Government announces that £560m Local Sustainable Transport Fund is open for bidding
Wed 19 January 2011
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Bidding for the new Local Sustainable Transport Fund is now open the Government has announced. Local authorities will receive £560m funding towards innovative schemes which make local transport more sustainable and promote local economic development.
Full details of the Local Sustainable Transport Fund (LSTF) have been published in a Government white paper "Creating Growth, Cutting Carbon" which aims to encourage greater use of public transport, including increased uptake of electric and other ultra-low carbon vehicles.
Among the aims of the strategy, which sets out a vision for local solutions which will have a national impact are cutting 'red tape' for councils while cutting carbon, getting quick wins locally by investing in smaller-scale schemes to help create jobs and giving local people more power over initiating innovative transport schemes in their own areas to better meet local needs.
The Transport Minister Norman Baker said: “Good transport options at a local level are a vital part of reducing our carbon emissions, reducing congestion on our roads and encouraging economic growth. Not only are we investing more money, we are also reducing bureaucratic burdens on local authorities to cut red tape so they can deliver a better and more integrated transport system, from cycle support schemes to car sharing and better bus lanes.”
The Minister said that the LSTF provides a more streamlined funding system for local authorities, empowering them to make local decisions. This built on wider efforts to devolve power to the local level, he added.
The Government says that bids will be particularly welcomed from councils in partnership with voluntary groups and with support from local businesses. These could be for a wide-ranging list of initiatives including, but not limited to, car clubs, bike schemes and other projects that increase public transport use and create jobs.
The proposals received a mixed reception from transport and environmental commentators. Tom Foulkes, Director-General of the Institution of Civil Engineers (ICE), warned that £560m would not be enough to patch up the hole in the transport budgets of the UK's 300 local authorities that has resulted from the Government's cuts programme.
However, Friends of the Earth's Transport Campaigner Richard Dyer was more upbeat. He said:"This welcome new funding should help people make greener transport choices - and with recent rises in the cost of petrol, affordable travel alternatives are even more important.
"Local councils must play their part in tackling climate change - including encouraging people to opt for greener ways to get around like walking, cycling, public transport and car-sharing.
"Ministers must also introduce carbon budgets for each local area so that every council takes action, not just the greenest ones."
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