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<p>GREATER MANCHESTER TRANSPORT STRATEGY 2040 A sustainable urban mobility plan for the future February 2017 5 needs. Additional transport links will be needed to unlock growth areas, particularly as the scale of growth means that sites on the edge of the urban area will need to be developed. • Access to skills and markets needs to be improved to allow people to take up the new jobs on offer, employers to recruit the best workers and businesses to deliver goods efficiently. • Journey time reliability on our roads and on public transport is essential, reducing the cost to business of delayed deliveries and employees arriving late. The cost of congestion in Greater Manchester has been estimated by TfGM to be £1.3 billion per year. • Networks need to be well maintained in order to function. We face an increasing challenge to keep networks open in the face of adverse weather conditions (linked to climate change), ageing infrastructure and more intensive operation. • The perception of Greater Manchester as a good place to live, invest and visit is vital to the economy. We must deliver the sort of efficient, seamless, intelligent and easy to use public transport system enjoyed by leading world cities, and urban areas that offer a safe, attractive and clean environment for walking and cycling. Improving the Quality of Life 20. Economic success, particularly in the Regional Centre and the south of Greater Manchester, has not yet spread to all areas and there are significant pockets of severe deprivation throughout the conurbation, particularly around the central urban core and the main towns. Many of our residents do not have access to a car and therefore rely heavily on public transport. We also have major challenges in terms of physical inactivity and road collisions. Our 2040 Transport Strategy can make a major contribution to improving the quality of life of all our residents by helping to address some of the critical challenges highlighted below: • Access to jobs and training needs to be improved so that transport is not a barrier to people taking up work, or moving to a better job. Where businesses operate 24/7 or have variable working hours it can be difficult to provide public transport, and the cost of travel is a serious issue for those in lower-paid jobs. • Good access to services such as education, healthcare, shopping and recreation is essential, particularly for disadvantaged groups and people living in isolated areas. Our town centres are threatened by changing retail trends and elsewhere many of our services, such as healthcare, are becoming more centralised and, in some cases, more difficult to reach. • Improving health is an area where transport can make a significant contribution by increasing levels of active travel. Much needs to be done to make this a real option by improving safety, providing better infrastructure and facilities and building confidence through training. We must make walking and cycling the natural choice for everyday shorter trips, many of which are currently made by car. • Safety and security are fundamental. Good progress has been made in reducing the number of people killed or seriously injured on our roads but all partners must work hard to deliver our vision of reducing the number of road deaths to close to zero by 2040. Public transport is a very safe way to travel, but some people are deterred from using it by the fear of crime and anti-social behaviour, which we must continue to tackle. 6 21. Further details relating to the infographics above can be found in the Evidence Base. Protecting our Environment 22. Motorised transport has brought great benefits to society, giving easy access to a wide range of opportunities, but its impact on the environment can be very damaging. At a global level, CO2 emissions are a major contributor to climate change, which may disrupt transport networks e.g. through increased flooding. At the same time, a concentration of harmful emissions in areas close to major highways contributes to illness and premature death, while noise can also blight communities: IMPROVING THE QUALITY OF LIFE OF HOUSEHOLDS HAVE NO CAR OF THE GM POPULATION LIVES IN ONE OF THE 10% MOST DEPRIVED AREAS OF THE UK OF ALL ADULTS DO NOT GET THE RECOMMENDED LEVEL OF PHYSICAL ACTIVITY HALF OF ALL TRIPS ARE LESS THAN BY 2040 ADULTS WILL BE OVER 60 1-IN-4 ADULTS WILL BE OVER 70 1-IN-6 1 2 31% 1 5 AND 38% OF THESE SHORT TRIPS ARE BY CAR 2KM KSIs PER 100,000 POPULATION GM 26 UK 39 CYCLIST INJURED ON GM ROADS (2013) 569 PEDESTRIANS INJURED ON GM ROADS (2014) 1000 OVER WERE CHILDREN (AGED 0-15yrs) 1 3 THE COST TO THE NHS IN GREATER MANCHESTER OF PHYSICAL INACTIVITY £35M Greater Manchester has reduced casualty rates (per head of population) to below the national average but we still have a high number of pedestrian and cycle injuries and many of these involve children 7 23. Further details relating to the infographics above can be found in the accompanying Evidence Base. 24. Key challenges for protecting our environment are: • Increasing the use of sustainable transport to reduce the negative impacts of car use. Many people do not currently see sustainable modes as realistic alternatives and we must continue to work hard to improve the quality of our walking, cycling and public transport networks and to provide people with the facilities and training to make them natural, easy choices. The design of new development needs to make it easier for people to use sustainable modes. • Reducing transport emissions is a particular challenge, given that economic and population growth will increase the demand for travel, hence more radical measures will be needed to enable Greater Manchester to meet challenging standards and targets, in terms of air quality and in response to the challenge of climate change. • Making the best use of existing infrastructure will help to reduce environmental impacts. Locating new development where there is good access to public transport and services will reduce car travel and therefore emissions. Road and rail networks must also be used as efficiently as possible, and be well maintained. • Both the natural and built environment need to be protected from the impacts of transport, and enhanced. Damage to, or loss of, habitats as a result of construction, disturbance from traffic noise or street lighting, and pollution due to run-off from highways must all be minimised. PROTECTING OUR ENVIRONMENT TRANSPORT IS RESPONSIBLE FOR A THIRD OF CARBON EMISSIONS CARBON REDUCTION 1990-2020 AND 80% BY 2050 ECONOMIC COST IF WE DO NOT TACKLE CLIMATE CHANGE INCREASE IN WINTER RAINFALL AND ANNUAL MEAN TEMP RISE OF UP TO BY 2050 13% +2.3˚C FROM AIR POLLUTION DEATHS PER YEAR 48% £20bn 1000 CO2 8 Developing an Innovative City Region 25. Digital systems and devices have already become part of our everyday lives, but global developments in technology offer huge potential to change the way we live and work: improving performance and reliability of our networks; reducing costs and resource consumption; and enabling service providers to engage more effectively and actively with citizens. We do not see innovation as an end in itself, but more a philosophy that we need to embrace, in a thoughtful and applied way, to everything that we do in transport over the coming years. Further details relating to the infographics above can be found in the Evidence Base. 26. We will seek to exploit new technologies and innovative approaches where we believe they add real value to the delivery of our strategy, and particularly in the five key areas shown in the graphic below: TECHNOLOGY AND INNOVATION BY 2020 68% MORE THAN THINGS WILL BE CONNECTED DEVELOPMENT OF NEW TECHNOLOGY IS TO THE INTERNET BY 2020 50BILLION OF UK ADULTS WILL BE DAILY MOBILE INTERNET