UKTram – the industry body with representatives from across the UK tram and light rail sector – have called for fresh investment to be made to light rail post-pandemic to help boost economic recovery as Covid-19 restrictions continue to be eased.
James Hammett, UKTram Managing Director, explains more: “Over the past year we’ve worked in partnership with both national and devolved governments, providing valuable intelligence on the impact of Covid measures on customer numbers and revenue. In turn, this has helped the sector secure more than £200 million in emergency funding, but now we need to start taking a longer-term view. The value of light rail to the cities served by existing networks has been clearly demonstrated during a period of national crisis, and members of the Owners and Authorities working group agreed that now is the time to press home the case for future investment as the UK looks towards a ‘green’ recovery.”
Members of UKTram’s Owners and Authorities Working Group – which is formed of senior representatives from network owners and authorities which operate light rail systems – have also agreed to commission a detailed document which will outline the ability of light rail to attract inward investment, improve transport links, reduce congestion and improve the environment. In addition it will highlight the contribution light rail can make to the government’s aim for levelling up in the regions.
It is hoped that this document will also be useful to authorities promoting future light rail schemes.