Finalisation of a deal to secure £173.5m of funding for transport in Leeds is planned to see major changes to buses, with a very ambitious target to double passenger numbers over the next 10 years
Public transport in Leeds received a major shot in the arm last week when it was confirmed that the DfT has expressed its support for a £173.5m funding package for a number of integrated transport improvements in the city, with buses at the forefront.
The money was tentatively secured following the decision a year ago to scrap the proposed New Generation Transport (NGT) trolleybus scheme.
£173.5m had been set aside for NGT, and since then the West Yorkshire Combined Authority (WYCA) has been working with the DfT on the terms of its transfer.
Buses at the front
But what does it mean for buses in Leeds? Lots, because additional support from WYCA and other stakeholders is expected to take the total available to in excess of £270m.
Significantly, the city’s largest operator, First West Yorkshire (FWY), has confirmed that it remains committed to its pledge to invest £71m in what it describes as “at least 284 ultra-low emission buses” by the end of 2020.
FWY’s figures indicate a spend of around £250,000 per bus, suggesting that they will not be conventional diesels.
The operator protested strongly against NGT, to the extent of sourcing a New Routemaster that was used as an example of what could be offered at much lower cost.
FWY’s argument was that the money then earmarked for trolleybuses would be better spent on conventional buses and infrastructure improvements, and that was vindicated when NGT was thrown out.
At the time, FWY also stated that development of hybrid buses into full electric power was possible later in their lives, and it described NGT as “outdated 100-year old trolleybus technology.”
On last week’s announcement, FWY Managing Director Paul Matthews says: “This is the first major step towards transforming Leeds’ transport network and I am proud that FWY is a pivotal part of it.
“It’s hugely important that we continue to work in partnership with Leeds City Council (LCC) and WYCA so that we can tackle the issue of congestion, thereby improving the reliability of services and encouraging more people to travel by bus.”
More inclusivity
One of the criticisms of NGT was that its north-south route would be of use to a limited number of Leeds residents. The range of improvements being developed by WYCA seeks to spread the fund’s benefits as fairly as possible and to deliver benefits across the city.
Bus priority measures are set to be added on a number of key corridors, and in a nod to the fact that some commuters remain unconvinced of public transport’s benefits for longer journeys, Leeds’ park-and-ride network will be significantly improved.
The existing site at Elland Road is to be joined by another at Temple Green later this year, and WYCA plans to build two more, at Stourton (which was part of the NGT plan) and in north Leeds.
All except the north Leeds site are or will be close to the M1 and M621 motorways that pass south and east of the city centre.
Other improvements to bus services will include district transport hubs, and plans are in place to connect the city centre with Leeds railway station, which in the future will be served by HS2 and Northern Powerhouse Rail, a planned east-west high-speed scheme.
Potential to transform
Bus priority measures, and the new park-and-ride site at Stourton, are expected to be the first parts of the transformative plan to come on line, and the sooner they do, the better for the bus industry, which has been set an ambitious target for the next 10 years.
The measures outlined by WYCA aim to double the number of bus passengers in Leeds. If successful, that will take daily patronage to 500,000, an increase that is massively higher than what would have been generated by NGT.
Plans outlined so far by WYCA appear to acknowledge that increasing bus patronage is a virtuous circle, and Mr Matthews is not the first senior industry manager to point out that buses offer the quickest fix to congestion.
When bus patronage rises, congestion reduces, and the cycle continues as services become quicker and more attractive to non-users.
Moreover, the package of funding for public transport improvements forms part of the wider Leeds City Region Strategic Economic Plan, which aims to deliver up to 35,000 new jobs and an additional £3.7bn of economic output by 2036.
Now, LCC and WYCA starts work with its partners to deliver on promises. Much more needs to follow what has already been achieved, says LCC, and whether it does or not, developments will be watched very closely in other parts of the country.
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It is noticeable that buses – despite the disastrous NGT project – are the most prominent of the modes set for improvement in Leeds.
First West Yorkshire put its head above the parapet when, as part of its objections to NGT, it committed to spending £71m on new buses in Leeds, and MD Paul Matthews made sure to use the P-word – partnership – in his comments about last week’s announcement.
News of the huge spend will be welcome in Leeds and it will help to demonstrate buses’ benefits over fixed-route alternatives such as trolleybuses and trams.
Now, it is for the industry to do its bit and deliver the ambitious target that it has been set of doubling passenger numbers.
