English city regions set to receive £6.9bn for public transport

As part of the Autumn budget the UK Chancellor, Richie Sunak has Chancellor Rishi Sunak has committed £6.9 billion towards train, tram, bus and cycle projects.

The funding will be a major benefit to many city regions in the north of England which have been struggling to upgrade their transport networks, leaving gaps in transit services in the north and restricting the affordability of fares.

Amongst the cities set to profit from the funding are Greater Manchester, which will receive £1.07 billion, supporting the Metrolink tram-train vehicles and new bus corridors as well as the West Midlands, where £1.05 billion will finance projects including a metro extension.

The £1.2 billion of funding to make bus services cheaper and more frequent is part of £3 billion that Prime Minister Boris Johnson committed to spending on a “bus revolution” in March. This follows much pressure on parliament for increased investment in transport infrastructure from cities in the north of England such as Manchester. Earlier this month, Manchester’s mayor Andy Burnham launched a bid for £1 billion from Westminster to support the city in establishing the accessible and affordable services rolled out in London- a move which has come amidst widespread calls for “levelling up” the transport on offer in the north of England, with that in the south.

Article published first on BBC on 24 October 2021.