Archived decisions

Transport for South Hampshire

Draft Business Plan 2007-2009

1. Who and what is Transport for South Hampshire?

1.1 Transport for South Hampshire (TfSH) is a delivery agency, comprising the local transport planning authorities and transport operators, infrastructure providers and arms of local, national and regional government with an interest in providing or funding transport improvements. TfSH has been formally constituted through a Governance Agreement and is accountable through a Joint Committee, operating through a series of topic specific groups. The new organisation will make much use of the groundwork established by the Solent Transport partnership, whose Charter was signed in March 2003. This was a voluntary grouping of the three local transport authorities and 16 stakeholders, representing transport operators, providers, users' representatives and government agencies.

1.2 The Solent Transport Charter contained objectives (reproduced below) and a series of aims. These provided a sound basis for this partnership, which was, at the time, a leading example of integrated approach to managing future transport provision and planning, by means of voluntary effort across sector boundaries.

The Solent Transport Charter - objectives

The Solent Transport partnership will seek to develop an integrated and seamless transport system for the sub-region that is affordable, reliable, safe and efficient that:

    · Provides high quality facilities that are accessible to all users;

    · Makes the best use of the transport network, harnessing the benefits of new technology, to manage the demand for movement and to provide a transport system that is attractive to passengers and freight operators;

    · Offers sustainable travel choices by reducing the dependence upon private vehicles, to provide a good quality of life for present and future communities in social, economic and environmental terms.

1.3 The Solent Transport Charter - Aims

      a. to increase accessibility to services, focused upon the two centres of Southampton and Portsmouth, for a wide range of services, including retail, education, healthcare, employment and leisure.

      b. To promote safety and security for all travellers within the Solent

      area.

      c. To reduce the impact and effect of congestion and maintain viable links to the international gateways and transport interchanges.

      d. To improve the provision of public transport, based on a principle of a hub and spoke network, with attractive interchange facilities.

      e. To widen travel choice with attractive alternatives to the private car within the Solent area.

      f. To contribute transport interventions towards improvements in air quality and environmental improvements.

      g. To support wider quality of life objectives through transport interventions.

      h. To encourage value for money and efficient asset management of the transport network.

2. How TfSH has evolved from Solent Transport

2.1 In economic terms, South Hampshire has for some years lagged behind the rest of South East England. But it has great potential to contribute to the economy of the region, and thereby the nation; a point recognised by the South East England Development Agency (SEEDA) in designating it an area for investment and economic growth.

2.2 To achieve that potential, South Hampshire needs sustainable growth including new housing. The pressures for more homes are felt as keenly in South Hampshire as anywhere. But extra housing without the economic growth to sustain it would worsen the effects of in-migration and commuting patterns that already strain our transport infrastructure beyond its capacity, and create other negative social impacts. To be sustainable, growth must be led by the economy and supported by the timely provision of necessary infrastructure - in other words, conditional managed growth.

2.3 The Partnership for Urban South Hampshire (PUSH) was formed to find collaborative solutions to raising the economic performance of the sub-region, and to plan effectively for its future. PUSH has become the voice for South Hampshire in advising the South East England Regional Assembly (SEERA) on planning for the sub-region in its Regional Spatial Strategy and to delivering SEEDA's Regional Economic Strategy in South Hampshire. Like PUSH, having begun as an informal partnership, Solent Transport has evolved, taking on a more formalised structure and focusing more on delivery.

2.4 Transport is a derived demand, driven by the growth in the community, the economy and the need for greater mobility. The real transport issues facing the South Hampshire sub-region will only be addressed by concerted action, along the lines of the Reduce, Manage and Invest approach of the three Local Transport Plans, supported by a step change in levels of investment. For this reason, it was felt essential that the good work of the Solent Transport partnership should be strengthened and reinforced by the creation of the new delivery agency, Transport for South Hampshire. TfSH was formed so as to increase the capability to more effectively plan transport provision across the sub-region to support the PUSH growth agenda and to ensure that the sub-region receives its fair share of essential infrastructure investment. TfSH will therefore work closely with PUSH to advise, prioritise and deliver, within available resources, the transport improvements that are necessary to address pressures of growth and development, while maintaining quality of life for the residents of South Hampshire. PUSH has recently published a Programme of Delivery, which forms the basis of a funding bid for New Growth Point funding from the Department for Communities and Local Government (DCLG). This includes a number of transport schemes, which have been included, in close consultation with TfSH.

