Ladies and gentlemen,

It is a great pleasure to be here with you for this important conference, and to be among so many expert speakers and delegates from across the transport industry.

I’d like to thank GovNet in particular for organising a programme that covers such a broad range of transport issues, because the main theme I want to discuss today – stimulating the economy by investing in Britain’s transport infrastructure - is one that links every one of us…..

Whether we work in local, regional or central government, in rail, roads, buses, freight, or aviation…. we all share some fundamental challenges over the coming months and years.

We need to be efficient; cut out waste; and make sure that every penny of investment is spent as wisely as possible.

We need to ensure that our transport network is ready to support the economy as we move out of recession, and able to meet growing demand for travel as the economy picks up.

And we need to remain committed to key long-term initiatives, to deliver a world class, low carbon transport vision for Britain.

It is these shared challenges that I want to discuss with you today.

Past Decade Achievements

First, though, I think it’s important to acknowledge the significant progress that we have made over the past decade rebuilding this country’s transport infrastructure after many years of underinvestment.

We have a national railway that in recent years has been carrying more passengers than at any time since World War II.

We have completed the £9 billion programme to modernise the West Coast Main Line.

Performance, capacity, reliability and safety levels across the rail network have improved significantly, and continue to improve.

High Speed One is up and running ahead of schedule, and the stunning redevelopment of St Pancras Station is proving to be a fitting terminal for high speed trains from the Continent.

We have more than doubled investment in local transport since 1997, improving accessibility and helping to tackle social exclusion among local communities.

Bus fleets are being modernised, and a successful national concessionary fares scheme is in place providing free transport for the over 60s and disabled people.

We have continued to update the national roads network, and introduced innovative traffic management measures to help tackle congestion.

And sustained improvements in road safety mean that Britain’s road network is today one of the safest in the world.

In total, over the past decade, more than £150 billion has been invested in the UK transport infrastructure - money that has boosted capacity, performance and traveller choice right across the network.

Building Britain's Future

After the credit crunch triggered unprecedented turmoil in the global economy last year, we took decisive action with other countries to prevent the global recession turning into depression.

That decisive action has worked, which is why the Chancellor expects the UK economy to begin growing again by the turn of this year.

Earlier this summer, we set out our clear forward priorities in the “Building Britain’s Future” programme, with specific reference to  continue investing in key sectors like transport, energy, and waste to ensure that Britain’s economy is underpinned by a world class modern infrastructure.

As part of that programme, we also unveiled a new, more active industrial policy to create the high-value jobs of the future in sectors like low carbon transport and advanced manufacturing.

And we announced a plan to establish an advisory body – Infrastructure UK – to identify the country’s long term infrastructure needs across a 5-50 year horizon.

Over the coming months, as we move towards recovery, the biggest risk remains complacency. The economy still needs support. That’s why we are continuing with the policies we have in place.

The process of improving, regenerating and modernising our transport infrastructure, which began more than a decade ago, will continue to support our economy as it comes out of the downturn.

But let me be clear: in the current fiscal environment, every penny of funding must be justified and provide real value for the taxpayer.

Getting the balance right is vital. So our focus for investment will be on key areas of the network where demand is greatest; where capacity is constrained, within and around urban areas; at international gateways; and on busy inter-city corridors.

Rail

For example, over the next five years, we have set out a £35 billion investment programme to continue boosting capacity, performance, and reliability on the railway.

Following the completion of the West Coast Main Line, we are investing £5.5 billion upgrading Thameslink, and we have begun construction of Crossrail, which will revolutionise east-west rail connections across London.

These are innovative and challenging projects – but we need to look further ahead and raise our expectations if we are to provide Britain with the transport system it needs to compete in the new global economy.

That is why earlier this year we set up the High Speed 2 company – and tasked it with reporting back to us by the end of 2009 with recommendations for a north-south high speed rail plan. At first this would connect London and the West Midlands, but then our ambitions are for a line extending to Scotland.

High speed rail is a technology whose time has come – offering fast, reliable, accessible travel between major city centres.

The line would link major British cities with High Speed 1 and the wider European high speed rail network via a new interchange at Heathrow Airport, dramatically improving their ability to compete economically with other cities in Western Europe.

Longer term, we believe that high speed rail could help reduce the need for domestic air services, and compete with airlines on short haul European routes.

We will make a final decision on High Speed 2 early next year.

Roads

We are also continuing to invest in our road and motorway infrastructure to help tackle congestion and improve journey reliability.

