ICE Director General, Tom Foulkes, has welcomed principles contained within the Local Transport White Paper but called for greater funding commitments.
Commenting on the White Paper, he said:
“The availability of a pot where local authorities can bid for funding for their own sustainable transport projects is a positive step - however £560m won’t go far across 300 local authorities, especially in the context of the hefty cuts already made to local authority capital budgets. Empowering local authorities to make their own decisions on transport schemes must go hand in hand with a sufficient stream of funding.
“Given the limited size of the fund, Government must ensure that the right bids are being approved – such as those which will benefit communities most in need of local transport improvements and those which will further social, economic and environmental goals, both locally and nationally.”