So it's finally here, Polling Day. The only thing we can be sure about at this stage is it means senior politicians will stop emailing us and local ones will stop knocking on our doors. It's easy to be cynical but this election really does feel like something has changed, not least in transport.
This election has been one of the most interesting for a generation. It has seen the political fracturing of British society, with unionism and nationalism rubbing shoulders (and sometimes shoulder-barging) with each other along the campaign trail.
Old bases of support have withered or shifted allegiance in Wales, Scotland and also in England. Formally fringe parties like UKIP and the Greens have massively expanded and now hold a justifiable claim to the mainstream.
Britain's plural society could finally be said to have the kind of multi-party political system it needs to represent it, and all this at a time when the public are alleged to be more disengaged than ever.
In amongst the political and tribal intrigue, we have also seen transport rise up the political agenda and used as a weapon like never before.
While the issue of HS2 has been calmed by cross-party agreement and runway expansion has been kicked into the long grass of post-election time, if the manifesto pledges are honoured the result could deliver real change.
Local transport authorities could be given powers that would sweep away bus deregulation, promised funding for sustainable transport could start a cultural sea change alongside efforts to tackle pollution and congestion, the motorways could be transformed and the railways could even be renationalised.
Conservatives:
The Conservative manifesto focused on big-ticket items in transport and infrastructure under the party’s commitment to invest more than £100bn over the next Parliament. However, a real terms freeze on regulated rail fares over the next five years was a key give-away in the party's campaign.
Interventions outside the likes of HS2 and rail electrification, were more regional rather than national or local with the promise of ‘a record £13bn [investment] in transport for the North’ – including plans to electrify the main rail routes, build the Northern Hub, and provide new trains
There was also a pledge to invest £5.2bn in transport in the Midlands alongside pledges to improve road and rail connections in the South West and East Anglia.
As well as the major investment being poured into the new government-owned company Highways England, Conservatives also pledged to provide ‘enough funding to fix around 18 million potholes nationwide between 2015 and 2021’. This comes after the Coalition outlined a £6bn spending programme for local highways authorities over the next parliament under a new funding system geared towards rewarding asset management.
Another commitment that builds on work done by the Coalition, is a plan to spend a further £500m over the next five years to achieve the aim of ‘almost every car and van being a zero emission vehicle by 2050’.
The manifesto also states: ‘We will devolve far-reaching powers over economic development, transport and social care to large cities, which choose to have elected mayors. We will legislate to deliver the historic deal for Greater Manchester, which will devolve powers and budgets and lead to the creation of a directly elected mayor for Greater Manchester.’
Devolved economic powers are likely to include retention of business rates growth, with Cambridgeshire, Greater Manchester and Cheshire East councils all in line for pilot schemes allowing them to retain 100% of growth in business rates. This would provide more cash for local infrastructure schemes, which could provide solid returns and boost growth even further.
In terms of transport, the devolution of Transport for London-style powers over bus franchising would also be on the cards for these mayoral cities, following promises made to Manchester.
On cycling, an issue championed by top Tories David Cameron and Boris Johnson, there is a commitment to invest ‘over £200m to make cycling safer, so we reduce the number of cyclists and other road users killed or injured on our roads every year’.
Labour
Labour’s transport pledges have centred on a reform and refill approach – bringing about sweeping changes to public transport markets and fixing 24 million potholes over the next Parliament. The party’s commitments chime with its ‘cost of living’ agenda while meeting the recent push for decentralisation.
Ed Miliband’s party has committing to transfer cities and counties £30bn of funding and provide longer- term budgets for local government. Council were promised powers over the operation of local buses, with influence over routes, fares and service improvements. Labour said it would also ensure town halls had the power to unite trains, buses and trams into a single network through smart ticketing.
The party has consistently pledged to end bus deregulation by allowing cities and counties across the UK similar powers over transport networks to those seen in London. Further plans for the bus market would limit operators from only running on the most profitable routes, requiring them to cover links deemed vital for communities.
Labour vowed to review the train franchising model and move forward with measures allowing a public sector operator to challenge private firms for the control of lines ‘on a level playing field’. A new National Rail Body would oversee lines and grant passengers a greater say on management.
Fares have been targeted in the living standards drive, with Labour committing to freezing rail ticket costs over the next year and capping rises on every UK route. Travellers will also be extended a right to access the cheapest tickets for their journey.
Mr Miliband has announced plans for a dedicated £300m dedicated pothole fund, intended to surpass Conservative targets by fixing six million more potholes. The announcement came just days after a poll from the Institute of Advanced Motorists found 70% of questioned motorists thought fixing potholes should be the next government’s highest priority for roads.
Labour has also pushed forward on its vision for cycling, stating that it will commit an extra £89m to the issue on top of £400m already pledged by the Coalition. The party has pledged to ‘promote’ cycling as part of long-term investment plans.
The party has committed to launching a National Infrastructure Commission to assess how the UK’s needs could be best met. This body would be tasked with making recommendations to government, monitoring the implementation of its advice and ‘holding government to account’ while taking responsibility for prioritising flood prevention.
Ongoing support for HS2 was met with commitments to improve and expand rail links in the North in a bid to boost regional economies.
Local authorities were told that they would also be given the necessary powers to deal with air pollution with the backing of a national framework of action.
Liberal Democrats
Liberal Democrats have made plans for a Green Transport Act that would force the country’s most polluted areas to launch Low Emission Zones, a central plank of their manifesto offer.
The document outlines how the party would introduce a Green Transport Act, which would include a national air quality plan that could legally require locations worst affected by vehicle emissions to introduce limits on pollution heavy vehicles.
It also outlines a plan to introduce a 2030 statutory target for ensuring all major, regularly used rail routes will need to be electrified and a requirement that ‘every new bus and taxi is Ultra Low Emission from 2030 and every car on the road meets that standard by 2040’.
There is also a commitment to updates road regulations ‘to promote innovation in transport like driverless cars and personal electric vehicles’.
If the party takes power in May, it has pledged to set out 10-year rolling capital investment plans, complete East-West rail connections between Oxford and Cambridge, deliver the £15bn Transport for the North strategy and strengthen links in the South West after the region was cut off by flooding.
Work would take place to stimulate at least £100bn more private sector investment in flood protection and increase the use of Sustainable Urban Drainage Systems.
Liberal Democrats said they would also spend £10 a head every year on cycling within existing budgets and support intercity biking routes along the path of HS2, which will also continue to receive backing.
However the party would oppose expansion at Heathrow, Stansted, Gatwick or any airport in the Thames estuary because of noise and pollution issues.
Taking sustainable transport even further, the Green Party vowed to spend at least £30 per head on supporting pedestrians and cyclists each year if it takes power in May. It also pledged to divert all funds for major road building into public transport, fare reductions and potholes.
UKIP on the other hand outlined plans to remove all road tolls and let existing contracts expire as well as a pledge to axe HS2.
