Posted on
17th August 2010 by
Richard Exell
In recent Cuts Watch postings we’ve reported on the rapid disappearance of road safety cameras. Figures out today reveal that the price in extra deaths and injuries will be more likely to be paid by the poor.
Philip Hammond, the Secretary of State for Transport has said that the decision to stop funding local authorities’ cameras is about more than saving cash. He says it is a good thing in itself: the government will “end the war on motorists.” This is despite the findings of independent research funded by his own Department, which found that, at camera sites, speeds were down and excessive speeding was substantially reduced and there were 100 fewer deaths a year.
Read more »
Filed under: Inequality, Transport | 1 Comment »
Posted on
4th August 2010 by
Alice Hood
Local transport outside London is likely to face massive cuts in the spending review, according to a report published today by transport group pteg. Read more »
Filed under: Cuts Watch, Cuts Watch: Regions, Cuts Watch: Transport, Economics, Regional policy, Transport | No Comments »
Posted on
21st June 2010 by
Mark Dickinson
Workplace violence is, rightly, a big issue for trade unionists. And at Nautilus International, the union for maritime professionals, we are having to deal with one of the most extreme forms of workplace violence – piracy.
It seems incredible that in the 21st century our members are exposed on a daily basis to a crime that most people think was consigned to the history books in the 17th century. But the sad reality is that last year saw a total of 410 officially recorded attacks on merchant ships in piracy incidents and more than 1,100 incidents of violent attacks against their crews – including the use of guns, knives and even rocket-propelled grenades. Read more »
Filed under: Human rights, International development, Transport | 2 Comments »
Posted on
11th June 2010 by
Alice Hood
The leader of Durham County Council, Simon Henig, has suggested that local authority budget cuts are already disproportionately hitting the north. This is because funding streams like Area Based Grants are focussed on need – i.e. deprived communities, of which the north has a relatively higher share. Read more »
Filed under: Cuts Watch, Cuts Watch: Regions, Cuts Watch: Transport, Cuts Watch: Welfare, Regional policy, Transport | 1 Comment »
Posted on
11th June 2010 by
Alice Hood
In the detail of this year’s local government cuts announced by CLG yesterday, spending on road safety has been hard hit, with £17.2 million going from the capital grant for local authority road safety work and £20.6 million from the road safety revenue grant. Read more »
Filed under: Cuts Watch, Cuts Watch: Transport, Transport | Comments Off
Posted on
8th June 2010 by
Alice Hood
Some new analysis from the Campaign for Better Transport finds that local transport schemes worth a total of £5.2bn are under review, and even a 10% reduction in the budget for local transport would mean £2bn worth of projects would be cut in the English regions.
CBT’s figures, reported in more detail in regeneration magazine New Start, predict that it isthe larger projects (those over £100m) that will be most at risk, and suggest that the North West will be hardest hit by cuts.
Filed under: Cuts Watch, Cuts Watch: Regions, Cuts Watch: Transport, Regional policy, Transport | 1 Comment »
Posted on
7th June 2010 by
Alice Hood
The railways look set to be hit by cuts to planned rolling stock improvements, plus fare rises and a looming row over bonuses.
A National Audit Office report concluded that Department for Transport plans
“…would not deliver as much extra capacity as originally specified, although the taxpayer would have provided nearly as much financial support (£1.2 billion over the period 2009-14) to train companies as originally envisaged.” Read more »
Filed under: Cuts Watch, Cuts Watch: Transport, Transport | Comments Off
Posted on
24th May 2010 by
Alice Hood
The cuts package announced this morning includes £683m from this year’s Department for Transport budget. PA are reporting that this will include a £100m cut in Network Rail spending, £108m from the Transport for London budget (which could hit London Underground upgrades), a £309m reduction in DfT grants to local authorities and deferral of some local road investment schemes, with the bulk of the rest coming from within the department. The cut in local government grants will combine with the massive reduction in local government grants from across government, likely to hit local services and provision for the most vulnerable across the board. Read more »
Filed under: Cuts Watch, Cuts Watch: Transport, Transport | 2 Comments »
Posted on
11th March 2010 by
Alice Hood
Lord Adonis made the much-anticipated announcement of plans for a UK high speed rail link today. Detailed plans for the route between London and Birmingham have been published for consultation, along with proposals for a £30bn “Y” shaped network also taking in Manchester, the East Midlands, Sheffield and Leeds, and there is future work to come on extending the lines to Scotland and the North East.
The TUC’s immediate reaction was to welcome the plans as bringing a great boost to the economy, jobs and skills, although we warned about the danger of neglecting the rest of the network. As we digest the government proposals and the enormous HS2 report, we will be looking to see whether the proposals can answer these five questions: Read more »
Filed under: Transport | 1 Comment »
Posted on
19th February 2010 by
Alice Hood
The news this morning that the Conservatives have rejected Lord Adonis’ offer of an early look at the High Speed Rail White Paper should worry supporters of high speed rail. Read more »
Filed under: Economics, Environment, Politics, Transport | 3 Comments »
Posted on
9th December 2009 by
Alice Hood
Today’s PBR gave some positive signals on transport, with a distinctly green hue. Unfortunately there wasn’t much detail, nor much new money, though there was a welcome financial boost for electric vehicles. Read more »
Filed under: Transport | Comments Off
Posted on
4th December 2009 by
Alice Hood
The announcement yesterday that the operating arm of Tyne and Wear Metro is to be privatised was met with bitter disappointment by unions and community campaigners in the region and nationally. Read more »
Filed under: Transport | 1 Comment »
