Effective road and traffic management

Written evidence from London TravelWatch (ETM 09)

1 Introduction:

London TravelWatch is the official body set up by Parliament to provide a voice for London’s travelling public, including the users of all forms of public transport. Our role is to:

· Speak up for transport users in discussions with policy-makers and the media;

· Consult with the transport industry, its regulators and funders on matters affecting users;

· Investigate complaints users have been unable to resolve with service providers, and;

· Monitor trends in service quality.

Our aim is to press in all that we do for a better travel experience all those living, working or visiting London and its surrounding region.

2 The Inquiry

London TravelWatch welcomes the Transport Committee’s inquiry into effective road and traffic management, in the light of the Government’s decision not to introduce road pricing on existing roads (except in relation to HGVs).

London TravelWatch’s non- rail remit covers only the Greater London Authority area and so this memorandum only considers urban road and transport networks.

3 Should Government and local authorities intervene to alleviate congestion?

Although it is difficult to make objective statements about acceptable levels of congestion we know that it is an issue for Londoners. The most recent research into the views of Londoners is the 2009 Londoner survey [1] which asked two questions (Appendix A) about Londoner’s views on traffic and congestion. The responses demonstrate that Londoners see tackling congestion as a fairly high priority.

London TravelWatch’s own most recent research amongst bus passengers was reported in March 2010: Bus passenger’s priorities for improvement in London. The report can be found at http://www.londontravelwatch.org.uk/document/4152/get. This research demonstrated that bus passengers top concern was punctuality of bus services, followed by frequency. Both are affected by road traffic conditions.

Additionally we know from Transport for London (TfL) research [2] that forecast levels of population and economic activity will lead to higher travel demand, some 4 million more journeys by 2025.

The work undertaken as part of the development of the Mayor’s Transport Strategy [3] demonstrates that congestion levels will rise in London by 14% by 2031 even if all of the policy measures and infrastructure suggested is delivered. London TravelWatch has been previously told that rising levels of congestion will impact on bus journey time schedules [4] of the order of 13% in the planning period 2006 to 2016, see Appendix B.

London TravelWatch believes addressing present and forecast congestion on London’s roads is important for its social, environmental and economic development and that Government and local authorities can and should intervene to alleviate congestion. Though without road user charging, as one of the tools at its disposal, it is difficult to understand how congestion on London’s roads will be managed given the increasing population and economic activity in London and the south east.

Like all urban areas, London’s streets perform many functions in addition to their transport function: business is transacted; leisure time spent and utilities run through them. Tackling road traffic congestion cannot be accomplished without consideration of all these uses of London’s streets. Effective road and traffic management is clearly complex in an urban context, particularly in a London where demand for travel is high and set to rise.

London TravelWatch supports road user / congestion charging. We have seen congestion levels reduce in the central area and consequential benefits delivered in London for all users. Following on from the introduction of the central area scheme bus performance, as measured by TfL, [5] improved, cycling rates (measured both by DfT and TfL) started to rise dramatically. [6]

As such we are disappointed that progress is not being made on the wider implementation of road user / congestion charging, albeit using more sophisticated technology than the central London scheme. That said, the Mayor’s Transport Strategy accepts the possibility of the wider use of congestion charging at some point in the future. This is welcome.

In the absence of charging in London in the short and medium term we believe it is therefore necessary that local government, both the GLA and the London boroughs continue to implement traffic management schemes that tackle congestion and make the best use of the available road space by:

I) Prioritising the bus

II) Integrating land –use planning with transport

III) Managing demand by parking controls and pricing

IV) The re-allocation of road space to the sustainable modes

V) Improving the public realm to promote the sustainable modes

VI) Managing demand by improving and promoting the alternatives to the private car

4 Effective traffic management in London

4.1 Prioritising the bus

The improvement in the performance of London’s bus network has been, without doubt, London’s greatest transport achievement. Not simply because passengers can now much more reliably expect the bus will turn up on time, but because the bus service in London covers the whole of London, it is almost universally accessible and it operates 24/7, 364 days a year. No other transport network in London can claim any of this.

The reason for improvement has been fourfold:

· Operator contracts that include financial incentives and penalties

· A high level of public investment and pro-active management from TfL

· The central area congestion charging scheme

· A decade of development of bus priority schemes

TfL have produced the graph below to demonstrate how space efficient the different modes are. Clearly the bus outperforms all other vehicular modes. It is this that underpins the rationale for bus priority in London where there is limited road space and very little prospect of creating more – the bus makes best use of existing road space.

[Taken from a presentation to London TravelWatch in October 2008 by TfL’s Head of Traffic Manager’s Office]

Bus lanes, bus only roads are effective, but only the most visible form of bus priority. Traffic signals that detect buses are effective, as are bus gates. Simply introducing waiting controls on bus routes where there are delays to buses and introducing parallel bus stop clearways, in order that buses and their drivers can properly pull in at stops are also measures beneficial to bus performance.