USERS 60%OF ONLINE CONSUMERS WILL USE MOBILE SOCIAL NETWORKING APPS 2000 2010 2015 PATENT APPLICATIONSGROWING EX PO NENTIALLYAUTOMOTIVE TECH WORTH ESTIMATED £900bn GLOBALLY BY 2025 Improved access to better data Reducing the need to travel and transport goods Reducing transport’s impact on the environment Improving the customer experience including safety and security Improving performance and resilience Transport Innovation 9 Building on Success 27. We already have significant improvements in progress to improve the capacity and resilience of our transport networks over the coming years, including: • An effective doubling of capacity on our suburban rail network through electrification programmes, delivery of the Northern Hub, and new Northern and TransPennine franchise specifications which will relieve the majority of our overcrowding issues, up to the mid-2020s. Beyond, that additional capacity will be needed on our rail networks, through improvements to infrastructure and rolling stock provision, to accommodate rapid growth in the City Region. • We are close to completing the delivery of significant additional capacity on our rapid transport networks to support growth in the medium-term future. This includes major expansion of our Metrolink network to Oldham, Rochdale, East Didsbury, Ashton, Manchester Airport and Trafford Park , and delivery of the Second City Centre crossing, plus more double-unit vehicles operating on the busiest Metrolink lines and delivery of the Bus Priority Package (which includes the Leigh- Salford-Manchester busway). However, before 2040, we anticipate a need for significant additional rapid transit capacity, particularly in the City Centre where lack of capacity will restrict the further expansion of the network. • On our highways networks, we are developing a Greater Manchester-wide approach to managing, maintaining and improving our Key Route Network of major roads which play the biggest role in supporting our City Region economy, and have been investing heavily in innovative real-time traffic management and information systems to improve the reliability of our roads. • Investment in the first phases of a comprehensive Greater Manchester-wide cycle network, through our Velocity programme, supported by large-scale cycle training and travel choices programmes to encourage more cycling and walking. • Investment in modern, attractive interchanges in our town centres, supported by further programmes of targeted bus priority and passenger facility improvements across our bus network. 28. However, the scale of the growth challenge we are facing over the coming years will need much more investment and careful planning and management of our transport systems, co-ordinated closely across the different elements of Greater Manchester’s growth and public service reform agenda. 29. The policies and interventions set out in this document in Parts 2 and 3 have been developed to provide a comprehensive toolkit for addressing all of the challenges outlined above. As we move from broad interventions to specific schemes and funding programmes, set out in the Delivery Plan, we will need to prioritise those measures which best meet our long-term goals, with a particular focus on raising prosperity for all, whilst establishing a sustainable growth path for the City Region. Our well- developed approach to prioritisation ensures that investment is targeted in a manner that supports the economic performance of the City Region first and foremost, whilst also ensuring that at a programme level, we are able to address Greater Manchester’s wider environmental and well-being challenges. 10 Scope of this Document 30. This document sets out Greater Manchester’s Transport Strategy for 2016 to 2040. It takes as its starting point the ‘Greater Manchester 2040 Transport Strategy: Our Vision’, which received widespread support through public and stakeholder consultation in the summer of 2015 (the results are reported at www.tfgm.com/2040). The strategy has been developed by TfGM, in consultation with the ten District Councils (Bolton, Bury, Manchester, Oldham, Rochdale, Salford, Stockport, Tameside, Trafford and Wigan), the GMLEP, and approved by the GMCA and the Interim Greater Manchester Mayor. 31. We recognise that the world around us is likely to change significantly in 25 years, in ways that we cannot always predict. We will need to refresh our strategy on a regular basis to reflect new challenges and opportunities. In particular we will need to ensure we have the appropriate transport infrastructure and services to support future growth in Greater Manchester. 32. The Greater Manchester Spatial Framework, which will identify new development locations, is still (in 2016) under development and so our transport strategy needs to be flexible to enable it to influence and support proposals as they are brought forward. This flexibility is achieved through a series of five- year Delivery Plans, which will accompany the Strategy. These will set out our spending programmes, based on the resources available. Each Delivery Plan will be updated annually to describe the progress made in delivering the Strategy and to reflect any changes needed. Taken together, the Strategy and Delivery Plans will constitute Greater Manchester’s Fourth Local Transport Plan, as shown below: 33. This strategy has been developed in line with current Local Transport Plan guidance and European best practice in creating Sustainable Urban Mobility Plans. It is based on a thorough analysis of a range of supporting evidence, which is presented in more detail in our 2040 Evidence Base report. We have also undertaken an Integrated Assessment of the Strategy to ensure that it fully considers environmental, health, habitats and equalities impacts. 34. The draft Strategy and Delivery Plan were the subject of a 12-week consultation, beginning in July 2016, to which over 80 stakeholder groups and almost 1,690 members of the public responded. This incorporated a range of elements including a dedicated webpage, an animation that distilled the strategy into a 3-minute video, strong media coverage, a comprehensive social and mainstream media plan, and a well-attended stakeholder event. The documents themselves were available online and this included accessible versions: a British Sign Language video, Easy Read, Large Print and Audio versions. Sets out a vision for transport in Greater Manchester 2040, identifying what success looks like for different types of travel. Highlights wider policy linkages and likely drivers of future travel demands. Includes indicative delivery timeline. Our 2040 Vision Contains more detail on how we will achieve our Vision, including the interventions we will bring forward in the short, medium and long term. Supported by a robust Integrated Assessment and Evidence Base Greater Manchester Transport Strategy 2040 Our new Greater Manchester 2040 Local Transport Plan Five year transport spending plans (updated annually). Monitoring and evaluation of transport delivery. Greater Manchester Local Transport Delivery Plans 11 35. Responses to the online questionnaire showed that 72% of respondents either agreed or strongly agreed that the strategy would help to deliver the vision. There was also strong support for the principles, priorities, spatial themes and Delivery Plan. Respondents also had the opportunity to answer an open question on ‘What one thing would make travel in Greater Manchester easier for you?’ The responses to this question, along with stakeholder comments were used to amend the draft documents. 36. A report on the consultation outcomes was approved by GMCA in October 2016 and the Final Strategy and Delivery Plan were approved in December 2016. 