|
How do you make a city's transport work? By and large, transport in and around our cities will look and feel fractured to its users, because that is what it is. The road system, the railways, freight movements, buses, the flow of cars, business ands leisure traffic, walking and cycling all fall into different areas of responsibility. For some there is no obvious agent of responsibility at all other than the necessarily wide ranging plans of regional and national bodies. For others there may be intelligent planning at work, but within geographical boundaries that don't reflect the real urban area within which transport moves and interacts. Yet the success with which a city can move its residents, visitors and business people about is fundamental to its well being and future direction. For a city like Southampton, making its transport links work well impacts on a variety of ambitions: as a regional shopping centre, as a major regional centre for arts and culture, as an important industry and business service city, and of course as one of the country's leading ports. Somehow, these competing imperatives must work together, despite the variety of authorities dealing with them. To contribute significantly to this process was the aim of the Transport Summit 'Transport in the Solent Area - vision for 2025' held at the City's new football stadium in March. The report of the proceedings, together with recommendations for future action in the city was published on Friday 13 June. The summit, uniquely, I think, was convened through my office, and brought together contributors from all the City's major employers, from the city and County councils, from voluntary and community organisations in and around the city, and from national organisations able to bring policy insights into the specific concerns of Southampton and the Solent area. Prior to the summit, several thousand questionnaires on aspects of transport in the Solent were gathered from residents and employees, and the results were presented to the summit as an important snapshot of local concerns both on present facilities and future directions. The summit, I believe, succeeded in recognising that many of the issues and possible solutions were political in nature but were not the subject of Party political contests. It also succeeded in communicating to all present the interconnectedness of many of the key problems: efficient freight systems are good for jobs and are not just a nuisance on urban roads: an effective regional airport has considerable implications for the leisure and commercial life of the city: but unless the city, and particularly the inner city, is a liveable area for its residents and local travellers, much of the wider ambitions for the city will not be realised. At the heart of this is an appraisal, shared by the many different interests participating, of what Southampton and the Solent wants to be as a city in 2025, and what, therefore needs to be done in establishing transport that will make it work. Not revolutionary stuff perhaps, but already work is beginning to be shaped to maintain links in policy developments - a roundtable forum, transport 'champions', a 'gateway' group and other initiatives. The report reflects that these gains were achieved mainly by the dialogue established during the proceedings rather more than the presentations of policy or plans, important though they were. And it also poses a question for local MPs - can your position as Parliamentary representative also encompass one of animating and bringing together the may interests needed to transcend the planning silos often in place in cities and towns, without taking the role of pronouncing on the policy or arguing a 'corner'? On the evidence of the summit and its early results, it seems it can. |
| What
do you think about this - email
me and let me know page updated
24-May-2004
|