Agenda item

Dave Colbert, Specialist Advisor Transportation, Lancashire County Council presented a report (circulated) which provided the Board with an update on Transport for the North and an updated version of the Lancashire Strategic Transport Prospectus.

It was reported that the Transport for the North agenda has developed significantly since the last update provided to the Board.  In the Summer Budget 2015 presented to the House of Commons by the Chancellor of the Exchequer on 8^th July, the Government announced its intention to establish Transport for the North (TfN) as a statutory body with statutory duties to set out its transport policies and investment priorities in a long term transport strategy for the North, underpinned by £30m of additional funding over three years to support TfN's running costs and enable TfN to take forward its work programme.  An update on the interim Northern Transport Strategy, published on 20^th March 2015, will be available by Budget 2016.

A key issue to date with Transport for the North has been its focus on the North's five city regions (Leeds, Liverpool, Manchester, Newcastle and Sheffield) and Hull and connectivity between them, set within the context of the Northern Powerhouse.  TfN has now acknowledged that it does not yet reflect the full and inclusive governance arrangements in support of its purpose to act as a genuine representative body for the whole of the North of England.  The TfN Partnership Board has therefore agreed to extend its membership to include representatives from northern sub-regional partnerships not currently represented.  County Councillor Jennifer Mein, Leader of Lancashire County Council and the Chair of Transport for Lancashire, has been nominated to represent Lancashire and Cumbria on the TfN Partnership Board, alongside George Beveridge, Chair of the Cumbria Local Enterprise Partnership.

A scoping event was held in Leeds on 23^rd June at which the Lancashire Strategic Transport Prospectus and Lancashire's joint approach to integrated transport planning through the suite of five highways and transport masterplans were presented. 

The Lancashire Strategic Transport Prospectus has now been further revised to take account of the GVA / productivity implications of the interventions contained therein.  At its meeting on 1^st October 2015, the Transport for Lancashire committee received a revised draft and welcomed it as a significant improvement over previous versions. 

Resolved:  The LEP Board:

(i)  Noted progress to date in preparing the Strategic Transport Prospectus as attached at Appendix 'A' to the circulated report;

(ii)  Authorised the Chair of the Board and the Chair of Transport for Lancashire to receive and approve the final version of the prospectus; and

(iii)  Requested that Transport for Lancashire prepare a communications strategy for the Strategic Transport Prospectus through which to engage with wider stakeholders including Members of Parliament, Transport for the North and neighbouring Local Enterprise Partnerships and local transport authorities.

(iv)  Requested that Transport for Lancashire prepare a communications strategy for the Strategic Transport Prospectus through which to engage with wider stakeholders including Members of Parliament, Transport for the North and neighbouring Local Enterprise Partnerships and local transport authorities.