Road congestion is costing the UK economy more than £20 billion each year ñ equivalent to over £450 for every man, woman and child in the country. The Freight Transport Association said today that the government must take action to cut this colossal waste of everybody's money.
Transport Secretary Alistair Darling has said that government policy, within the 10-year transport plan and other actions, will slow down the growth of congestion. But FTA Chief Executive Richard Turner said: “As welcome as slowing the growth of congestion will be sadly, at £20bn per year, much more positive action and investment needs to be taken to reduce this appalling toll on our economy and, in particular, on our competitiveness.
“Mr Darling's new year resolution, for 2004 and beyond, must be to convince his cabinet colleagues of the priority needs for an enormous increase in transport investment designed to cut the cost of congestion and in the process, reducing the transport costs included in everything we eat, drink, use and otherwise consume."
Turner added: “Of course, we must look very carefully at all means of managing our roads including charging schemes in dense urban areas. But as the fourth largest economy in the world we must afford to widen our network of inter-urban motorways by a few feet so as to help contain the awful toll of congestion and pollution. At present roads congestion is the single most important issue for the transport industry and is climbing the 'major problem chart' for all of industry. A year ago the government said that despite earlier promises in 2000 to reduce congestion with their 10-year Transport Plan, congestion on all roads will rise by between 11 and 20 per cent by 2010. Twelve months later the situation continues to worsen ñ the plan is simply not up to the job.
"Despite best efforts congestion will continue to increase so more needs to be done. The government presently spends on roads just 15p in every pound collected in road user taxation. In future we must devote a far greater slice of the £40bn collected each year from road users on infrastructure investment. Our twenty-first century society is entitled to a twenty-first century roads network."
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