At the TaxPayers' Alliance we're working with the Drivers' Alliance to produce new research on transport and environmental policy. The first product of that new partnership is a new research note (PDF) out today setting out how much is spent on different forms of transport per passenger kilometre.
The transport budget is likely to face cuts as part of the response to the fiscal crisis. Leaked reports have suggested that transport as a whole might lose as much as £29 billion in over ten years. That means politicians will need to set priorities.
The key priority should be easing congestion and overcrowding. We need to keep Britain moving despite the fiscal crisis and the roads are gridlocked and commuter trains packed out. That means the key criteria should be how many passenger kilometres each mode of transport can provide for a given amount of public spending. Our report shows that more than ten times as much is spent on the trains for every passenger kilometre travelled on them as is spent on the roads. The roads move a lot more people a lot further for every pound spent. The same goes for freight, the roads move more goods further for every pound spent.
People might argue that we need to prioritise railways in order to make up for the environmental costs of motoring. But, motorists more than pay in taxes for both the roads and the social cost of their emissions - with £18.4 billion to spare.
Politicians in Westminster need to understand that for most of the country driving is by far the most important mode of transport. The road network has to take priority over flashy new rail projects if we are going to make the best use of whatever resources are available.
