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IN VIEW Special report by Ged Henderson
MINDING THE GAP
Katie Day
It is widely acknowledged that better transport links are vital if Lancashire and the wider North is to drive up productivity and transform its economic performance.
The challenge is there for all to see – witnessed by frustrated commuters and businesses in the county on a daily basis.
Transport for the North (TfN) statistics show just 27 per cent of the region’s population can access 500,000 jobs in under an hour by rail - significantly less than other parts of the UK.
Unveiling its new Strategic Transport Plan earlier this year, the statutory body warned: “Poor road and rail connectivity is holding back the North, often acting as a binding constraint on growth, and exacerbated by the current deficient performance of our rail network.”
Katie Day, strategy director and TfN’s deputy chief executive, says its latest strategic plan, outlining priorities up to 2050, presents “a clear vision” for transforming the North’s transport network and spells out the prizes successful delivery would
bring. TfN has a range of statutory powers including becoming a partner in road and rail investment decisions and the overseeing, with the Department for Transport, of franchised rail services covering Northern and TransPennine Express.
Katie, who lives on the Fylde coast, has more than 20 years’ experience working in public bodies and central government, including the Department of Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) where she was head of operations for the Regional Growth Fund.
A key speaker at Lancashire Business View’s Built Environment conference, she says: “Our strategic plan is about the bigger picture and also the removal of barriers to opportunity.
“Better transport connections help our economy and society – whether it is opening up commercial opportunities, helping people access education, training and healthcare, or visiting leisure and cultural facilities.”
She adds that the rail network in the North needs major investment to address its current
performance and lack of capacity, both of which are holding back sustainable economic growth and productivity.
Katie says: “East-West rail links are crucial to journeys across the North. Equally, if we want to get more freight onto our rail network, which is the ambition of our strategic plan, then we need greater capacity on key corridors, such as the West Coast.
“An effective, efficient and integrated transport system is fundamental to our lives every day. It connects people and places to jobs and services.
“To realise the untapped economic potential of our region, we need to better connect our towns cities, rural and coastal locations – and that means investment in infrastructure.”
Improvement is much needed but there have been recent setbacks. The decision to axe the northern legs of the HS2 high-speed rail project, made by the last government, was widely condemned by business and political leaders across the North.
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