Marston Holdings – sponsor of the Traffic Management Award – is a UK-based company specialising in enforcement, transportation and infrastructure services, primarily catering to government and public sector clients. Established in 1981, Marston Holdings has grown to become one of the largest enforcement agencies in the UK, renowned for its expertise in debt collection, court enforcement and traffic management solutions.
Through its diverse portfolio of transport and traffic-oriented subsidiaries, Marston Holdings maintains a strong focus on the sector, embedding sustainability at the heart of its operational strategy.
Here, the company’s group managing director, Keith Hanshaw, shares his insights on why supporting the CiTTi Awards is crucial, the innovations he is most looking forward to seeing, and how Marston Holdings is contributing to progress in the transport sector.
Why has Marston Holdings chosen to sponsor the CiTTi Awards this year?
Marston Holdings shares the CiTTi Awards’ ambition to foster, nurture and celebrate traffic and transport innovation. We are engaged in numerous projects that leverage technology to shape transport solutions, constantly adapting to social, environmental, and policy changes. Our initiatives include enhancing bus reliability through smart enforcement, scaling up the implementation and enforcement of School Streets tailored to regional towns as well as cities, and partnering with innovative suppliers to create adaptive, scalable parking solutions.
Addressing air pollution is one of our most pressing priorities as an organisation. With no safe level of air pollution and between 20,000 and 40,000 potentially avoidable deaths in the UK each year, more decisive action is essential. However, promising data from cities such as Oxford and Newcastle shows that low-emission zones are effective, signalling progress in the right direction.
The CiTTi Awards provides a platform to acknowledge and celebrate this crucial area of work. It is vital not to underestimate the magnitude of the challenge and the necessity for collective industry efforts to combat it. The increasing sophistication in how cities identify, track, enforce and mitigate polluting vehicles is significant, and we are eager to support authorities in these efforts. Without dependable technology, safe, clean, and reliable transport networks cannot be built or maintained.
What key innovations or trends are you most excited to see highlighted at the awards this year
We are particularly interested in seeing local authorities adopt schemes such as the Workplace Parking Levy (WPL). Although these schemes are gaining traction, there remains significant potential for wider integration within existing parking enforcement frameworks. Any WPL must be paired with robust public transport systems and sustainable travel options. Encouragingly, many urban centres in the UK are making notable progress in this area, suggesting WPL could be more widely implemented using current technology.
What impact do you hope your involvement as a sponsor will have on the CiTTi Awards, and how important is it to Marston Holdings to support initiatives that celebrate forward-thinking transport solutions?
Participating in the CiTTi Awards and similar industry events that celebrate transport achievements is vital for fostering our own commitment to innovation and continuous improvement. We are collaborating with local authorities and government bodies on pioneering schemes, and it is crucial to understand how other organisations are addressing shared challenges. This insight fuels our own innovation culture. As developers of technology such as air quality monitors and enforcement cameras, it is essential for us to grasp the real-world challenges cities face and the solutions being implemented by various teams. This understanding enables us to refine our technological tools to make transport networks safer and more efficient.
Which categories or innovations are you particularly looking forward to seeing celebrated at the CiTTi Awards, and how do they tie into Marston Holdings’ broader goals for improving urban infrastructure and compliance services?
The Road Safety Award aligns with our core commitment to safety. Our employees work in the field daily, facing road-related hazards, while our design and engineering teams collaborate with local authorities nationwide to create safer streets for all. Recognising initiatives that help reduce road fatalities and serious injuries is something we deeply value. Additionally, we are thrilled to be shortlisted for several awards ourselves. In particular, we are excited to see Medway County Council, one of our clients, nominated for The City/Town of the Year Award. This recognition highlights the exceptional leadership at Medway and their dedication to delivering innovative transport schemes that contribute to making the area safer, greener, and more accessible.
The third annual CiTTi Awards will be held on 26 November 2024 at De Vere Grand Connaught Rooms in London. Visit www.cittiawards.co.uk to learn more about this unmissable event for the UK’s transportation sector – and to book your table!