2.5 This Business Plan sets out a programme of activity for the next two years, which will help to deliver and monitor the transport objectives and targets for South Hampshire. It outlines the governance, organisational and delivery arrangements and sets a budget for TfSH expenditure. Activities for the later years to 2026 are forecast in lesser detail, but will be refined as opportunities and commitments develop.

2.6 The key objectives for the new delivery agency are summarised below:

    TfSH Key Objectives:

    · Development and delivery of sub-regional transport policies and projects

    · Providing strategic transport advice to PUSH.

    · Development and delivery of coordinated public transport in partnership with the operators across the sub-region.

    · Pursuing and securing funding for scheme delivery.

    · Acting as ringmaster for strategic developer contributions.

    · Bidding for and disbursing other sub-regional funding streams.

    · Monitoring and reviewing delivery.

    · Responding to consultation.

3. The Transport Vision

3.1 The vision statement for TfSH is based on the Solent Transport Vision, which was agreed by the Solent Transport Executive.

    The Transport for South Hampshire Vision 

    The South Hampshire sub-region seeks to provide sustained economic vitality and viability with a high quality of life for all. Transport for South Hampshire will develop an integrated transport network that supports these key principles at a time of economic and housing growth.

3.2 The work of TfSH was initiated by the Solent Transport Strategy, which was produced concurrently with the Local Transport Plans of Hampshire, Southampton and Portsmouth Councils, together with the Isle of Wight Council. The actions within this plan take forward the principles of Reduce, Manage and Invest to guide the delivery of this strategy and the interventions necessary to support and deliver the PUSH growth agenda.

4. The Organisation and how it Works

4.1 A governance structure has been approved by the three authorities, which is covered by the Agreement, and is shortly to be signed and sealed. Since transport is a key factor that can have a profound influence on the rate of sustainable growth, a relationship exists with PUSH. This will have a two- way impact on the work of the respective partnerships during the currency of this Business Plan.

4.2 The partnership is structured to be driven by decisions made by a formal Joint Committee, established under Section 102(1) of the Local Government Act 1972. This is supported by a Senior Management Board, comprising the senior officers of the three highway authorities. This Board is, in turn, served by a number of Working Groups, which involve industry stakeholders to ensure that plans and aspirations are embedded within their respective company plans for investment.

4.3 A Project Director has recently been appointed to ensure that TfSH delivers in accordance with this Business Plan. As part of his duties, he will develop an effective organisation that is:

    · Properly resourced;

    · Public facing;

    · Involves stakeholders at all appropriate levels;

    · Is results driven; and

    · Is accountable to the constituent authorities.

4.4 The stakeholders affiliated to Transport for South Hampshire are listed below:

    AA

    Associated British Ports 

    Department for Transport

    First Great Western

    First Hampshire and Dorset

    Freight Transport Association

    GOSE

    Gosport Ferry Company

    Hampshire County Council

    Hampshire Economic Partnership

    Highways Agency

    Hovertravel

    Network Rail

    Portsmouth City Council

    Portsmouth Commercial Port

    Red Funnel

    SEEDA

    SEERA

    Southampton City Council

    South West Trains

    Southampton International Airport

    Stagecoach South

    Uni-link

    Virgin Trains

    Wightlink Limited

4.5 In addition to the industry stakeholders, representation is maintained with the local district authorities both through the auspices of PUSH and in their own right at Member and officer level. These districts councils are Eastleigh, Fareham, Gosport and Havant in their entirety and also parts of the districts of East Hampshire, Winchester, Test Valley and Winchester.