37. The remainder of this document is structured around three key parts: • Part 2 sets out some key strategic principles and policies for delivering a more customer-focused Greater Manchester transport system. These cover the principles we need to apply across our transport system as well as our strategic approach to planning and managing different modes of transport, including highways, walking and cycling, and public transport. • Part 3 focuses on the five “spatial themes” which we introduced in our 2040 Vision, highlighting key challenges, ambitions and interventions for different types of travel in Greater Manchester. • Finally, our approach to delivery is set out in more detail in Part 4, including a summary of policies and key interventions, our approach to funding and prioritisation, and how we will measure performance. 12 Part 2 Supporting Travel in Greater Manchester in 2040: Strategic Principles and Policies Introduction 38. Since we published our first LTP in 2001, Greater Manchester’s transport strategy has had a consistent focus on sustainable transport and regeneration, and so we are already working hard to tackle many of the economic, environmental and quality of life challenges described in Part 1. 39. However, we will need to go much further in order to deliver the scale of ambition set out in our 2040 Vision document. Greater Manchester’s growth and reform agenda, secured through the ground breaking 2014 Greater Manchester Agreement, will give us some of the additional tools we need to achieve our aspirations, through further devolution of powers and funding to a locally elected Greater Manchester Mayor. 40. We will build on our existing successful transport strategy and continue to develop and apply consistently a series of strategic principles and policies across our transport system. These are set out in more detail within this section and set a framework within which we can bring forward specific measures to tackle issues in different parts of Greater Manchester, as described in Part 3. 13 A More Customer-Focused Transport System: Our Network Principles 41. Meeting the varied transport needs of our residents, businesses and visitors is at the heart of our 2040 Transport Strategy. We are mindful that our transport system facilitates the movement of people and goods, and we must consider the needs of both as we plan for the future. 42. We have therefore established seven mutually reinforcing principles, set out below, which we will apply consistently as we improve Greater Manchester’s transport system to ensure that it meets the needs of all customers: Our Customers Residents Businesses Visitors Integrated Inclusive Healthy Environmentally Responsible Reliable Safe and Secure Well Maintained and Resilient 14 Integration at the Heart of our 2040 Transport Strategy 43. A fundamental aspiration of the 2040 Transport Strategy is to provide Greater Manchester residents, visitors and businesses with real choice in their mode of travel and how goods are transported. In particular, we must provide sustainable travel options that offer an attractive alternative to the private car and minimise the negative impacts of road freight on our City Region. Tackling these issues will enable Greater Manchester to deliver its economic growth, environmental and quality of life goals without traffic congestion and pollution undermining its long-term success. 44. A major barrier to enabling people and goods to travel more sustainably is the lack of integration across the different parts of the transport network. This makes it difficult for customers to understand what travel options are available to them; how they access and pay for these; and how to move between different modes of transport for more complex journeys. Much of this is due to the complexity of different institutions and transport operators involved in planning and delivering our transport system. This is why developing a more joined-up approach to planning and delivering transport is at the heart of Greater Manchester’s devolution and reform agenda. An Integrated Transport Network 45. While the concept of integration is not new, the delivery of a truly integrated transport system has, in the last 30 years, been beyond our reach due to a range of regulatory and institutional barriers. 46. Through this strategy, we will stop viewing different modes of transport as separate networks, with individual asset management, service planning, and fares and ticketing regimes, and instead plan our transport system as a single, highly-connected entity that all customers can move through seamlessly. This will allow us to prioritise transport improvements more effectively, based on the needs of different travel markets and to save valuable resources by minimising duplication of expenditure and activity across different modes. 47. A network approach will also enable us to meet a much wider variety of travel demands, facilitating easier interchange at key nodes on our transport network and, along with improved services, enabling people to make orbital, as well as radial, movements much more easily. 48. We will enhance our public transport network so that bus, rail and tram services and facilities are planned and delivered in a much more integrated way to minimise the time and cost penalties of changing between services. We will develop more comprehensive and easy to understand cycle and walking networks that facilitate access to a range of destinations and integrate well with our public transport networks. And we will develop a more joined-up approach to planning and maintaining our strategic and local highways networks, to meet the sometimes conflicting needs of different users and considering the role - both positive and negative - of highways in shaping local places. 49. Over the coming years, we will focus on significantly improving people’s travel experience. We will aim to ensure that individual customers are able to make their journeys in the most flexible way, using multiple modes of transport, through innovative new ways of planning and paying for travel and through access to real-time information. The latter will enable customers to make informed choices about how, where and when they travel, putting them in control and facilitating more sustainable travel behaviour. Our Ambition: To enable people to move seamlessly between services and modes of transport on a single, high quality, easy-to-use network; maximising choice and supporting low-car lifestyles, made possible by integrated land use and transport planning. 15 50. Technology developments open up a range of new opportunities for delivering an integrated and customer-focused transport system to meet future customer needs (see graphic below). 51. Such an approach also blurs the traditional boundaries between public and private transport, and TfGM’s role will have an increasing focus on enabling mobility and improving connectivity for everyone no matter how they choose to travel. 52. We recognise that there are parts of the current transport offer in Greater Manchester that are under- developed, thereby making car use essential, rather than optional, for some residents of the City Region. In sections 118-218 we set out the types of improvement needed for different transport modes. However, there is also potential to exploit the increasingly popular “sharing economy” concept to enable people to access a car or a bike for occasional trips, even if they do not own one as an individual. Hence, we want to see a more comprehensive low-emission car club offer in Greater Manchester, as well as developing options for cycle hire or sharing schemes. This will provide a more comprehensive travel offer to our residents and businesses, and has potential to reduce the number of cars on the roads and parking provision needed. 