Reviewing transport governance: the case of Leeds, UK

Abstract

The UK Department for Transport recently announced a range of initiatives to support a more coherent approach to transport planning and delivery in the major urban areas of England. Specifically, the Local Transport Act, which received royal assent in late 2008, enables groups of local authorities and their partners to review their transport governance arrangements and, if appropriate, publish a programme of statutory and non-statutory reforms aimed at improving integration, efficiency and effectiveness of decision making. This paper considers the process of carrying out a governance review in the specific context of Leeds city region. This area comprises 11 local authorities centred on the West Yorkshire conurbation, but also includes parts of North and South Yorkshire, where responsibilities for transport planning, funding and delivery are split across a range of councils, national and regional agencies, as well as multiple public and private sector service providers. The governance review is designed to assess current arrangements, establish whether there is a case for reform and consider reform options to deliver more efficient and effective transport outcomes that support sustainable economic development and quality of life. Options considered include powers for local public transport, rail and highways, governance structures and administrative boundaries, including the transition from West Yorkshire passenger transport authority and executive to a new integrated transport authority. As well as the process of the review itself and some early findings, the paper describes a number of practical, operational and political challenges encountered by those undertaking the review.