One of a number of groups and committees which seek to bring systems from across the UK together to share best practice and allow improvements, the UKTram Owners and Authorities Group met in mid-October to outline their priorities for the next year.
Now chaired by Chris Hopkinson, Head of Metro Operations at Transport for West Midlands, and supported by Vice Chair Stuart Lowrie, Public Transport Manager for the City of Edinburgh Council, the latest meeting saw representatives from across the UK share updates and shape a forward plan for 2026.
Chris Hopkinson said: “New to the role of Chair, I want to make sure these meetings deliver value for the sector and capture the many great things happening across light rail, helping established system owners and those in the early steps of developing their schemes to deliver the best they can.”
During the meeting there was an insightful presentation from ITS Leeds, who provided an update on ongoing work around new services and station appraisals, demonstrating the value of robust data and evaluation in future planning.
They also discussed the integration of the Urban Transport Group and its members into future meetings to strengthen collaboration and knowledge exchange across related transport sectors.
Looking to the future and the group are to focus on producing tangible outputs that will capture best practice and support both existing and developing light rail systems.