At a meeting today (Tuesday 30 July), the North East Mayor and Cabinet have approved plans which will see millions of pounds pumped into North East transport priorities.
This includes over £100m for bus, Metro, rail and Ferry schemes, as well as approving the region’s plans for its City Regional Sustainable Transport Settlement.
These investments follow the commitment made by the Mayor Kim McGuinness to deliver major improvements in transport for the benefit of local people.
The North East Combined Authority Cabinet today approved:
- £4.58m to safeguard the future of the Shields Ferry and fund a new North Landing in North Shields – the remaining investment will be funded through the region’s City Region Sustainable Transport Settlement.
- £8.6m on a business case to extend the Metro to Washington and begin work on re-opening the southern section of the Leamside Line running from Washington to Ferryhill in County Durham.
- Bus Service Improvement Plan (BSIP) funding - £60.811m (revenue) and £40.468m (capital) to deliver a wide range of transformative schemes including affordable fares and cheaper multi-modal day tickets, improvements to bus stops, a new public transport website and app, and enhancements to bus services region-wide.
- The North East CRSTS programme which details plans to invest £181m (inclusive of overprogramming) and £346m of funding for Highways Maintenance (both subject to Government approval at a later date).
North East Mayor, Kim McGuinness, said: “I am determined to make the North East the home of real opportunity and to do that, we must invest in our transport infrastructure so we can meet the needs of local people and connect our communities like never before.
“For too long, the region has lacked major investment needed to deliver on our transport ambitions. Under my leadership the North East will flourish. I am already working with Government to make the case for further investment in our priorities so that we can get the transport projects we desperately need underway.
“Today is more than signing off investment, it is about long term investment in our communities. The package will safeguard the Shields Ferry, start the process of extending the Metro to Washington and re-opening the Leamside Line, and to make major improvements to our bus services. All of this is about investing in the future of the North East and this marks the start of an exciting period of growth.”
The Mayor and Cabinet also agreed at the meeting to progress with the next step of the process to bring buses back into public control – preparing a Franchising Scheme Assessment (FSA). Immediately after being elected, the Mayor asked for options to be looked at for bus reform – a key manifesto priority. This set the wheels in motion to assess how the region’s bus network could operate in the future.