Report calls for better transport through South West

The region's future prosperity is dependent on improving transport links, according to a group of Labour MPs on the South West Regional Committee.

Their report highlights how the region is the worst performing in the country when it comes to traffic congestion and the high cost of rail fares.

One way of improving transport is for the region to have a "coherent voice" to bid for transport improvements.

It also calls for local authorities to do more to improve local bus services.

The Transport in the South West report looks at ongoing issues in Somerset, Bristol, Cornwall, Wiltshire and Dorset on the rail and roads and also looks at what local authorities and regional bodies can do to improve bus services and boost cycling and walking in urban areas in order to reduce carbon emissions.

Report analysis by BBC Somerset's Politics Reporter Ruth Lovell

Road

The report acknowledged the region has the greatest reliance on car use than anywhere else in the country, with Bristol having the slowest moving urban traffic.

It looked into the issue dualling the A303 but concluded that more could be done to reduce carbon emissions by electrifying the train line between London Paddington and Swansea than by dualling this trunk road, but it still left the problem of how to protect Stonehenge, which sees 30,000 cars travel past it everyday.

The advice to local authorities was to argue their case more effectively to show how road improvements would improve the region's economy.

The report said: "Robust research is urgently required to show which improvements to transport infrastructure would bring the greatest economic benefit to the South West. Armed with this evidence, the region will be much better placed to argue its case."

Rail

The £1bn project to electrify the train line between Swansea and London Paddington has been welcomed by the group of MPs who stated: "It will bring great benefits to passengers in the South West, through improved reliability, speed and comfort."

However, these plans have put in jeopardy the addition of new rolling stock of train carriages. This will result in overcrowding on some suburban rail services in Bristol and Bath, so the government's been called on to publish its rolling stock plan as soon as possible to try and alleviate this problem.

Airport

There is a call to improve public transport connections to airports, like Exeter, where a large number of passengers travel by car.

The report states: "We believe that the regional airports should be much more ambitious than they have been to date in improving public transport links and we encourage the Regional Development Agency to enforce its new rules on 'green' development robustly."

Ports

The South West has four of the major ports in the UK: Bristol, Plymouth, Poole and Fowey. Plans to create a new deep-water harbour and container port a the Port of Bristol has been highlighted as a priority, because of the jobs it will create and the competitive edge it will offer against rivals in other parts of the country.

The report also criticises the South West Regional Development Agency and South West Councils Leaders' Board, stating they "should pay more attention to the issues affecting ports in appointing subject-matter experts to help them achieve this".

Transport planning

The report raised concerns about how effective schemes put forward to government were, because they often "lacked objectivity and transparency".

It also called for local authorities to set up an Integrated Transport Authority, which could be used to find ways of integrating public transport in urban areas a lot more effectively, which had worked successfully in other parts of the country.

What happens next?

The select committee was made up of Alison Seabeck MP for Plymouth Devonport (Chairman), Mr David Drew MP for Stroud, Roger Berry MP for Kingswood, Dr Doug Naysmith MP for Bristol North West and Kerry McCarthy, MP for Bristol East.

They took evidence from more than 90 organisations and individuals across the South West, the biggest response to a regional committee enquiry.

Their report is a series of recommendations for the government, local councils and other organisations to deliver, and resolve a "piecemeal" approach to the region's infrastructure for the last half century.

The Select Committee says the stalled process to dual more of the A303 relies on an innovative solution at Stonehenge, which should be paid for by the Department of Transport.

Also councils need to focus more on cycling and public transport, and the Minister for the South West should look into high rail fares.

The report's been welcomed by the Campaign for Better Transport, the Campaign to Protect Rural England and Friends of the Earth.

But the South West Regional Development Agency and the region's Transport and Infrastructure Board, two of the bodies that will have to put these recommendations in place, say more money's needed from the government to make the changes happen.

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Have your say: What's your experience of travelling around Somerset using public and/or private transport? Fill in the form below

I grew up in Somerset and it's hard to travel anywhere without owning a car. Bus services are reliable but infrequent and need to run later in the evenings and on Sundays. Rail transport can be prohibitively expensive and travelling outside of towns on a bicycle is terrifying due to the speed of roads and poor driver awareness. Urban cycle provision in Taunton and Bristol has improved dramatically over the last five years but much more needs to be done to encourage people out of their cars. Councils need to work together to bring down the cost of rail and make it easier for people in urban centres to travel without cars: the people of the South-West need to see life without private motorised travel as a positive, desirable option.
Laura, London

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