5. Implementation and Delivery

5.1 The first meeting of the TfSH Joint Committee took place in October 2007, which has an impact on the business planning cycle. Firstly, it is important that it should follow the political year (June to May), rather than correspond with the financial year. This is particularly important in view of the differing electoral cycles of the three constituent authorities. The arrangement will allow incoming Members, during an election year, to influence the shape of future Business Plans rather than committing them to a pre-existing plan based on an April start. Since the current year is already well advanced, this first Business Plan covers two years June 2007 to May 2009.

5.2 A wide-ranging Action Plan has been prepared to guide the development and establishment of this new delivery agency. Several of the action points have resource implications. In the nature of forming partnerships, resources have been secured for a number of commitments within the current financial year, but a number have been earmarked in the forward years which have yet to be turned into formal commitments. They have been identified for contributions from a number of the partners, in addition to local authority sources.

5.3 The key activities, involving resource commitments, that are extracted from the Action Plan for 2007-2009 are:

    · Three technical studies examining access to (£300k secured)

      support the interventions to be prioritised by

      Regional Transport Board In support of the

      South East Plan to 2026

    · Access studies, specifically for the two SDAs (£ 60k secured)

    · Investigate the requirement for a sub-regional (£ 20k secured)

modelling capability (£ 20k secured)

    · Manage the engagement of stakeholders (£ 2k secured)

    · Build awareness and consensus within the (£ 25k secured)

industry and the wider community

5.4 Furthermore, a number of schemes and activities have costs yet to be determined, or have yet to secure funding. The aim of this Business Plan is not to constrain activities to pre-existing budgets, but to approach the TfSH objectives with a realistic view of the challenge that lies ahead. A funding strategy will be developed to enable delivery of these objectives within the term of this Business Plan. Funding is likely to be sought from a number of sources beyond those that traditionally lie within the purview of the local authorities. The intention of this new delivery agency is to encompass the skills and resources of its active stakeholders, as well as bidding for external sources of funding, disbursing it as necessary. In a number of cases, expenditure on the items listed below will depend upon the outcome of studies that are already under way. Therefore, for those items below, which are warranted and still require funding or whose costs have yet to be determined, separate justification will be made at the time. Fuller details of the activities, and their dependencies, are shown in greater detail in the Action Plan. Activities that are yet to secure funding sources are summarised below:

    · Further technical studies into transport (Est £150k required)

      schemes and delivery

    · Commence building a sub-regional transport (Est £750k-£1 million

      model, assuming the investigations is positive required)

    · Develop transport access arrangements for (Est £500k required)

      SDAs and key employment zones

    · Develop a Freight Strategy (Est £20k required)

    · Introduce integrated ticketing improvements (Est £20k required)

5.5 The Action Plan listing the identified activities for 2007-2009 and the later years to 2026 is to be found in the appendix.

6. Risk Management and Accountabilities

6.1 Having been formed from the previous (voluntary) Solent Transport Partnership, TfSH is well positioned to support the PUSH growth agenda and to ensure that the sub-region receives its fair share of essential infrastructure investment.

6.2 By pooling the political sovereignty of its constituent member authorities and actively engaging with transport providers/funders, TfSH offers considerable strength and influence on the regional and national stage. Indeed, the new arrangement is entirely consistent with emerging Government policy in the draft Local Transport Bill. However, the future of the partnership is not without its risks. These could include the withdrawal of a key party to the partnership. The position of the three authorities is covered in the governance Agreement, but the loss of a key stakeholder could have serious consequences, as could the failure to attract or retain financial support. These will be addressed as part of a risk management policy, but it is to be expected that stakeholders, particularly the transport operators, would wish to remain at the heart of planning, funding and delivery decisions.

6.3 In terms of accountability, the formal Agreement signed and sealed by the three highways and transport authorities clearly sets out the roles and responsibilities of the Joint Committee. The TfSH Business Plan is subject to approval by all three Councils alongside the sister plan for PUSH, with which there is a close mutual relationship.

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