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‘TRAFFIC JAM: TEN YEARS OF SUSTAINABLE TRANSPORT IN THE UK’
EDITED BY IAN DOCHERTY AND JON SHAW
Reviewed by Nicholas Newman 06 November 2008
Putting it simply, this book could be read as a description of the Governments’ failure, when it comes to transport policy over the last decade. For many transport users the signs of failure are all around us, rising road, rail and air travel congestion.
For others this book could be read as surprising how much has the government achieved, given that transport has not enjoyed a high political and budgetary priority. One thing you can say about the complaints of rising traffic congestion is that it is a symptom of the government’s success in managing the economy over the last decade until the recent world economic down turn.
Even so, the Government has made mistakes, but this book reveals many of the operational, resources, bureaucratic and regulatory obstacles that have hindered in implementing policy, and interestingly I have found face decision makers in other European countries.
For many transport users outside the major cities or Scotland and Wales, many would be surprised that there is a transport policy at all. Travel times to work have increased as congestion has grown.
This book reveals many of the poor decisions that have been made from the failure to create integrated regional transport authorities with powers to award local franchise services to potential operators as is the case in London, by Whitehall throughout the land, to the strange resistance of some pro-car local highway authorities to actively facilitate public transport usage.
The writers reveal that there is propensity by Department for Transport (DFT) decision makers to seek a road policy solution as against alternative transport modes. This perhaps explains why the DFT strange reluctance to implement the 25 tram networks long promised, by 2004 only two new schemes had opened in Nottingham and Newcastle, elsewhere London still awaits the go ahead on long promised Crossrail scheme while the twenty year wait for the East West Rail link continues for the South East region, with the DFT ordering yet another report on this vital strategic scheme.
What this book fails to answer?
The analysis reveals that there is a clear failure of leadership and responsibility by the powers that be. Though what I found missing from this book was given that transport policy will likely to continue to enjoy a low political and budgetary priority, whoever wins the next election, what would be the writers solution’s given the political, economic, operational, funding, institutional and regulatory environments that exists in Britain in meeting the demands from transport users for costly electrification, rail loading gauge enhancement, more light rail and high speed rail schemes, sea and airports, road tolls and congestion charging.
Would they support the creation of a national strategic transport authority, for instance, to implement national and international transport policy, together with the establishment of independent integrated regional transport authorities to direct matters at a more local level?
Who is this book for?
It is aimed at transport policy students and academics, but it does tend to be analytical this book, rather than suggest politically and financially viable solutions that a future transport minister could implement.
Product details
Paperback:
272 pages
Publisher:
Policy Press
(27 Oct 2008)
Language English
ISBN-10: 1847420729
ISBN-13:
978-1847420725
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