A new deal for transport? - Transport Policy and Planning in Great Britain - page 123

At a national level bus operations were supported by the introduction of a Rural
Bus Fund and by a £40m increase in Fuel Duty Rebate to offset the effects of the
general increase in fuel duty. In addition a nationally supported minimum half-fare
standard for local authority concessionary fares schemes, although not designed to
make operators better off, would have the effect of increasing patronage and helping
sustain services. A national public transport information system using telephone or
internet (subsequently launched as 'Transport Direct') was also commissioned.
At a local level the Government opted to support the development of 'Quality
Partnerships' (collaborative schemes of investment between local authorities and bus
operators) as the best means of securing improvements in bus services. Legislation would
also give local authorities the power to enter into Quality Contracts with operators
for the exclusive right to run individual services according to their specification -
in effect a version of the franchising system already operating in London. However
these would be subject to ministerial approval and it was made clear that they would
only be contemplated as a last resort. In practice the QC provisions were merely an
empty political gesture to satisfy the many Labour-led local authorities who would
have preferred to see regulation reinstated instead.
In terms of promoting more sustainable travel, action was proposed at both national
and local levels. The objectives and targets of the National Cycling Strategy inherited
from the Conservatives were endorsed, as was the development of the National Cycle
Network. Significantly however the intention to produce a national walking strategy
was subsequently dropped for fear of engendering ridicule in the popular press.
Nationally the Government had also established a Cleaner Vehicles Task Force
and support under the Foresight programme for research and development in more
fuel-efficient and less polluting vehicles. It also wanted to extend the use of economic
instruments to encourage their take up by manufacturers and consumers. This was
reflected in a further 1% annual increase above inflation in fuel duty (to 6%), the
introduction of graduated Vehicle Excise Duty for cars, and a review of VED rates for
lorries to ensure these reflected the physical and environmental damage they caused.
Notwithstanding the range of initiatives included in LTPs to promote sustainable
travel it was acknowledged that they would not be sufficient to tackle the levels
of congestion and pollution afflicting many towns and cities. This led to the most
innovative feature of the White Paper, namely the proposal to give powers to local
authorities to introduce road user charges or workplace parking levies to reduce
traffic levels and to retain the revenue for local transport purposes as part of a
package of measures contained in an LTP. However in response to business lobbying
the Government backed down on original intentions to include retail and leisure
attractions within the scope of the parking levies (Walton 2003).
In total the content of the White Paper represented an enormously challenging
agenda and the Government acknowledged that there was a lot more work to do. To
assist in this it established the Commission for Integrated Transport (CfIT) chaired by
Professor David Begg - someone who had had valuable experience at the sharp end of
urban transport management as Leader of Edinburgh City Council. The Commission
was charged with monitoring the implementation of the New Deal and with providing
an independent forum through which contentious issues could be examined.