Transport Ten Year Plan 2000: explanatory note

Introduction

1.This paper explains the work being led by the Integrated Transport Taskforce to develop a 10-year plan for transport as announced in the Deputy Prime Minister's speech to the Institute of Public Policy Research (IPPR) on 13 December 1999.

2.In his speech, the Deputy Prime Minister announced that he had asked Lord Macdonald, Minister for Transport, to produce a 10-year plan setting out a long term investment programme for transport to 2010. He set out the Government's broad vision for transport over the next 10 years and outlined his ambition to transform Britain's transport system to make it the rival of any in Europe. The Government's approach will be firmly based on a partnership between the public and private sectors to lever in more money to improving transport, and to deliver a better quality of life for everyone.

Scope of 10 Year Plan

3.The plan will cover the DETR responsibilities for roads and local transport in England and railways in Great Britain. It will focus mainly on what investment is needed to improve land transport for both passengers and freight, including surface access to ports and airports.

4.Aviation and airport capacity will be covered in a separate Air Transport White Paper. Similarly "British Shipping Charting a new course" (DETR, December 1998) set out our position on shipping. The future of the Ports industry in a sustainable transport system will be the subject of a forthcoming "daughter" document to the Integrated Transport White Paper. The 10-year plan will take account of likely future trends in the use of ports and airports when considering surface access issues.

The Strategic Policy and Statutory Framework

5.The White Paper "A New Deal for Transport: Better for Everyone" (DETR, July 1998), sets out the Government's strategic policy framework for transport. This, together with the related "daughter" documents and revisions to planning policy guidance, sets out the policies in more detail. We are grateful to the many organisations and individuals who have contributed to the development of these policies and for the comments received.

6.The Transport Bill, currently before Parliament, sets out the Government's proposals for the necessary statutory powers to promote the use of railways, improve bus services and reduce road congestion and pollution.

7.The aim of the 10-year transport plan is to set out, for the first time, a long term view on the level of investment needed to help achieve the Government's vision for transport, to complement the statutory changes and to deliver the objective set out in the White Paper.

The 10-year plan

8.The plan is intended to provide a more stable climate for investment in transport for both public and private sectors. There is a clear need to take a long-term view, given the typical investment horizons needed to plan for and deliver transport improvements. The plan will take account of both the public and private sector investment likely to be needed to deliver the Government's key policy objectives.

9.The plan will cover the ten year period up to 2010. It will draw on the outcome of the current review of the Government's public expenditure plans, which covers the period 2001/2 2003/4. But it will need to go beyond this to give a vision of the outputs on the transport system by 2010, of the role of private finance, and of the part that might be played by congestion charging.

10.In setting out forward public spending plans, we recognise that decisions on what projects should be taken forward will fall to a range of bodies. For example, to local authorities in their local transport plans, to the London Mayor, to Railtrack and to the bus and rail operators. These decisions will be informed, in many cases, by the outcome of the multi-modal corridor studies and Regional Planning Guidance. The 10-year transport plan will therefore aim to set out a programme to deliver broad outcomes over 10 years, rather than a blue print listing projects. It will set out indicative plans for expenditure on transport outputs and outcomes and the ways in which we expect private finance will be levered in, and indicate the types of project that can be delivered within the overall provision.

Targets

11.In order to set a strategic vision for 2010, the plan will need to establish clear objectives, drawing on the White Paper framework, and a set of targets for achieving these objectives. These will help to illustrate how transport will contribute to a better quality of life and what difference people will see in their use of transport by 2010.

12.In developing targets, we will be taking account of the need for transport to continue to contribute to the achievement of environmental objectives and in particular towards meeting the Government's targets for improving air quality and for reducing emissions of greenhouse gases. A new air quality strategy for England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland was published in January 2000. A draft UK climate change programme will be published for consultation shortly. The Government's new road safety strategy, also to be published shortly, will set road safety targets for 2010.

13.The plan will build on and develop the existing range of transport targets, and where relevant, targets will be set for the period up to 2010. We are looking, for example, at whether an appropriate target for railways would be to extend the existing Public Service Agreement (PSA) target for growth in passenger journeys. We will consider whether a similar passenger growth target would be appropriate for other modes of public transport, including bus and light rail, to reflect the Government's objectives for improving choice as well as increasing the use of public transport. In addition, we will want to consider whether further targets for improving the quality of service provided by public transport would be appropriate. This will have to take into account the bus industry's commitments to reduce the average age of buses and to improve the reliability of bus services and the rail industry's commitment to progressive improvement in the performance of rail services. We will be reviewing all transport related PSA targets agreed at the time of the last Comprehensive Spending Review with a view either to confirming that they remain relevant, or to update them and/or replace them with more appropriate targets where necessary.

