Why Good Public Transport Systems Matter

Model Train: About as far as Transport improvements outside of London go in the UK 

Following the short sighted decision in Edinburgh to substantially shorten the cities under construction Tram line: 


Linking Social exclusion and public transport: Why good public systems matter


Transport is one of several barriers inhibiting access to employment…employers were not employing people from certain places because transport links were known to be inadequate’’ and unreliable’ (DOT 2000: 50)

It is generally assumed that everyone owns or has access to a car, the truth is somewhat different, according to Poverty.org.uk, in 2010, 25% of men and 40% of women either lacked a car in their household or do not having a driving license. This makes the provision of public transport essential for many people in enabling them to form social networks outside of the community in which they live, as well as providing access to education, retail, heath, employment and leisure facilities. 


The design of our cities sadly makes life difficult for those without access to private transport, low density suburban development and a shift of shopping, leisure and offices to the edge of settlements has created dispersed cities. At the same time public transport networks have failed to adapt to modern land-use patterns, leading to declines in usage and in turn reduced frequencies. 


It is now 10 yeas since PPG 13 was published, which was the first major policy document to specifically link social exclusion and pubic transport, stating...

A key planning objective is to ensure that jobs, shopping, leisure facilities and services are accessible by public transport, walking, and cycling. This is important for all, but especially for those who do not have regular use of a car, and to promote social inclusion. (PPG13, 2001: 9) 

Yet the issue is still rarely touched upon and large scale public transport investments outside of London have proved rare and in the case of the proposed light rail networks in Leeds and Liverpool axed. While cycling which has the potential to provide a low cost transport (and obesity) solution is still to be fully embraced,  a result of a long term lack of any serious investment in cycle networks by local authorities. 


Further inefficiencies can be leveled at the '1998 UK bus competition act' which prevents bus operators agreeing timetables and routes, arguably preventing fully connected transport networks and makes life difficult for people needing to change routes, creating the disintegrated networks many people see today. 


Whether Edinburgh should have decided to invest in light rail is a issue many residents of the city have being asking for along time. 


The main advantage of light rail over busses and heavy rail, is its ability to enable permanent new public transport routes through the middle of urban areas, with an ability to carry passengers faster, and more reliably than the pre-mentioned alternatives while allowing high frequency stops. 


Th issue of permanence is particularly important, as the service cannot be cut at a moments notice, inspiring confidence in a location and presenting a forward thinking and modern city. Creating a favorable impression to visitors but also inspiring residents and it is inevitable new developments and businesses will be attracted alongside light rail lines. 


At the same time, the initial outlay of light-rail is expensive and once built it is not cheap to run,  monetary costs which are often passed onto the rider itself at social cost. 


Edinburgh like other British cities needs a long term and  targeted public transport plan that is supported by those in government. Light rail wasn't and It is particularly sad that the part of the route cut linked Leith one of Edinburgh's most deprived districts to the city centre and with further connections, beyond; which would have opened up a huge number of potential opportunities for residents.


The UK government is cutting back on many areas of expenditure, something that I support in principle. But this shouldn't come at the cost of developing social inclusion, something which can only lead to helping its primary aim of economic growth.  


The recent riots seen across the UK were the result of a socially excluded element of our society, who felt dissatisfied with there communities enough to smash then up. Integrated transport systems can go some way to reconnecting these neighborhoods back into the city.

Construction of Underground rail in Rotterdam (Netherlands); here a longer term view is taken 

The end of the line

The Edinburgh tram project descended into further farce yesterday with spiraling construction costs, estimated at around £700 million leading Conservative and Labour councillors to vote to end the line at Haymarket, 11 stops short of its intended destination and 2 miles and 3 stops from the City centre and main transport interchange at Waverley Station. 

Taking the line just the extra 2 miles would have given the scheme estimated profits of around 2 million per year, the revised scheme is now expected to lose 4 million during the same period. 

Its is long term planning like this which makes me proud to be British.

The Revised route, in dark red, and where the route should have really ended, itself well short of the original plan. 

The scheme was already deeply unpopular, especially amongst small business owners upset at a huge level of local disruption. The fact that areas which have now put up with delays, diversions and construction work for the past 2 years will now not even be able to experience the benefits of the project will only rile residents further. 

One tram line through one of the least dense areas of the city will contribute little to encouraging modal shift and seeing empty trams running around may only increase public anger and exacerbating the negative feeling towards future large scale transport improvements in the city which would be a great shame; in a period of increasing petrol costs and a growing awareness of the negative impact cars have in urban environments.