More than passengers: Transport, community and power

Britain’s transport policymaking is excessively centralised and cuts out local concerns. More Than Passengers is an exploration of devolution, contribution and responsibility in practical terms with relation to our nation’s transport needs.

The need for a changed approach can be found in both the growing opposition to major transport projects like Crossrail or HS2 as well as the ever growing list of local transport needs of a smaller but no less necessary scale. Rightly or wrongly too many citizens and local decision-makers feel that their voices are not heard in Whitehall on matters of transport policy and that they exercise too little influence over what does and doesn’t get built in their areas.

By shifting powers of policy making and even spending choices down from Whitehall to a regional level and granting those authorities the right to renegotiate contracts, overhaul franchising processes and have both voice and agency in deciding spending decisions on a regional basis, a new deal on transport policy between people and government can be achieved