Transport decisions to be made locally in shake-up

DECISIONS over which major local transport schemes get the go- ahead could be taken in the region rather than Whitehall under plans unveiled by the Government.

Ministers launched a consultation on the plans yesterday which could see pots of money handed down to local transport bodies which are likely to include councils and Local Enterprise Partnerships.

The Department for Transport is spending around £1.7bn on local transport projects between 2011 and 2015, but the final say over which schemes go ahead has been made by Ministers. Those given the green light include a new southern entrance to Leeds station, park and ride schemes in York and road improvements in Beverley.

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Transport Secretary Justine Greening said: “We want a system that is much more responsive to local needs and it makes good sense to give local residents and passengers a greater say in the transport infrastructure that they rely on so much.

“These proposals could hand real power to communities so they can make locally accountable decisions on what transport improvements are needed in their area. This is a key plank to our localism agenda, freeing local authorities from central government control, so I look forward to responses from across the country.”

Handing decision-making powers from Whitehall to the region has been a demand of the Yorkshire Post Give us a Fair Deal campaign, and will raise hopes that schemes rejected by Ministers but important to the region may finally go ahead.

Maria Eagle, Labour’s Shadow Transport Secretary, said: “The government is right to have listened to our call for a major decentralisation of transport spending and decision-making and we strongly support the proposals.”