53. We also recognise the importance of other supporting modes of transport, such as taxis, private hire and demand responsive services, which can fill gaps in our transport system, enabling people to make the first or last leg of their journey if they live or work in a location that is remote from the mainstream public transport network. Specialist accessible transport is also essential for people who have mobility impairments and cannot easily use conventional public transport. 54. Again, the development of new technologies and applications will make it easier and more convenient for people to plan, book and pay for journeys by more demand responsive services, potentially as part of longer multi-modal trips. We will continue to work with a range of different commercial and community transport operators to ensure that these supporting modes of transport are fully embedded into our transport strategy and are seen as an integral part of a fully integrated, accessible transport system in Greater Manchester. Policy 1: We will work with partners to ensure that supporting modes of transport, including taxis, private hire, demand responsive services, car clubs and cycle hire, are available and fully integrated into the Greater Manchester transport network. 16 Integrated Information, Fares and Ticketing 55. Journey planning and wayfinding tools need to provide customers (both passengers and freight operators) with simple and straightforward information about their travel options prior to and during travel. Technology will increasingly enable such tools to be tailored to meet the needs of individual customers, through the use of web-based tools and apps, delivered directly to mobile devices and vehicles to provide customers with accurate information and support throughout their journey. We will make our transport data available as ‘Open Data’ to allow third parties to develop apps which will benefit our customers. 56. TfGM and its partners will focus on rapidly evolving travel planning tools over the coming years to improve information to travellers and to enable us to respond more quickly to incidents on the network, for example the Optimised Public Transport Information System (OPTIS) will provide a single portal for travel information and planning to provide multi-modal travel information to help travellers to make informed decisions on their journeys. Future developments could include adding data on roadworks, incidents/events, and a ‘predictive’ function to warn customers of the potential impacts on their journey of, for example, adverse weather. Expansion of CCTV and other sensor coverage will allow better real-time monitoring of our transport networks and feedback issues to customers. 57. At the same time, we will continue to provide information in a range of formats, recognising that not everyone has access to digital devices OBJECTIVES OF THE GREATER MANCHESTER FARES AND TICKETING STRATEGY A B C £ £ £ 10% OFF £= A B C £5 £7 £10 SIMPLICITY Customers can easily understand and choose options, and transport products/offers are straightforward to promote and market. CONVENIENCE Transactions are quick and easy for the passenger, one payment allows multi-modal travel and delivers efficiencies to the operator. VALUE FOR MONEY Passengers see fare as a fair price for the service they get. TRANSPARENCY AND TRUSTWORTHINESS Passengers have clear understanding of pricing and product. INCLUSIVITY Relates to the affordability of public transport pricing (and may require the use of concessions). BALANCED FUNDING Relates to the extent that ticket revenues contribute to the costs of operating the public transport network. 17 58. We will develop a much more consistent approach to transport information, pricing and payment systems to allow customers the opportunity to search and pay for a range of different travel services, such as public transport, car clubs, cycle hire and parking, in a much more straightforward way through “account-based travel”, sometimes referred to as “mobility as a service”. This concept, which is illustrated in the graphic above on public transport fares strategy objectives, could be delivered through a smartcard, credit/debit card, mobile phone or other cashless technology. Such an approach could also support a more sophisticated and responsive approach to managing demand on our transport networks. Integrated Travel Choices 59. To make effective use of all our transport networks and obtain good value from public investment, we need people to be able to make informed decisions about which mode of travel best suits their needs for a particular journey, rather than always travelling by car (however in some rural and suburban areas the population density does not support good public transport, making car or taxi use more of a necessity). 60. We will focus on measures that encourage people to travel, or freight to be moved: by a different mode; on a different part of the network; or at a different time, where feasible; to make more efficient use of available capacity, particularly during peak periods. This will include addressing the drivers of travel behaviour where possible, such as encouraging employers to allow home working on some days. Future demand management will include measures to encourage people to make at least some of their journeys by public transport, walking and cycling, which has long been at the heart of Greater Manchester’s transport strategy. In addition to physical measures (bus priority measures, reallocating road space for pedestrian and cycling infrastructure, car share schemes, and constraints on long-stay parking in our key centres), a range of supporting measures will be needed. 61. A consistent, long-term approach to travel choices, promotions and marketing will provide people and businesses with the information, training and incentives to make better informed decisions about how, when and where they travel and the impact of their choices. It will also seek to improve travel horizons for those whose life and employment chances may be constrained by a lack of travel awareness. Greater Manchester already has a comprehensive Travel Choices programme focussed on the journey to work, working with businesses to encourage their staff to travel sustainably; helping jobseekers travel to interviews and to their workplace during the initial period of employment; encouraging individuals to use public transport, cycling or walking infrastructure in their area; and promoting cycling in secondary schools and colleges. A continuing programme of Travel Choices will be important in complementing the interventions described in Part 3 and we will seek partnership funding for this, including developer contributions, to focus on: • Making best use of the transport network; • Maximising the benefit of new, integrated transport infrastructure and services; • Delivering public health benefits through encouraging active travel; • Supporting town and city centres; Policy 2: Working with partners, we will seek to deliver integrated pricing and payment systems across the transport network, including integrated fares and smart ticketing for public transport, to support the delivery of ‘Mobility as a Service’. 18 • Improving access to key services and job opportunities; and • Maximising sustainable travel in new developments 62. Future programmes will be targeted at specific locations and target population groups in order to maximise the impact. For example, to make the best use of the existing transport network, target areas might include key commuter corridors and centres of activity, while target groups could comprise commuters, parents of school-age children, those with the potential to switch mode, or those who are at lifetime transition points such as moving house or starting a new job. We will also target travel choices programmes at areas with poor air quality. 