that are co-managed by TfN.
There are also important contextual factors to account for, including the unknown nature of the restructuring to the rail industry that is expected to follow the yet-to-be published Williams Review.
Government is also expected to publish a devolution White Paper later this year which could have an effect on what types of powers are shifted from Whitehall in future.
Clubb explains: “You have seven STBs around England and they all reflect local circumstances. It is tempting [to request TfNtype powers] but we have at least said in our proposal that we want to be consulted about new rail franchises.
“We are still waiting for the Williams Review and to understand what that throws out. But we are signalling our ambition that if Williams is true to his word and wants to bring track and train closer together, then we’ll want to be all over that.
“We’re not here to be difficult or awkward. We’re here to make the quality of life for our residents and businesses the best it possibly can be. We’ve therefore asked for powers that we think can help us implement the Transport Strategy, and to support government and policymakers to put in place the right interventions.”
He adds: “There is a White Paper coming out in the autumn, and I would hope there is some recognition there of the role STBs have to play. We are having consultation with government and we have shared ambitions, so there’s not really a timeline on this. In the meantime, we will crack on.”
Now that its proposal is with government, and work has commenced on developing a strategic investment plan, TfSE has recently moved to strengthen its strategic and workinglevel partnership with Network Rail.
Already a key player in TfSE’s transport forum, NR signed a Memorandum of Understanding to underpin the relationship between the two parties on August 7 ( RAIL
912).
Although not legally binding, the document commits NR and TfSE to the delivery of a shared vision for the region which is conducive to the Transport Strategy. This includes facilitating modal shift, achieving net zero carbon targets, better integrating transport and land use planning, and providing best value to taxpayers.
Both TfSE and NR have pledged to explore options to improve cross-regional services on routes including HS1, Ashford-Reading and Brighton-Southampton, and to support the development of capacity improvements via schemes such as Woking and Croydon Area Remodelling.
The document also commits both parties to working towards the withdrawal of rolling stock recognised as no longer fit for purpose,
The changing environment around COVID-19 and everything else also means that people are starting to think about how we can use transport in different ways. That conversation would be very difficult without TfSE playing a role.
Mike Smith, London and South Strategy and Planning Director, Network Rail
including the much-maligned ‘313s’. Originally, the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was due to have been signed in February, before its formal agreement was delayed by the outbreak of the Coronavirus pandemic.
Clubb says: “The MoU is a natural progression of the close relationship we have established over the past couple of years. It sets out those common goals and objectives that we have on net zero carbon - an improved customer experience, better integration and much more.”
NR London and South Strategy and Planning Director Mike Smith adds: “This MoU is a signal of our intent, but also the action that we’ve already begun to take. It’s been brilliant to have worked side by side with TfSE over the last few weeks, months and years, and the MoU formally establishes the good, strong and open discussions that we’ve been having.”
Having been involved in strategic planning and route enhancements in the South East for more than a decade, Smith says the establishment of TfSE has been hugely beneficial, given its ability to provide a single voice on behalf of its members.
The area covered by TfSE also broadly mirrors the geography of NR’s devolved South East Route business, making the link-up an obvious and mutually beneficial one.
He says: “One of the challenges we’ve always had is the sheer number of organisations involved. It has sometimes been difficult to get a sense of strategic direction when you have so many transport authorities.
“Nobody falls out or sets out in a completely different direction, but when you’re trying to make a case for inward investment you need a level of regional cohesion.
“The Transport Strategy has such a powerful message around innovation and quality, around having the right mix of transport modes, and provides a timely call to ourselves to recognise that we have to use transport for what it’s best at, which is driving economic growth and connecting communities.
“The changing environment around COVID-19 and everything else also means that people are starting to think about how we can use transport in different ways. That conversation would be very difficult without TfSE playing a role.”
Although the Memorandum of Understanding is primarily forward-looking, both Clubb and Smith say that it cements a close working partnership that has already yielded results, including work to improve capacity at Gatwick Airport station and to reduce disruption during the Brighton Main Line Upgrade programme.
With NR fully on board with the aspirations of TfSE and its Transport Strategy, all eyes must now be on the Government and whether it too will provide the necessary backing by granting statutory status.
Clubb concludes: “What we don’t want is for people to visit some plush office in London where the Transport Strategy is lying on the coffee table, but that’s all it ever does.
“We need something from government that says ‘TfSE, we believe in what your strategy says and understand the rationale and the points you make about the statutory powers - now go and turn it into a reality’.”