4.2 Integrating land–use planning with transport

Transport is a means to an end. Continuing policies that focus high trip generators in town centres or at locations well served by public transport is vital.

London TravelWatch has done much work looking at hospital travel. It is clear that the travel consequences of the locational decisions of hospital authorities has often not been considered. This has resulted in hospital sites with high travel demand that will always be poorly served by public transport [7] .

Capping parking in new development that is highly accessible to public transport and encouraging low car ownership in high-density urban areas will help reduce congestion.

4.3 Managing demand by parking controls and pricing

Parking controls reduce the number of short trips and encourage the use of the more space efficient modes. It can reduce demand for kerb space where it is high and thereby enable the prioritisation of moving over stationary traffic. It will improve the local environmental quality and thereby improve the pedestrian environment.

4.4 The re-allocation of road space to the sustainable modes

In London transport users have benefited in a variety of ways from the re-allocation of road space. This can take the form of bus priority, more pedestrian crossings or redesigning traffic junctions and systems such that cyclist feel safer for example, etc.

4.5 Improving the public realm to promote the sustainable modes

Historically our streets have been designed by traffic engineers and traffic models. Accommodating motor vehicles has been the priority. This has led to efficient traffic schemes, but unattractive and hostile streets for pedestrians and cyclists. Looking again at how streets are designed and considering the needs of pedestrians and cyclists will, London TravelWatch believes, lead to higher levels of cycling and walking and thereby relieve traffic congestion.

4.6 Managing demand by improving and promoting the alternatives to the private car

TfL and London’s local authorities have done some excellent work by raising travel awareness and thereby encouraging modal switch to the more space efficient modes. It is not an area being directly investigated by the Transport Committee, but is raised here in order to caution that, whilst we support such programmes, research by the DfT [8] indicates that the benefits of such measures need to be ‘locked-in’, i.e. there needs also to be complementary traffic management measures, such as bus lanes, to ensure road space released by these softer measures is not simply taken up by new, additional private car journeys.

5 Traffic Management Act 2004

The Traffic Management Act 2004 has led to mixed outcomes in London. It has certainly meant better co-ordination of streetworks and other possible disruption to traffic. There is more information available to users through TfL’s LondonWorks website [9] .

However, it has led to less progress on traffic management schemes that might promote the the use of the more space efficient, sustainable modes and thus reduce congestion in the medium and long term. This is because TfL’s approach to the Act was to adopte a Network Management Plan policed by a Network Assurance team. The approach is traffic engineering / road capacity led and has put more hurdles in the way of introducing schemes that may, in the medium to longer term address congestion. The approach has favoured schemes that maintain motor vehicle capacity as opposed to promoting people movement, by, for example equating one bus to two private cars in the models used. This makes no sense to us..

In contrast the London Borough of Camden’s Network Management Plan [10] takes a much more rounded approach than TfL and notes:

"Network management is one element of an authority’s transport activities…."

6 Summary and Conclusions

Londoners regard tackling traffic congestion on their streets as a high priority. London government should continue to prioritise this and implement schemes of traffic management to address the issue.

Against a back drop of rising travel demand and without the extended use of congestion / road user charging it is difficult to see how improvement may be achieved.

That said, the approach London has hitherto taken has been effective and remains valid. It is in our view the best approach, alongside investment in public transport infrastructure, that will improve the quality of life of Londoners, improve the economy and respond to environmental constraints.

Appendix A

Two questions taken from the Londoner Survey, 2009

Q56 PRIORITIES FOR LONDON

SHOWCARD What two or three things do you think should be the top priorities to improve London as a place to live?

%

Crime and safety                                                                       37

Policing                                                                                    33

Education and training                                                               22

Health service                                                                           17

Improved public transport                                                          17

Traffic congestion                                                                     16

Local environment                                                                     16

Affordable housing and property prices                                     15

Job creation                                                                              14

Youth Opportunities                                                                  8

Economy                                                                                  9

Businesses                                                                               2

Climate Change                                                                         2

Other                                                                                        5

None of these                                                                           4

Don’t know                                                                                5

Q34 TRANSPORT

SHOWCARD Looking at this card, which, if any, of these aspects of transport in London do you think are most in need of improvement?

%

Cheaper bus and tube fares                                                       36

More reliable buses and tubes                                                   32

Reducing traffic congestion                                                       31

Measures to reduce overcrowding on the tube                            17

Measures to reduce overcrowding on the buses                          15

Less pollution from traffic                                                          12

Improved personal safety on buses, the tube and trains              12

A more integrated/cohesive transport system                             11

Measures to reduce overcrowding on the trains                           11

More investment in improving London as a place to cycle           8

More investment in improving London as a place to walk             5

Other                                                                                        5

None of these                                                                           16

Don’t know                                                                                6

Appendix B

Slide taken from presentation by the TfL bus priority team, May 2007

Appendic C

Slide taken from the DfT National TravelSurvey

Appendix D

Taken from TfL’s Congestion charging, 6th Annual Impacts Monitoring Report, July 2008

January 2011