14.Our recent report "Tackling Congestion and Pollution" shows at a broad level how our policies can tackle congestion and pollution in England. It shows the progress we can expect to make over the next 10 years under a number of illustrative scenarios for implementation of the measures in the Integrated Transport White Paper, involving assumptions about levels of investment in our transport systems. The report showed that with widespread support from local authorities, businesses and the general public for these measures, we can reduce congestion. We can also expect to see a reduction of more than half in the effect of traffic pollution on air quality, mainly through cleaner fuels and vehicles.

15.In the light of that report (on which we have invited comments) we will be taking forward work on the development of congestion benchmark profiles and targets for different areas or road types which reflect differences in local circumstances. This will need to take account of the local transport plans which authorities are due to submit in July. It will require a further dialogue with the authorities, business and other organisations later in the year on the appropriateness of such benchmarks, the role of similar benchmarks for traffic and on the measures that would be necessary to achieve them.

Technology

16.Another key theme in the plan will be the potential role of technology in delivering a better transport system. We recognise the rapid pace of technological change and the key role that the private sector has in developing such change, not least in the electronic delivery of services. The plan should identify how best Government, as purchaser or regulator, can help to ensure that we continue to reap the benefits of technology, or acting more broadly, as a means of securing improvements in transport systems and services that will be of benefit to all in society.

European Benchmarking

17.We will aim to develop a way of benchmarking progress towards our aims, not only through the use of targets, but also by comparing our performance with other countries in Europe and elsewhere. We have asked the Commission for Integrated Transport to advise the taskforce on this.

Public and Private Partnership

18.A key theme of the plan will be how to get the best from the public and private sectors working in partnership, whether through Private Finance Initiatives, formal public-private partnerships or through other means. We recognise that the private sector is responsible for many of our transport services. We shall be looking at ways of providing greater incentives for investment that is complementary to public spending, whether by central or local Government.

Timing

19.We aim to publish the 10-year transport plan in the summer, around the same time as the outcome of the 2000 Spending Review, which will provide public sector expenditure plans up to 2003/4 and related Public Service Agreements.

20.There will be provision in the 10-year plan for monitoring of progress and for regular reviews to ensure that it continues to be relevant to evolving circumstances.

21.This document and others on the bibliography will be available on www.dft.gov.uk/itwp/index.htm from 13 March.

Bibliography

1."Transport: a ten year plan" speech by the Deputy Prime Minister at the Institute for Public Policy Research, 13 December 1999. Available from IPPR.

2."A New Deal for Transport: Better for Everyone" The Government's White Paper on the future of Transport (July 1998). Cm 3950. The Stationery Office

3."A New Deal for Trunk Roads" Trunk roads policy: outcomes of the reviews for England and Wales. (Published, August 1998.) £16.00

4."A New Deal for Railways" Railways Policy: a response to the third report of the Environment, Transport and Regional Affairs Committee on the proposed Strategic Rail Authority and railway regulation. (Published, July 1998) £5.90

5."From workhorse to thoroughbred - a better role for bus travel." (Published, April 1999) Free

6."Breaking the logjam" Charging policy - a consultation paper on implementing road user charging and workplace parking charges. (Published December 1998, consultation now finished.) Free

7."Charting a new course" Shipping policy a response to the recommendations of the Working Group on Shipping. (Published, December 1998) £10.00

8."Sustainable distribution: a strategy" Freight Policy (Published, March 1999) £16.00

9."Guidance on Local Transport Plans" (Published April 1999) Free

10. PPG13 Revision of Planning Policy Guidance Note (PPG) 13 Transport. Public consultation draft. October 1999 DETR
http://www.odpm.gov.uk/stellent/groups/odpm_planning/documents/page/odpm_plan_605902.hcsp

11. PPG11 - Regional Planning. Public consultation draft. February 1999 DETR'
http://www.odpm.gov.uk/stellent/groups/odpm_planning/documents/page/odpm_plan_605900.hcsp

12. PPG12 - Development Plans. December 1999 DETR ISBN 1 85112 349 0. £10'
http://www.odpm.gov.uk/stellent/groups/odpm_planning/documents/page/odpm_plan_605901.hcsp

13."Working together for clean air." The Air Quality Strategy for England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. (published January 2000) £20
http://www.defra.gov.uk/environment/airquality/strategy/pdf/foreword.pdf

13/12/99 (Press Notice 1198): Transport: A Ten Year Plan (Speech at IPPR - 13 December 1999)