Earlier this year we announced £6 billion to help increase capacity on the motorway and major road network – focusing on the most congested areas.

Increasingly, we will adopt more environmentally-acceptable alternatives to boost road capacity, such as hard-shoulder running, which has been shown to be safe and effective during trials on the M42.

Hard-shoulder running generates extra capacity at a fraction of the cost and environmental impact of new roads or conventional widening.

It is just part of a package of measures to improve traffic flow – including variable speed limits, and far better driver information – which will lead to a system of ‘managed motorways’. You will hear more about these plans from the Highways Agency’s Nirmal Kotecha later this morning.

Alongside plans for the railway and the roads network, we have also set out a strategic framework for the future of Heathrow – and the wider aviation sector as a mainstay of the British economy. 

Local transport and sustainable travel

I have spoken about our plans to invest in the national transport infrastructure, but local transport is no less important.Locally, we can set goals, and generate the tools and guidance to achieve those goals, but ultimately, it is up to local authorities – our delivery partners – to help us realise them.

We know “one size fits all” solutions don’t work. That’s why we have devolved decision-making to local planners and local communities, who are far better placed to know where money should be targeted, and who are able to generate the buy-in which is so critical to the effectiveness of local transport policy.

Local Transport Plans are at the heart of that process. Since their inception, they have helped transform local transport planning and delivery. And they will continue to play their part.

By working closely with local councils, we want transport to be more integrated with other areas of town planning – which is why I recently announced £30 million of transport funding for new housing schemes.

Partnerships between councils and bus operators are helping to improve services to passengers, improving accessibility, and increasing transport choice for local people.

And local authorities are playing an increasingly active part in our shared vision for more sustainable local transport.

Indeed, there has never been a better time than now to intensify efforts to put local transport on a more sustainable footing - by making better, more efficient use of the transport networks that we already have; and by encouraging more cycling, walking, and bus use.

We have doubled the budget for Cycling England, which is doing some fantastic work including the designation of cycling demonstrations towns and cities, from Brighton to York.

Today I am also announcing new measures to help councils encourage people to make greener transport choices. The initiative will allow local authorities to put in place certain road signs – such as those for car club parking spaces, electric car charging points, and for cyclists – without the need for the Government to approve their use individually.

We are also embarking on a pilot project with the London Borough of Kensington and Chelsea allowing cyclists to ride in both directions on a number of one-way streets.

The streets will now carry a sign indicating “No Entry Except for Cyclists”.

But sustainable travel is not just an environmental tool. It can also contribute to economic development, healthier communities, greater accessibility and equality of opportunity.

The Sustainable Travel Towns programme has shown how much can be achieved by offering local communities greener, cheaper, and healthier transport alternatives to driving.

Low carbon

Alongside these community-based initiatives, the Government is committed to making low carbon travel a better and more viable choice across the transport system.

For road vehicles, this means government action on a number of fronts, from developing new vehicle standards through the EU, to supporting R&D and helping UK industry maximise the opportunities from a shift to lower carbon technology.

The government has already pledged more than £200 million for consumer incentives, worth between £2,000 and £5,000 for private and fleet motorists looking to buy electric or plug-in hybrid cars when they come onto the market, which we expect to be from 2011.

This will be supported by up to £30 million to help with the provision of electric vehicle charging facilities in a number of cities and regions across the UK.

There is an exciting low carbon agenda in rail too. We will electrify nearly 300 miles of Britain's busiest railway track over the next decade in a £1.1bn programme.

The Great Western route from London to Swansea is to be electrified over the next eight years, and we are also electrifying lines between Liverpool and Manchester in a four year programme.

Electrification will reduce carbon dioxide emissions and will mean faster and more reliable services for millions of passengers.

Conclusion

In conclusion, ladies and gentlemen, let me stress once again the importance of strong transport links as we emerge from recession in the months and years ahead.

Our main rail, road, air and sea links provide the transport arteries through which trade can flourish, and through which businesses are connected to their markets.

Since 1997, improvements to our transport infrastructure have played a central role in our economic growth, and in the country’s growing prosperity, and they will continue to do so in the years ahead.

Simply slashing investment in key services like transport would hold back the rate at which we are able to recover economically.

Instead, we will continue to target investment at those parts of the network that are most congested; we will work with the transport industry and local authorities to deliver more from those investments; and we will maintain our focus on shifting to a low carbon, sustainable transport system.

Thank you.

(This speech represented existing departmental policy but the words may not have been the same as those used by the Minister.)