Comment

Representation ID: 22375

Received: 11/10/2021

Respondent: ROSCONN STRATEGIC LAND

Policy TRAN1 – Priorities for the Development of the Transport Network includes reference at Part (1) to safeguarding land needed for the implementation of priority transport projects to allow for their future delivery. Part (4) also lists a number of key transport priorities identified for delivery during the lifetime of the BCP in respect of road, rail and rapid transit infrastructure.

RSL fully support the content of this policy as this will support the clear objective for a step change in public transport provision within the Black Country, which can help serve and link centres, improve sustainable transport facilities, improve connectivity to national networks and improve the efficiency of strategic highway networks. These are essential as part of a package of measures to address the climate change crisis, whilst also key to helping support both proposed housing and economic growth.

However, RSL are unclear as to how land is to be safeguarded within the BCP and consider that the policy and/or the wider Transport Section of the BCP would benefit from additional detail, particularly in regard to specific projects that are key to securing the required step change to ensure these are not compromised. It is also of relevance to make reference to the recent WMCA Board approval of the bid to the Government’s City Region Sustainable Transport Settlement (CRSTS) fund in September 2021, which covers a wide range of projects that would be funded within the Black Country, including extensions to the Metro network, a new railway station at Aldridge and development of key interchanges such as Dudley Port.