63. We also need to reduce demands on roadspace from the road freight sector, particularly during the peak, through measures such as freight consolidation, delivery and servicing plans, freight routing strategies and use of sustainable modes (see section 211). Integration with Spatial Planning 64. Greater Manchester is now a rapidly growing City Region and a national growth engine. Trend data alone suggests that Greater Manchester will have a population in excess of 3 million (currently 2.7 million) by the mid-2030s. Further devolution of transport and spatial planning powers to Greater Manchester provides an important opportunity to plan our development and transport needs in a more integrated way across the City Region. 65. The first Greater Manchester Spatial Framework is currently in development, and will set the scale and distribution of housing and employment growth across Greater Manchester, to support delivery of significant levels of growth over the next twenty years. It is clear that the challenges involved in achieving the expected growth are considerable. 66. Accommodating this scale of growth without significant additional congestion on our already busy transport networks will be a huge challenge. We will need to identify not only development locations that are well served by public transport, walking and cycling, but less accessible locations where a sufficient scale and density of development could support new provision, applying public transport- oriented development principles wherever possible. 67. Integration with spatial planning is critical in influencing people’s travel choices. Fundamentally, the transport network needs to connect the places people live with the places where they work, study, play, shop, visit, and access public services like healthcare. The location of housing close to facilities and public transport tends to reduce the levels of car use. While most places in Greater Manchester are served by public transport, some developments have been designed around the car making them difficult to reach in any other way. The car will continue to play an important role in supporting economic growth and opening up opportunities for people to improve their quality of life. However, many of the negative impacts of transport, such as congestion, high emissions, noise and road traffic casualties, are a consequence of our over-reliance on the car, and the locational decisions that have made it a more convenient choice for many journeys have contributed to this. The design of development, e.g. in terms of the availability of parking, the availability of safe and direct walk/cycle routes, the provision of secure cycle parking or the availability of EV charging points, also influences travel choices. Policy 3: We will maintain a conurbation-wide programme of travel choices interventions, supported by journey planning tools and information, to encourage travel behaviour change and mode shift, in order to make the most efficient use of available capacity, particularly during peak periods. 19 68. TfGM will continue to work with planning authorities and developers to better integrate transport and new development in accordance with the principles of: • Reducing the need to travel by car, and the distance travelled; • Maximising accessibility by sustainable modes; • Making the best use of existing infrastructure, particularly through increasing the density of development close to public transport nodes; • Maximising opportunities to provide additional public transport; and • Designing to encourage active travel. 69. This will involve providing advice on Development Plan Documents and significant planning applications, with the aim of reducing the need to travel by car and maximising travel by sustainable modes. 70. More information on how the strategy supports GMSF is included in Part 3: Travel Across the Wider City Region. An Inclusive Network 71. To meet the scale of ambition set out in the Greater Manchester Strategy, we must ensure that everyone in Greater Manchester is able to access a range of employment, training, health and leisure opportunities to enable them to lead productive, healthy and fulfilling lives. In 2013, 7% of the population in Greater Manchester was claiming Disability Living Allowance, but the numbers of people with some form of mobility impairment will be much higher. Therefore we must make sure that our transport network is as inclusive and accessible as possible. An accessible transport network will become even more critical as the proportion of our population that is elderly continues to grow over the coming decades. Consistent standards of vehicles, facilities and customer care are needed to give disabled people the confidence that they can make their journey on public transport. 72. In line with our responsibilities under the Equality Act, 2010, we will continue to ensure that all new transport infrastructure, vehicles and information are designed to be as accessible as possible to all our customers, regardless of their age and mobility. We will also continue to deliver accessibility improvements to our existing transport networks, targeting those parts of our transport system which most require improvement and cause most disadvantage to those with a mobility impairment. Our Ambition: To develop a fully inclusive and affordable sustainable transport system for all. Policy 4: TfGM will continue to work with planning authorities and developers to ensure the accessibility of new development by sustainable modes and to reduce the impact on the highway network Policy 5: We will work with operators and Highway Authorities to ensure that that all transport infrastructure, vehicles and information are as accessible as possible to all our customers, regardless of their age and mobility. 20 73. Affordability of transport is also an important issue, particularly for residents on limited incomes, many of whom depend on public transport. Season tickets can offer good value to people who need to travel five days or more a week, but these do not benefit part-time workers, who have to pay higher daily fares. In the future, we are likely to see increasing numbers of people working or studying on a part- time, flexible or short-term contract basis, or home-working on some days, and so flexible ticketing options will become even more important to support our rapidly changing economy. We must also ensure that our transport system is priced in a way that encourages sustainable travel behaviour and manages demand effectively on our constrained networks. More flexible fares and ticketing options are a critical part of our Vision for Bus (see section 170). 74. Concessionary fares play an important role in meeting people’s travel needs. The national scheme provides free weekday bus travel after 9.30 am for those who have reached pensionable age or have a disability , but Greater Manchester has a more extensive local scheme that extends this to Metrolink and local rail. With an ageing population, the cost of providing these concessions is likely to increase. We also recognise the importance of public transport for young people, for whom concessions are currently linked to being in full-time education, and will seek to introduce a more flexible system that recognises the role played by apprenticeships, work placements and part-time study in improving their future prospects. 75. For those without access to a car, the availability of public transport may determine whether they can access jobs or training or attend medical appointments without recourse to more costly individual travel options. This can be a particular issue for people working in the night-time economy. TfGM provides support for a network of socially necessary bus services, which would not otherwise be provided, but this is limited by budget. We will continue to work with bus, rail and Metrolink operators to ensure that the network meets peoples’ needs as far as possible. We will also work with partners to 21 better co-ordinate the provision of door-to-door transport, in order to increase its availability to disabled customers. 