5 Minute Guide: UK transport
Updated on 08 June 2007
Is Britain's transport system worthy of the world's fifth-largest economy? Do we need more runways, more roads, or more bicycles?
What has happened?
Anyone who lands at Heathrow thinking they are visiting a modern European economy could be forgiven for thinking they had entered the wrong continent; the gateway to Great Britain is a crowded, scruffy shambles.
Britain's transport system is creaking at the seams. Today, bus, train and coach fares are over a third higher than in 1980.
Rail passenger numbers are up 44 per cent since the network was privatised in 1994, but subsidies are 300 per cent higher. For motorists, driving is now cheaper than at any time since 1981.
Unsurprisingly, government forecasts suggest that the time drivers spend in traffic jams could rise by a fifth by 2010. And gridlock is not the only danger, transport is also a contributing factor to climate change.
What does it mean?
It's not all bad. In business terms, air transport is a fantastic success story for the British economy.
Heathrow handles more international traffic than any airport in the world. But airlines struggle to find space to take off and land - and air transport is the fastest-growing cause of climate change.
Last year, the government reaffirmed its commitment to a third runway at Heathrow and a new runway at Stansted by 2011, much to the anger of environmentalists who point out that aviation is the fastest-growing emitter of carbon dioxide.
The issue neatly illustrates why climate is such a tough problem to deal with. The issue is so tangled politically that the government has done little strategic work on it for the past 10 years. The fuel duty escalator was scrapped in 2000 after more massive protests.
Following the road protests of the 1990s, the government shelved the road building programme, so that the nation's road network has scarcely grown in the past decade. Traffic congestion is thought to cost the economy £7-8bn a year and this figure could rise to £22bn by 2025.
What happens next?
Transport will be a key priority for the new PM, Gordon Brown.
He has yet to outline his thinking on the issue, but the best indicator to his thinking is the Eddington Report, a giant document commissioned by the Treasury, which was published last year.
It was equivocal on the controversial issue of a third runway at Heathrow, but it did support the concept of road pricing. This concept, already in use on trucks in Germany and Austria, would see road users paying a fee for each mile they drive. The tolls could possibly be collected by satellite-powered boxes in every car.
High-tech road schemes have arguably been a success in many places, including London's congestion charge scheme. If the recent history of transport shows anything, it's that the answers are never easy.
Key players
Douglas Alexander
A newcomer to the transport brief, Douglas Alexander will play a key role in shaping the future of the UK's transport policy.
Seen as a key Brown ally, he has echoed some of his predecessor Alistair Darling's enthusiasm for road pricing.
Sir Rod Eddington
The Australian-born ex-boss-of-BA chief executive wrote a report for the government on the future of transport.
He boosted profits and slashed debt at BA, despite some of the hardest times in aviation history.
His report warned against grands projects like high-speed rail links but he is very keen on road pricing.
