Environment Monday - Whoever the new government is they need to reform the Department of Transport

 The UK is facing a whole raft of major issues as we approach the election, many of these are driven by world events. Whoever wins the election, they will need to take some very difficult decisions. One of the biggest failures of UK governments over the last 50 years has been a total lack of long term planning. All manner of decisions about fundamental areas of our lives have been kicked into the long grass, usually with a view to save pennies today, and the net result is all of the penny pinching has caught up with us. Most of our infrastructure is clapped out, and the penny pinching of yesterday has limbered us with huge bills for today. 

One of the worst aspects of this, one which affects all of us is transport. Even if you never left your front room, this would still impact you as the transport costs for business heap expenses onto companies, that they then pass on to consumers. As a resident of London, any daytime car journey invariably involves traffic jams. The roads are full of potholes and the there are all manner of charges such as congestion charge and ULEZ to navigate. Parking is horrendously epensive, if you can find a space and the Mayor seems set on making it the most unpleasant experience possible, whilst providing no realistic alternative for most Londoners.

The Motorway network seems to be in a constant state of being worked on.  At least that's the theory, generally there is no one working on the roads. Recent governments have tried all manner of bonkers schemes to squeeze more capacity out of the road network, for the lowest price. The worst of these was the 'Smart Motorway' concept, where hard shoulders have been abolished. If you have an accident or a breakdown, you have no safe refuge. Any regular motorway user would have told the powers that be that this was dangerous, but somehow billions were spent on a scheme that dimply doesn't work.

Then there are the railways. Hugely expensive, unreliable and running on clapped out infrastructure, which is constantly being patched up. Most of the network still relies on diesel power, with a constant stop start of schemes to build new lines, electrify existing ones and no plan to make the network accessible. It seems that line closures for work are always timed to be at the most inconvenient time. This week was a great example. The Champions League was at Wembley. Tens of thousands of German and French fans descended on London to watch. Many flew in via Luton, What greeted them? The Thameslink line was shut. They had the delights of a Rail Replacement Bus. Welcome to England! Does no one in the planning department have a calendar? The biggest cock up of all has been HS2. Sold to us as vital and then cancelled by Rishi Sunak, so he could pay to fill in a few potholes that his own policies had caused. We have private rail operators that are guaranteed a profit to move us around like cattle, with little incentive to ever improve anything. Schemes such as what was once called the Thameslink 2000 programme are delivered decades late. By the time they arrive, the spare capacity they were meant to create is immediately gobbled up. The Elizabeth line is a good example, being packed almost from day one. I believe that was first conceived in the 1940's.  Just about every major rail initiative in my lifetime has either made things worse (Beeching cuts), cost far more money than it should (just about every majopr project) or been cancelled before it could deliver anything (HS2). The things that have been delivered are usually late and over budget.

Then we have air travel. Hated by environmentalists, until they fancy a week in Greece escaping the grey skies. We have passport gates that don't work, a complete rip off regime on parking, a lack of  a coordinated policy to make the airport infrastructure fit the needs of the UK economy. On many filghts to Europe, you spend longer passing through the airport than you do in the air. The actof walking from the station/car park to the plane generally takes around 3 hours. You have to take out 'liquids', remove shoes and watches, but most of all queue for ages. Then you get through. You are told you have to be at the Gate a minimum of 30 minutes before the flight leaves, so you can stand around and do nothing for ages. I am old enough to remember when, so long as you turned up before they shut the plane door, you could get on. And whilst you are waiting, what do you do? You drink the most expensive beverages in the UK.

Is there any aspect of the UK's transport system that is working well? I can't think of anything. We've had successive Conservative and Labour governments that have done nothing to make things better and a lot to make things worse, all at huge cost. But who delivers all of this? Civil Servants in the Department of Transport. It's brief? (According to the wikipedia page)

The Department for Transport has six strategic objectives:

• Support the creation of a stronger, cleaner, more productive economy
• Help to connect people and places, balancing investment across the country
• Make journeys easier, modern and reliable
• Make sure transport is safe, secure and sustainable
• Prepare the transport system for technological progress and a prosperous future outside the EU
• Promote a culture of efficiency and productivity in everything it does

The department "creates the strategic framework" for transport services, which are delivered through a wide range of public and private sector bodies including its own executive agencies.

By any measure it has failed. This failure has been going on for the whole of my lifetime. Is there anyone in the UK who thinks that the department is delivering? In short the whole thing needs a radical shake up, fresh ideas and a new focus to deliver its strategic objectives. I am not a transport expert, I wouldn't know where to start, but I do know that if you just leave it as it is, all you will get is more of the same and that will be catastrophic for the UK.

What I'd like to see is a proper, joined up policy, where the root cause of the mess in the UK's transport system is addressed. A national plan, where we encourage modal shift to the most sustainable means of getting from A to B, as quickly and pleasantly as possible. I'd like an end to the rip of culture at airports and other transport hubs. I'd like to see schemes to address congestion that do not include 'charging'. I'd like to see a step change in how we plan and implementmajor projects, so they are delivered quickly and at the projected costs. I'd like to see accounatbility, so when things go badly wrong, failing bosses are properly held to account. 

I don't believe any of these things can happen with the current regime at The Department of Transport. It has failed for decades. The mandarins have had their chance, we need fresh blood and new ideas. Preferably people who have some sort of track record of success to be put in charge. Transport in the UK has simply become a means for all manner of dodgy private contractors to fleece the public. Just holding them to account and making them deliver would be a good start.