76. For those who are able to cycle, we will promote cycling as a low cost alternative for travel to work and education, including developing cycle links to key employment areas. Supporting a Healthier Greater Manchester 77. Transport can have a major impact on people’s health. It provides access to healthcare and other services, enables people to visit friends and family, and links them with green spaces. On the negative side, motorised transport can make people less active, leading to obesity, increases the severity of collisions and produces damaging emissions which either affect health directly or through climate change. 78. The huge potential of walking and cycling to reduce car mileage, improve access to key facilities, and improve public health, is now widely understood. While recognising the role of personal choice in travel decisions, we will encourage people who are able to do so to travel actively in order to improve their health, as discussed in Part 1. This is particularly important in relation to tackling childhood obesity - establishing active travel behaviour early in life for day-to-day journeys or for leisure can greatly improve health outcomes. 79. Reduced local authority budgets, which are projected for the first Delivery Plan period of this strategy, will make it increasingly difficult to provide the socially necessary bus services, including door-to-door services provided for people with disabilities, which are not provided by commercial operators. We will continue to monitor the impact of this on social isolation, so as to safeguard against health problems such as depression, and problems in residents being able to attend health appointments. People who are able to access a range of social contacts and to visit parks and countryside are likely to have better mental health, while attending medical appointments is important in improving long term health outcomes. 80. The devolution of health and social care to Greater Manchester provides the opportunity for a much more joined-up approach to health, by linking it to other aspects of life. People who are more active will enjoy better health and be less likely to need medical intervention and this will bring savings to health budgets. 81. In recent years, we have been very successful in securing funding and establishing new partnership arrangements, e.g. with Sustrans, to deliver major improvements to our active travel infrastructure, such as significant expansion of our network of cycle routes and cycle parking facilities, together with supporting activities such as cycle training and maintenance, and promoting walking for health. The Greater Manchester Cycling Strategy, 2014 (see section 159) aims to create ‘a well-established cycling culture, integral to the region’s health and prosperity’. It aims to ‘double and double again’ the Our Ambition: To develop a transport system that supports people in leading active, healthy lives. Policy 6: We will work with partners to better integrate the provision of Accessible Transport services, to increase availability and convenience for customers. Policy 7: We will work with partners, including through Health Devolution, to deliver transport interventions that improve the health of GM residents, including: increasing levels of physical activity; improving access to healthcare; and reducing social isolation. 22 proportion of trips made by bicycle by 2025, with the aspiration that 10% of all trips should be made by bike. Ultimately, our aim is to establish cycling as a recognised and attractive component of our future integrated transport offer. 82. However, while cycling is increasing, much more needs to be done to achieve the desired scale of change and more investment is essential to provide safe and convenient routes that connect people to jobs, key services and opportunities for recreation. In view of the serious health consequences of inactive lifestyles, and the significant numbers of very short trips which are currently being made by car (88% of trips within Greater Manchester are of 5 miles or less, and more than half of these are by car), we have forged strong partnerships to work across sectors to increase walking and cycling (see box). ‘Greater Manchester Moving’, 2015, aims to bring about large-scale change that will reduce sedentary behaviour and increase participation in physical activity throughout life. It commits partners (Public Health England, NHS Clinical Commissioning Groups, Sport England, Greater Sport, GMCA, the local authorities and TfGM) to: • Increase the number of people running and walking; • Increase the number of people cycling; • Create more attractive and sustainable environments and communities; and • Create a transport system that promotes an active life. 83. The focus of activity to drive these much higher levels of active travel will be influenced by funding opportunities and we will work with partners to co-fund activities which meet shared objectives. 23 Environmental Responsibility 84. Local air pollution and carbon emissions cause significant harm to health and the environment and, as a result, have an adverse impact on the economy. Climate change, mainly caused by CO2 and other greenhouse gas emissions, looks likely to give us: warmer, drier summers, impacting on water supply and soil shrinkage/subsidence; warmer, wetter winters with increased flood risk from rivers and surface run-off; and more extreme weather patterns. In terms of local air pollution, the most dangerous pollutants are NO2 and particulates, small particles which are harmful even in low concentrations. Both of these contribute to respiratory illness, as well as cardio-vascular problems and cancer, and lead to thousands of early deaths in Greater Manchester (and other major cities) every year. Transport is a major source of all three emissions in the conurbation, contributing 76% of NO2, 82% of particulates and 32% of CO2, due to the continued high dependence on traditional engine technology, and use of petrol and diesel to fuel vehicles. 85. In response to the global climate change agenda, the Greater Manchester Strategy set an ambitious 2020 target for reducing carbon emissions by 48% from 1990 levels. Greater Manchester has demonstrated clear commitment alongside global cities by becoming a signatory to three International commitments on climate change: The Integrated Covenant of Mayors, The Compact of Mayors, and the Under 2 MOU. 86. At present (in 2016), the UK is in breach of EU emission levels for NO2, which is extremely damaging to health. A single Greater Manchester Air Quality Management Area (AQMA) was declared on 1st May Our Ambition: For Greater Manchester to be known for the quality of its urban areas, natural environments with transport emissions reduced to near zero, and new transport schemes delivering environmental enhancements whenever possible. Walking Cycling Train* Tram Bus Motorbike Car** Taxi (regular) Taxi (Black cab) Aeroplane Transport Carbon Emissions Adapted from: DEFRA Greenhouse Gas Conversion Factor Repository (2013) Train, bus and tram figures based on national average patronage. * Average Diesel and Electric Rail Combined. ** Average Large and Small Car Combined. Carbon dioxide per passenger kilometre travelled 0.0 50 100 150 200 250 0 0 123 174 99 218 221 117 44 54 24 2016 (replacing the previous ten District AQMAs), covering the areas where levels are exceeded (or are at risk of being exceeded) and where there is risk of exposure to the general population. These are mainly areas