Road infrastructure projects 'likely to lose out' in new funding formula

[sprinterguy]

Hopefully, this can mean only good news for the railways:

Road infrastructure projects 'likely to lose out' in new funding formula

David Hickey, Regen.net, 21 September 2010
Road infrastructure projects are more likely to lose out from a new formula being developed to appraise transport schemes, a junior minister has said. Speaking at a Liberal Democrat party conference fringe meeting, parliamentary under-secretary for transport Norman Baker said that a "revision" of how transport projects are appraised is ongoing at the Department of Transport and that a new formula would emerge following the 20 October Comprehensive Spending Review.

He said the new formula would "eliminate some of the nonsense" of the current New Approach to Appraisal. Baker added that in "broad terms", the new formula would "help public transport schemes and disadvantage road schemes". Baker has previously criticised assessments of rail projects in Scotland and Wales for being "completely wrong" after they underestimated passenger demand for such schemes.

 

[PhilipW]

Norman Baker may not get all his own way, but I am sure he is battling hard for the railways inside the DfT. Good for him.

 

[Gareth Marston]

Hopefully, this can mean only good news for the railways:

Business Cases are all about adjusting the formula to get the "positive" result you want anyway. Were now seeing the orange tinge to the Govt.

 

[YorkshireBear]

I think i saw a sentance in last months modern railways where it said a new road is seen as investment a new rail line is seen as a subsidy, maybe they dont want it to be like that anymore, a road doesn't earn back money directly.... seems strange how that way of thiking turned out

 

[Peter Mugridge]

Not sure if this is totally relevant to this thread, but its certainly relevant to the topic of any DfT planning and mamagement direction: Mike Mitchell is leaving the DfT when his contract expires at the end of the year.