A number of bills related directly and indirectly to public transport have been announced in the first King’s Speech delivered under a Labour government in 15 years.
The announcements focus on driving economic growth, the first of UK prime minister Sir Keir Starmer’s five “missions for national renewal”.
Big ticket items include the English Devolution Bill, which gives new powers to metro mayors and combined authorities to support local growth plans that bring economic benefit to communities.
Connected to this, the Better Buses Bill will remove the ban on publicly owned buses so local leaders can take control of their local bus services.
Responding to the inclusion of the bill, Graham Vidler, CEO for the Confederation of Passenger Transport, said: “No amount of regulatory change will deliver better services unless local, regional and national governments move swiftly to give buses priority on the road network, curb congestion, and persuade more people to switch away from private car journeys and towards public transport.
“Whoever controls bus networks, stable long-term investment in the sector will be critical. Immediate action must prevent a cliff edge return to fully commercial fares when the £2 fare cap ends in December – a scenario that will harm passengers and services.”
Elsewhere, the Passenger Railway Services (Public Ownership) Bill will deliver on Labour’s manifesto commitment to bring rail services back into public ownership, with the aim of improving passenger journeys and saving the taxpayer “millions of pounds”.
What’s more, the Rail Reform Bill will improve the railways by bringing together the management of the network and the delivery of passenger services into a single public body – Great British Rail.
Responding to the King’s Speech, Paul Tuohy from transport charity Campaign for Better Transport, said: “It’s good to see transport back on the agenda with bold plans to grow the network.
“Both rail bills are welcome, as are plans to improve bus services and give more powers to local leaders to deliver local transport systems that work for their communities.
“We are saddened to see no commitment to reinstating the Northern leg of HS2 however.”
RMT general secretary Mick Lynch concurred: “Our belief is that HS2 remains the best option for improving transport links, promoting economic growth and building a modern railway infrastructure, fit for the 21st century.”
Jason Prince, director of the Urban Transport Group, said: “Our rail services need reform, so it is encouraging that the government is moving ahead with the creation of Great British Railways.
“And on buses, local leaders will be given greater powers to franchise or publicly own bus services – powers we have long called for.
“Together with the recognition that greater devolution can herald positive change for local communities, these new bills could lead to big improvements in transport.”
However, Chris Simms, partner at UK law firm Burges Salmon, said given the transport sector has a wide range of needs from legislation and the new government, it was likely that a fuller transport act may also be brought forward in due course.
“For the moment, however, a short Rail Reform Bill may address certain obstacles to Labour’s vision for the railways to allow it to “move fast”.
“The key questions for the industry now will be how quickly this bill moves through parliament, and when the subsequent nationalisation of operators begins.”
Adjacent to transport, the Great British Energy Bill will see the establishment of Great British Energy, a publicly owned clean power company headquartered in Scotland, which will help accelerate investment in renewable energy such as offshore wind.
The entity will develop, own and operate assets with a capitalisation of £8.3bn of new money over the parliament.
Matt Finch, UK policy manager at Transport & Environment, said: “The King’s Speech proves Labour is serious about making our public transport systems fit for the 21st century.
“The new government was elected on a promise to tackle climate change from all sources, including transport, and it mustn’t waste any time on doing so.”
Furthermore, the Planning and Infrastructure Bill aims to “get Britain building” through planning reform, to accelerate the delivery of high-quality infrastructure and housing.
Measures will include changing compulsory purchase compensation rules to ensure that compensation paid to landowners is fair but not excessive where important infrastructure and affordable housing are being delivered, improving local planning decision-making by modernising planning committees and increasing local planning authorities’ capacity.
Oliver Lord, UK head of Clean Cities Campaign, said: “The decision to omit a Clean Air Bill from the King’s Speech is disappointing and a missed opportunity to end toxic air pollution, which is the UK’s biggest environmental health risk and a major cause of health inequities.
“The government’s pledges to fix the NHS cannot ignore the fact that air pollution will cost our health and social care system billions every year unless modern day legislation is in place.
“In the absence of the Clean Air Bill, proposals set to be laid before Parliament on buses, rail and devolution provide a clear opportunity to create infrastructure and localised policy that ensures our cities can effectively and rapidly transition to cleaner forms of transport, business and governance that nurture investment and protect our health.”
Furthermore, the UK’s national charity for shared transport, Collaborative Mobility UK (CoMoUK), said it was “disappointing” that the King’s Speech failed to legalise e-scooters or expand car clubs and bike share schemes.
Richard Dilks, chief executive of CoMoUK, called for greater ambition from the new Labour government: “It is disappointing that after its comprehensive victory at the election earlier this month, Labour has not seized the chance to be as bold as it could have been in the King’s Speech.
“There is a clear policy gap when it comes to shared transport, which has the potential to work alongside these other reforms in decarbonising the way we travel.
“Giving e-scooters and other similar vehicles legal status is a common sense move that would bring the UK into line with most other European countries and give people a flexible and green way to get around.”
Dilks also called for England’s e-scooter trials to be expanded, with more vehicles covering wider areas in response to local demand and new schemes approved in council areas that could benefit.
“Today’s announcement of plans to give more powers to local councils in England should also include the ability to expand the use of shared transport, whether that is through new bike schemes or on-demand buses following flexible routes.
“Any shake-up to the planning system should also ensure that bike share schemes, car clubs and other similar initiatives are put front and centre.”
Achievements and innovations in urban transportation will be celebrated at the third annual CiTTi Awards, which will be held on 26 November 2024 at De Vere Grand Connaught Rooms in London. Nominations are open now! Please visit www.cittiawards.co.uk to learn more about this unmissable event for the UK’s transportation sector!
