Newington's Matt Sheldon looks at what the Queen's Speech had to say about the transport sector.
The Downing Street hard hat and high-vis jacket, a feature of government under Osborne and Cameron, continues to gather dust. Big infrastructure projects are a high-profile casualty of this trimmed-down Queen’s Speech. There was no mention of Heathrow (though Downing Street is reportedly still ‘committed’ to holding a vote on a new runway), no new major road projects, and no plans for HS3 (the ‘Northern Powerhouse’ cross-country rail link) – all promised in the Conservative manifesto, already a modest affair in its ambitions for new spending. Even the bare-essentials HS2 Bill only committed the government to one half of the high-speed link north of Birmingham.
Transport measures that have survived the cut are those that are judged less controversial. These include bills to promote the UK’s space industry and air travellers’ rights, and support the roll-out of automated and electric vehicles through retail incentives and new charging infrastructure – all measures on which the government believes it can gain cross-party support, and avoid embarrassing backbench rebellions.
These bills’ lack of controversy does not mean they lack importance, however. Creating the right infrastructure for electric and automated vehicles, in particular, is critical as this market grows at an ever-greater pace.
More broadly, a lack of headline initiatives does not mean a stall on activity in transport investment – but it may signal a shift in the centre of gravity for policy making. The publication by the Mayor of London this week of an ambitious new Transport Strategy this week, with a major push on reducing road traffic, may be the herald of a new activism on transport at a devolved level, at least in England. Transport for the North, which should gain new statutory status this year, is due to publish its own strategy in the autumn. Supported by the political heft of high-profile new mayors keen to make a visible difference to their electorates, we are likely now to see a greater focus on local transport initiatives than on grand national projects. Firms with an interest in new transport investment may therefore for now be better served looking to city halls, not Whitehall, to help inform their future planning.
