News MBC disappointed by government response to request for help to improve sustainable travel
Maidstone Borough Council (MBC) asked the Secretary of State for Transport Louise Haigh, for help to make Maidstone somewhere that offers high quality and sustainable travel for residents, busineses and communities.
The Leader of the Council – Cllr Stuart Jeffery, and Cabinet Member for Planning Policy and Management - Cllr Tony Harwood, wrote to Ms Haigh saying that the people of Maidstone need better sustainable transport and travel networks. MBC raised the issue of improvements to rail services and infrastructure for active travel.
The Council has now received a reply from the Minister for Local Transport, Simon Lightwood MP, (on behalf of Ms Haigh), stating: ‘We must emphasise that the financial situation the new Government is facing makes this extremely challenging and therefore any decisions the Department takes about future service levels will be subject to broader discussions and fiscal decisions made at the upcoming Budget and Spending Review. Adding: ‘Decisions on funding for active travel will be a matter for the Spending Review, and we will say more in due course.’
Stuart Jeffery said:
This is a very disappointing response. As a Council we will be working with residents and communities across the Borough to formulate an ambitious integrated sustainable transport strategy. We plan to support our wider economic, quality of life and environmental aspirations but we can’t do that alone.We want Maidstone, as the County Town of Kent, to become an exemplar for high quality and sustainable travel but to do so, we need the co-operation of the Government and had written to Ms Haigh asking for her support.
It appears now that we are going to have to press on and work hard as a local authority to make these improvements without the help we had asked for.
The Councillors had asked to meet the Secretary of State to discuss how she can help improve rail services, saying that the borough doesn’t have one that is fit for the 21st century to support climate change mitigation and reduce car use.
MBC also raised the issue of Kent County Council as the local Highways Authority, consistently prioritising road transport ahead of active travel and public transport in Maidstone.
Tony Harwood added:
Meeting the levels of housing and employment floorspace growth required by government without gridlocking the borough and further undermining local quality of life will be impossible without adequate investment in infrastructure to support a modernisation of public transport, cycling and walking provision.We believe that now is time for new thinking to deliver realistic levels of investment for future travel in, around and through our borough.
The MBC Councillors will continue to work on plans looking at how they can work together to deliver the Council’s vision.