close to the motorway network and the major roads converging on the Regional Centre and town centres, as shown on the map below. Greater Manchester Air Quality Management Area 87. Existing and planned measures, including the transport proposals in this strategy, are helping/will help to reduce emissions, however the need to reduce emissions in the context of a growing economy means that a concerted and co-ordinated effort, potentially requiring radical actions, is needed by all parties. The latest Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) forecasts suggest that Greater Manchester will comply with EU levels for NO2 by 2020 if action is taken now to implement proposed interventions. We will adopt appropriate measures to reduce significantly the emissions from transport, as set out in the Climate Change Implementation Plan and Air Quality Action Plan. We have developed a ‘Low Emissions Strategy’ to identify the types of measure that will have the greatest impact, given the mix of traffic in Greater Manchester. These include: changing travel behaviour; reducing emissions from HGVs; stimulating the uptake of ultra low-emission vehicles; and reducing emissions from buses on key urban corridors. 88. This has informed the detailed actions in our Climate Change Implementation Plan and statutory Air Quality Action Plan. The latter includes a commitment to carry out a feasibility study into a Clean Air Zone (CAZ), to assess whether emissions can be reduced without having a disproportionate impact on business. Policy 8: We will work with partners to reduce, as far as possible, the emissions from transport, particularly CO2, NO2, particulates and noise. 25 89. Whilst our primary ambition is to encourage a shift to more sustainable modes of travel, we recognise that some journeys will always need to be undertaken on the highway network. In these instances our priority is to reduce the harmful emissions and population exposure levels. The ambition for smaller vehicles is a shift to a fully electric fleet. GM already has an extensive GMEV network and we will expand this further as funding allows. For heavy vehicles we will work with the Government and other city regions with the aim of establishing a consistent policy framework to encourage an accelerated uptake of alternatively fuelled vehicles. Within GM we will work with infrastructure providers and fleet operators to encourage and facilitate a shift to alternative fuelled vehicles or a retrofit of existing vehicles. 90. In addition to climate change and pollution concerns, the noise from motorised traffic can impact on the quality of life in residential areas and deter people from walking and cycling. Defra has identified ‘Noise Important Areas’ (NIA) in all the major cities where noise is a problem, and while electric vehicles will reduce this problem in the medium to long-term, we will take opportunities to reduce noise through design (including the use of noise-reducing surfacing) or traffic management (smoothing traffic flow) where possible. 91. Greater Manchester and its surrounding areas contain a number of statutory nature conservation sites of European level importance. These include Special Areas of Conservation, Special Protection Areas, Sites of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) and Ramsar sites. In addition to these areas protected under the European Habitats Directive, there are many locally important sites and green spaces, which both support wildlife and contribute to the wellbeing of the population. These locations are vulnerable to the effects of motorised traffic and the development of new infrastructure. 92. A high quality environment is increasingly seen as the key to attracting and retaining the best businesses and skilled workers, and ‘liveability’ is therefore an important issue which is influenced, to some extent, by transport. Urban areas with a rich cultural heritage and diverse green infrastructure, which are attractive and safe for people to walk and cycle in, and have access to efficient public transport networks, are generally more pleasant living environments. Creating attractive public realm to reduce the dominance of the car and create visual interest at street level can create safer neighbourhoods with more opportunity for social interaction. The natural environment is immensely valuable: creating an attractive public realm through the incorporation of critical green infrastructure can result in not only better social interaction and improved wellbeing but can mitigate transport emissions, improve health, stimulate economic investment and provide an overall betterment for the environment e.g. by improving water quality and reducing surface water runoff. 93. Reducing the impact of traffic, by increasing the use of public transport and through effective traffic management, will be essential if we are to achieve this and will improve the quality of life by reducing noise, severance and pollution. Transport is already contributing to regeneration in some areas, particularly through the expansion of Metrolink, which can stimulate investment in the surrounding area, and through the development of high quality passenger facilities in town centres. Greater Manchester is fortunate in having a number of countryside destinations, such as the Peak District National Park, within a relatively short distance, which adds the quality of life for residents. However more needs to be done to improve the quality of streets and public spaces and improve access to parks and countryside. Policy 9: We will work with partners, including the Canals and Rivers Trust, to enhance green and blue infrastructure to provide a safe and attractive environment for walking and cycling 26 94. New transport projects have the potential to impact on habitats and species and more generally on the Green Infrastructure network, through direct land-take for infrastructure (which may contribute to fragmentation) and construction and operational disturbance (noise, vibration, light pollution etc.) and emissions / contamination (air, water & soil), though it may also provide opportunities for enhancement. We will look for opportunities to enhance biodiversity and green infrastructure through transport schemes, for example, through planting. TfGM is a partner in the ‘City of Trees1’ project, which aims to plant a tree for every man, woman and child who lives in Greater Manchester within a generation. 95. Transport can pose a risk to water quality e.g. through runoff from highways following gritting. Pollution of water bodies (including groundwater) and increased risk of flooding must be prevented, both during the construction and operation of any transport project, for example through Sustainable Urban Drainage schemes, bio-remediation and use of tree pits. 96. Transport infrastructure and traffic can have a significant effect on the built environment and through this be detrimental to people’s quality of life. New transport projects need to be designed sensitively to be sympathetic with existing character and quality, and opportunities for improving built assets and their settings and public spaces should be examined. 97. Any development that would have an adverse impact on an important environmental site should be avoided as far as possible. If this cannot be achieved, the adverse impacts will be adequately mitigated, or, as a last resort, compensated for. In the case of European designated sites, a Habitat Regulations Appropriate Assessment is required for any proposal likely to have significant effects on the site. 1 http://cityoftrees.org.uk/ 27 98. Our aim is to minimise the impact of transport on the built and natural environment. Large transport schemes will be subject to statutory Environmental Assessment, as required by the planning process. However we will also continue to apply our established principles for the design of new infrastructure projects, as described in the Delivery Plan. A Reliable Network 99. Reliable transport networks are essential to allow the economy to function and grow. Journey times by road need to be predictable, particularly when journeys are time-critical e.g. for deliveries, for work or to attend an event; public transport has to be reliable if people are to have confidence in using it; and cycle networks need to be well maintained to offer a reliable level of service. 