Mary Creagh MP: Making our transport system work harder and smarter
Shadow Transport Secretary Mary Creagh attended the launch of the Dods Transport Dialogue report this week. She writes about how to make our transport system work smarter with limited resources.
Since becoming Shadow Transport Secretary, I’ve been meeting people from across our transport network – passenger groups, construction firms, operators and trade unions. It’s People really want a more integrated, smarter transport network.
Making transport smarter means using our existing infrastructure most effectively and planning how we build new systems to integrate with current ones. Using new technologies like smart ticketing systems and integrated information will help us change behaviour and help us plan for future demand. Data is vital to help transport planners manage flows of people, and predict demand.
Labour is challenging the Government to put the brakes on the increasing cost of transport. Technology can help to drive down transport costs for passengers. We’re looking at how we can increase the number of rail and bus operators using smart integrated ticketing. The Oyster card in London and Liverpool’s Walrus card show how popular smart ticketing is among passengers.
Passengers should be able to access data on services to help plan their journeys. This is vital for the disabled, older people and families with buggies, who need to know which stations have step-free access. Twitter has been a wonderful innovation in allowing transport companies to have faster two-way communication with their passengers. As more people have access to smartphones, we should see more take-up of useful transport apps.
In a time of austerity, we need to work smarter with limited resources. That means using data better to plan our public transport networks. It means making more information available to transport users – on timetables, fares and accessibility. And it means rolling out smart integrated ticketing to make life easier for commuters. Labour in Government will make our transport system work harder, through working smarter.
The Dods Transport Dialogue report
All Change Please - How to improve our door to door journeys in the UK
was published on 26 March 2014.
