Transport Secretary, Geoff Hoon has today announced a series of measures for air, road and rail improvements to boost economy and jobs.
Mr Hoon today outlined his radical new plans for the UK’s transport infrastructure, designed to support the economy and secure jobs in the long term. The plans include £250m to help get more ultra low-carbon vehicles on Britain’s roads, helping motorists to go green by stimulating consumer uptake and helping to reduce emissions from road transport and improve local air quality.
Mr Hoon also confirmed Government support for a third runway at Heathrow airport but not for “mixed mode” which would have seen the two existing runways used more intensively.
However the move to support a new runway at Heathrow was slammed by the charity, Campaign for Better Transport.
Stephen Joseph, the group’s executive director, said:
“Across Europe, high-speed rail and telecommunications are replacing short-haul flying as the way to do business; why is Britain left in the sidings with overcrowded and overpriced trains while the Government chases transfer passengers whose only contribution to our economy is a coffee and a muffin from an airport café?”
“If Brown really wants to kick start the economy he should be investing in high-speed broadband, bringing down public transport fares and improving the railways, not pouring money into a white elephant like Heathrow,” he added.
Alongside his plans for Heathrow, the transport secretary outlined measures to help protect jobs and put Britain on a footing to recover from the global economic downturn, including:
Details of where up to £6bn to increase capacity on some of the nation’s busiest roads will be spent – providing an extra 520 lane miles of road by widening and opening up the hard shoulder – as well as new plans to roll-out hard shoulder running across the core motorway network.
The creation of a new company – High Speed 2 – to help consider the case for new high speed rail services between London and Scotland and tasked initially with developing a proposal for an entirely new line between London and the West Midlands which could link to Heathrow and Crossrail through a new international interchange station.
Further work to consider the case for electrifying two of Britain busiest railway lines – Great Western and Midland Mainline – with decisions to be announced later in the year.
Additionally he announced new measures to protect the environment and help ensure that Britain meets its climate change commitments, including:
Bringing international pressure for international aviation to be part of global deal on climate change, building on aviation’s inclusion in the European Emissions Trading Scheme.
New work to promote international agreement on progressively stricter limits on carbon dioxide emissions from aircraft, similar to those already in place for new cars within the EU.
The intention to set a new target of reducing UK aviation emissions below 2005 levels by 2050.
A limit on initial use of the third runway so that the total increase in flights does not exceed 125,000 a year – almost half the additional capacity which the Government originally proposed.
£250m to get more ultra low-carbon vehicles on Britain’s roads, helping motorists to go green by stimulating consumer uptake and helping to reduce emissions from road transport and improve local air quality.
Transport Secretary Geoff Hoon said:
“Transport is the lifeblood of Britain’s economy. In spite of record levels of investment over the last decade, increasing demand means that in many places our transport infrastructure is operating at, or very near, capacity. It is essential we take the right decisions now: for the economy, to drive down greenhouse gas emissions by 2050; and to support British jobs.
“It is clear that many of our major roads also need more capacity and we are committing up to £6bn to improve the national road network – including extending hard shoulder running to some of the busiest parts of M1, M25, M6, M62, M3 and M4, providing much-needed relief from congestion.”
Mr Hoon confirmed the Government’s support for a third runway and additional terminal facilities at Heathrow stating that strict environmental criteria would be in place.
In order to give further assurance that environmental limits will be met, Mr Hoon also announced that new capacity at Heathrow would be released only once strict air quality and noise conditions are shown to be met and on the basis of independent assessment and enforcement. He also confirmed the intention to introduce incentives for new capacity to be given to cleaner, quieter aircraft and that the first call on new capacity should ensure that journeys are more reliable for existing passengers.