100. The cost of congestion on the highway network in Greater Manchester has been estimated at £1.3 billion per annum2. In addition to frustration for motorists and delays for business, highway congestion can have a significant impact on bus journey times, making public transport less attractive as an alternative mode, and leads to increased emissions. Reducing congestion can therefore help the planning and management of more fuel efficient transport, particularly for freight vehicles. 101. Road works can cause congestion and disruption and in 2013 the Greater Manchester Road Activities Permit Scheme was introduced to better co-ordinate the timing of road works and to monitor their impact. In the future there is the potential to make greater use if this data for journey planning, enabling people to change their route or mode of travel to avoid disruption. 102. We will continue to monitor the performance of the highway network and to identify improvements, such as changes to signal timings or redesign of junctions, at ‘hotspot’ locations. In some instances, additional highway capacity will be needed, particularly to serve new developments. However in a dense urban area the solution to increasing demand will generally need to involve a shift to sustainable modes rather than the provision of additional highway capacity. This may include re-allocating road space to public transport and cyclists in order to maximise the number of people that can be moved. 103. On the public transport network, we will continue to monitor reliability and work with operators to improve it. On rail and Metrolink, reliability is closely linked to resilience, which is discussed below. 104. Reliability is discussed in more detail in relation to individual modes in sections 118-218. 2 Cost of Congestion in Greater Manchester, TfGM HFAS Report 1853, 2015 Our Ambition: To develop a transport network that offers reliable journey times and gives people the confidence to use public transport. Policy 11: We will seek to deliver measures, and put in place appropriate management systems, to improve the reliability of the transport network. Policy 10: We will aim to minimise the impact of transport on the built and natural environment, (including townscape, the historic environment, cultural heritage, landscape, habitats and biodiversity, geodiversity, water quality, pollution, flood risk and use of resources) and will seek to deliver environmental enhancements and biodiversity net gain where possible. 28 A Well Maintained and Resilient Network 105. The economic performance of the city region depends on a functioning transport network. All assets, whether they are roads, rail lines, signals, interchanges, bus stops or cycle routes, need to be well maintained both to keep them in a safe and useable condition and to avoid the cost of replacing them unnecessarily. 106. If a section of road, or a structure, is allowed to deteriorate, the impact on collisions (and therefore safety), vehicle damage, network resilience, travel comfort, network performance and the ‘liveability’ of an area, can be significant. Recent winter weather events have caused severe and unpredictable damage, and exacerbated maintenance issues for roads and structures. A 2015 study of the Greater Manchester Key Route Network (see section 118 below) found that up to 28% of it would soon require maintenance. 107. On the rail-based network, a lack of spare capacity and alternative routes means that the impact of incidents is all the more disruptive. We will work to identify the locations where additional capacity could be beneficial in helping the network to recover from major incidents. The Metrolink Second City Crossing will be beneficial in this respect, providing an alternative route across the city centre. 108. Transport networks need to continue to provide a service even when planned or unplanned events intervene. When rail or tram services are unavailable due to a fault or engineering works, well publicised alternatives need to be available e.g. flexible ticketing allowing transfer to other modes/operators, or replacement services. When roads are closed (including closures due to flooding or snow) clearly signed diversionary routes are needed, along with information on the availability of alternative modes. Finally, when there are major visitor events the whole network needs to be managed (including provision of additional capacity where appropriate) to cope with much greater demand. 109. In the winter, key roads have to be gritted and cleared of snow and gullies cleared, while rail and tram routes have to be de-iced. However we will also need to adapt to different, or more extreme, weather, such as increased flooding, as a result of climate change. Measures to reduce run-off from the highway will be important in this respect, for example planting trees, which have the potential to reduce run-off (by as much as 80% compared to an asphalt surface). 110. In addition, we recognise that oil is a finite resource and that there is a risk that future price volatility will impact on the cost of travel and hence the economy. Our proposals to encourage a shift to sustainable modes will reduce this risk. However, we also need to recognise that the increased electrification of transport, which brings environmental benefits, may place pressure on power supply in some parts of the area and we need to work with the electricity supply industry to ensure that there is sufficient capacity. Our Ambition: To bring the transport network into a good state of repair, maintain it in that state and ensure that it is able to withstand unexpected events, exceptional demand and severe weather conditions. Policy 12: We will work with partners to maintain the transport system to a good standard, adapt it and improve its resilience to the effects of climate change 29 A Safe and Secure Transport System Improving Safety 111. Safety is a fundamental requirement of any transport system. The immediate aim is to contribute to the achievement of national and local targets for road safety, but our ultimate ambition must be to eliminate road deaths, as far as we can, in Greater Manchester. We will focus measures to improve safety on the most vulnerable users of the road network and on areas with a high number of collisions, particularly involving deaths or serious injuries. 112. Working through the GM Casualty Reduction Partnership (GMCRP), which comprises the ten local authorities, TfGM, Greater Manchester Police, Greater Manchester Primary Care Trust, the Greater Manchester Fire & Rescue Service, the Crown Prosecution Service, Her Majesty’s Courts Service and the Highways England, we have been successful in reducing deaths and serious injuries to road users. However in the period 2013-2015 more than 70% of the people killed or seriously injured on our roads fell into four particular categories of road user. The Greater Manchester Road Safety Plan, approved in 2013, identified these most vulnerable road users as pedestrians, cyclists, young drivers and their passengers, and motorcyclists. There is historic under-reporting of collisions involving pedestrians and cyclists, so the figures may be even higher. 113. Safety must also be a fundamental consideration in the desi</p>
