Create new route to help drive success

Sep 8 2010 by James Ramsbotham, The Journal

NECC has campaigned for years in order to get the message across on regional transport.

The North East has long seen lower levels of capital investment in its transport infrastructure than any other English region.

Stretches of road such as the Western Bypass operate at 160% of capacity, while elsewhere it has been illustrated that roads such as the A19, were they to be upgraded, would bring a benefit to cost ratio of 5:1.

In short, we have transport projects that are in need of investment, and in many cases they more than pay for themselves through increased economic growth.

Furthermore the East Coast Main Line also operates toward full capacity with demand rising beyond investment levels.

North East airports contribute a vast amount to our regional economy yet fiscal policy seems to be seeking to punish rather than promote these units of North East wealth creation.

Transport infrastructure north to Scotland is substandard and thoroughly unacceptable.

We are the only region without access to the strategic motorway network.

The hauliers in NECC membership agreed unanimously in a recent survey on the A19 roundabouts (Testos and Seaton Burn) and the A1 in Northumberland that upgrades are necessary and that upgrades would bring with them benefits for their businesses.

In a new policy environment that sees the emergence of local enterprise partnerships with an explicit role in delivering local transport priorities, obtaining a region-wide consensus as to what the North East’s transport priorities are is essential.

The North East needs to find a way of reconciling sub-regional and local transport infrastructure ambitions for the common regional good.

:: James Ramsbotham is chief executive of the North East Chamber of Commerce