Business News
Traffic drives up costs
A new Chamber survey has underlined what most people in the business community have long suspected – that traffic congestion in the region is costing an awful lot of time and money. And while the roots of this problem can be traced back to the 1960s, there is no doubt that things are getting worse. Philip Parkin and Raj Kandola report on the survey, the issues it has raised and what needs to be done. Also, we look at the response to the congestion crisis by an organisation with key responsibilities in this area, the West Midlands Combined Authority.
A massive 65 per cent of local businesses believe that traffic congestion is a major problem in the Greater Birmingham region - and is costing an estimated £407 million a year. That is according to a new
survey by the Greater Birmingham Chambers of Commerce (GBCC). Nearly half of those surveyed
(47 per cent) said the volume of commuter traffic was the main cause of congestion, but roadworks (43 per cent) and school traffic (41 per cent) were also cited as key factors.
Businesses surveyed said that
the congestion problem was throwing up major issues, and among those were staff punctuality (28 per cent), reduced productivity (21 per cent) and increased costs (19 per cent). The findings of the Chamber
survey mirrors recent research into traffic congestion, one of which (Inrix Global Traffic Scorecard 2016) found that the city was the third most congested in England, and that on average, motorists in the city spent nine per cent of their total journey time in traffic. In turn, this costs the city a
massive £407 million in lost revenue. The report found that nearly half (41 per cent) of journeys in the region were less than two miles in length, a figure slightly higher than the national average (38 per cent). The Chamber says that the new
survey was a response to growing dissatisfaction among members about traffic congestion and the problems it causes. The organisation says that many
of the region’s problems are ‘deep rooted’ and go back to when the current key transport networks were designed, in the early 1960s. This placed the car at the heart of
Road to nowhere: Raj Kandola and Paul Faulkner
‘The issue of congestion has long blighted the West Midlands and is estimated to cost the region billions of pounds per year in lost revenue’
transportation, but half a century later the wheels have literally fallen off this solution. In the Chamber survey, more
than 70 per cent of businesses surveyed wanted to see some form of investment in the region’s transport infrastructure to deal with the congestion crisis. In particular, just over a third
wanted to see greater spending to create more capacity on the roads
6 CHAMBERLINK December 2017/January 2018
and a similar figure wanted to see money being spent on creating new railway lines, bus lanes, cycle paths and metro extensions in order to boost public transport usage. GBCC chief executive Paul
Faulkner said: “The issue of congestion has long blighted the West Midlands and is estimated to cost the region billions of pounds per year in lost revenue.
“Nevertheless, it is great to see
the Mayor working closely with regional partners such as Transport for West Midlands and various local authorities to ensure the foundations are laid to manage demand, increase capacity and improve traffic efficiency. “It is vital that the views of the
business community are absorbed by local and national stakeholders in order to overcome these problems.”
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