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Driving change

2nd September 2004
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Which of the following most accurately describes the problem?

John Dawson, director of The AA Motoring Trust, knows what must be done to improve the UK's transport. Jennifer Ball reports.

IIohn Dawson's children are used to his slightly odd behaviour when on family holidays; these days they bat barely an eyelid when he stops the car and leaps out to take a photo of a road or tunnel. In fact, he thinks the government should be following in his footsteps and looking to the US and Europe for inspiration if it's to make Britain's transport system the rival of any in Europe.

He is a man that should know, having spent most of his life trying to develop transport systems. In his 10 years as director of roads and chief road engineer in the Scottish Office. he oversaw the building of more motorways in Scotland than were planned in England in the same time. He believes the government could learn from his success: "I worked in a small team,working closely with industry in Scotland. This helped us to build motorways in five years instead of 10.There are three things the government needs to improve the transport system: the commitment to do it; the public support to do it; and enough money in place to guarantee that the work is completed on time."

It's a matter of conviction and presentation, he explains, otherwise the public can turn on the project: "In England, the government tends to be woolly about its plans so the public don't understand why a road is being built.They then start opposing it because they can't see any benefits. But in Scotland, the government puts things such as road building schemes in its manifesto. It turns things on its head, asking the public where they need roads rather than telling them where it thinks they are needed."

Dawson says roads like the proposed M6 Toll extension should not take 15 years to build when they are simple point-to-point exercises: The English government tends to build pieces here and there.The London to Brighton [M23] route ended up as the Merstham to Pease Pottage section with bits hanging at the other end."

He highlights the protest over Twyford Down on the M3 as a prime example of the then Conservative government's inadequate planning, where it failed to realise the strength of public feeling: "The government came back three times over three years with different proposals. Each time it had not caught up with the public mood. But most projects are not controversial if you listen to people before making random proposals and continue to listen as you develop them. You need to give the public certainty and the opportunity to decide whether it will happen through something like a general election.

Dawson says one problem is that the government has preconceived ideas about how to solve congestion problems, such as building new roads or improving public transport. He believes it needs to look at things from the bottom up and actually look at whether the world is as it believes or has changed. He says the government's attitude to tunnels is a prime example of this: The government has often ruled out tunnels because they have been too expensive. However, the cost of tunnel construction has fallen by around 4% a year and from around £50m/per km — building urban tunnels particularly can be cheaper than surface building, where acquiring land or moving utilities is expensive.

"In England, we have less tunnelling in total than there is between Nice and the Italian border, but tunnels are a good way of solving the problem of congestion without damaging the environment."Although some call tunnels dangerous, he points to an accident rate lower than rural roads and environmental benefits as well. "The vehicle emissions on surface streets flow straight into the air, while harmful pollutants in tunnels can now be scrubbed near clean using new technologies.

"The Michaelstown tunnel in Baden-Baden, Germany, is a good example of solving the problem of congestion in a spa town with a challenging topography, while maintaining good air quality," he adds.

Dawson says the government could look to the US for a solution to cut congestion; while more than 70% of people in London do not want congestion charging extended, in the US more than 80% of people at all income levels are in favour of more road charging because it has been found to be a formula that works.

"The US government has built hot lanes alongside congested motorways, which provide drivers with an additional choice. The price varies by time of day and how busy it is. The charge is whatever is needed to keep the lane running free.

In the beginning these were referred to as `Lex-us lanes' because people felt that it would only be the rich who would use them because they would be too expensive. However, research found that people use them one day in five; a married man on a budget with two children will be just as sensitive to the cost as a single man using them who earns far less— all people are willing to pay when they want a guaranteed journey time."

He says the AA would like to see the government launch an experiment into these: "The government has announced plans for car sharing lanes but we are concerned that these will be empty like the bus lanes, Motorists don't like seeing empty lanes and the hot lanes provide a good utilisation of space and contribute to traffic flow. When an ordinary lane grinds to a halt a driver has a choice to move to a faster lane — at a price. Everyone sees the benefit of them."

Sympathetic

Dawson is sympathetic towards truck operators facing rising fuel costs. He says it is ludicrous that the government relies so heavily on one volatile commodity for a high proportion of the country's expenditure: -Forget all the issues about whether this is a fair tax or not, the issue is that it is not prudent to be so reliant on one tax.

The government introduced a fuel tax escalator when the basic commodity price was low and so now we need a de-escalator until prices fall to more typical European levels. Over the next 15 years the government will want to phase fuel duty out in preparation for road charging so we believe the government should not increase it any more or rely on it in its budget."

Dawson believes there is a huge prize if the government can change the way we pay for motoring. He believes the Lorry Road User Charge will be easy to convince the hauliers of because all trucks are run on a commercial basis and it will be provide a much sought-after level playing field with foreign operators.

If road charging is given the go-ahead the AA wants a trust fund set up to ensure that the money raised is spent in the interests of those who pay— on improvements to transport infrastructure.

-The biggest issue for operators is the same as for other motorists. Do we trust the government to make this revenue neutral or is it another way of topping up its existing tax? Will the government keep to its word and enable road charging to become the first revenue stream in history that hasn't been distorted at a later date?" he asks. I


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