Greater Manchester’s upcoming local elections are an important opportunity to influence the future of transport in the city region.
As groups in Greater Manchester with interests in health, the environment, safer roads and better transport, we wanted Greater Manchester’s leaders to be more ambitious about enabling people to get around using clean and healthy transport options, e.g. public transport, walking, cycling or using mobility aids. These all need to be safe, convenient, affordable and accessible to everyone, so that fewer people feel their only option is to drive.
Our campaign launched in response to the recent consultation on Greater Manchester’s Local Transport Plan (LTP). It attracted local broadcast coverage on BBC Radio Manchester, Capital Radio and That’s Manchester TV. We felt the LTP included lots of fine words about making the region’s transport inclusive, affordable, environmentally responsible, safe, secure, healthy and well-maintained. Yet its proposed targets and delivery plan fell well short of this Vision.
So we now want to know if local election candidates across Greater Manchester will support our calls for action to make local public transport cheaper and easier to use, and for people to be able get around more easily under their own steam. Our key demands cover:
- Improving local transport links;
- Prioritising good road and path maintenance over building new roads;
- Creating safe and attractive conditions for people walking, cycling or using mobility aids;
- ‘Low traffic homes’ – ensuring that new housing supports sustainable travel; and
- Clear ambitious goals and monitoring.
