transport economics - government transport policy
Introduction - Government Transport Objectives
The five Central Government objectives for transport concern:
- Environment
- Safety
- Economy
- Accessibility
- Integration
These criteria are used to evaluate proposed transport projects.
The Dept of Transport's aim is “better transport” and supporting objectives are a “reliable, safe and integrated transport for everyone, which respects the environment”. To the extent the government has met these objectives, it is successful.
Problems faced by the Government
· Infrastructure: past under investment means the public transport network is badly maintained and characterised by poor quality and lack of choice
· Current road, rail and air networks are unable to meet current demand at peak times.
· Use of buses falling outside London. Mergers of bus companies following deregulation means a lack of competition, reduced services, higher fares, local monopolies and high subsides to operators to run non commercial rural routes
· Projected increase in car usage is unsustainable.
Possible Policies
·
Encourage sustainable modes of transport eg walking and cycling light and
public mass transit eg railways
·
Reduce the demand for transport by road charging and encouraging use of non-road
alternatives.
·
Switch freight from road to rail.
·
Encourage Increased use of mass transit, cycling, walking, use of alternative
freight modes and smaller vehicles.
·
Enable integrated transport
·
Increasing the supply of transport infrastructure may reduce congestion in
the short run but simply generate additional traffic leaving no net gain
in long term traffic flows. Moreover the environmental impact and further
negative externalities are unsustainable.
Government White Papers
Given the strategic importance of transport to the
economy the government has an overall transport strategy set out in:
·
A New Deal for Transport (1998) which lays out a framework for an integrated
and sustainable UK Transport policy.
·
Transport 2010 (2000) is a ten year long-term strategy, currently under review,
for delivering a quicker, safer, more punctual and environmentally friendly
transport system over ten years.
Transport 2010 stresses the role of partnership with the private sector
and local government in modernising the transport network:
Rail: £60bn
·
Investment to allow 50% more passengers, with faster and safer journeys
· £7bn rail modernisation fund to "lever in" private capital
to the system
Roads: £59bn
· £30bn to eliminate backlog in road maintenance
·
80 major trunk road schemes to improve safety and traffic flow at junctions;
Widen 360 miles of motorway and trunk road network
·
Lower-noise surfaces for 60% of trunk roads
·
A 10% increase in bus passenger journeys and an extension of bus priority
schemes
Local transport schemes: £26bn
·
Build 100 new bypasses
· £20bn for London, excluding roads – eg cross-London rail link and
new East Thames river crossings for road and rail
· Up to 25 light railway schemes (trams) in urban areas - doubling the existing number
· More cycle and walking routes and more 20mph areas
· Rural Transport Fund to rise from £60m to £95m to help secure local bus services
The Dept of Transport Departmental Annual Report 2001 notes: “increase bus use”; on the railways, by the end of September 2000 passenger kilometers had increased by 7 per cent and by the end of June 2000 freight tonnes moved had increased by 9 per cent compared with the previous year
Key policy
challenges:
·
Minimise impact of traffic growth on congestion and environment
·
promote sustainable development
·
enhance competitiveness of UK industry – congestion increases business
costs
Resource allocation refers to a given use of land, labour, capital and entrepreneurs those results in particular amounts of goods and services being produced.
The phrase best allocation of resources refers to economic
efficiency and is about making:
·
the best possible use of resources (productive efficiency) to
·
satisfy the maximum amount of wants (allocative efficiency).
A particular resource allocation in a given market is assessed using productive & allocative
efficiency criteria (rules)
IMPORTANT
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