Alstom report calls for £10 billion programme of investment in areas where green transport is needed most

Alstom has launched a new report which paves the way for the Government to jump start the economy post COVID-19, by revolutionising investment in transport infrastructure across the country.

The UK’s New Green Age; A Step Change in Transport Decarbonisation, calls for a £10 billion investment programme in UK rail and mass transit systems.

Alstom says research revealed that the UK is lagging behind its closest neighbours in comparable infrastructure. France has over double the number of mass transit systems (light rail, trams and underground trains) as the UK, while Germany has four times as many.

In particular the report calls for:

• Rolling out fleets of 300-400 hydrogen trains to replace diesels.
•  A £10bn programme of investment in areas where green transport is needed most. As part of this Alstom conducted an audit of mass transit systems in the UK and produced the attached map showing where our biggest gaps are, which are wide ranging and include southern cities like Bristol, Brighton, Southampton and Plymouth, places in the north and midlands like Leeds, Tees Valley, Hull and Leicester as well as South Wales and Belfast.
• Acceleration of electrification schemes and digital signalling projects.
• Acceleration of rail investment schemes like Northern Powerhouse rail and Midlands Engine rail.

Nick Crossfield, managing director of Alstom UK and Ireland said the following about the report. “Many areas need investment to help ‘level up’ and to bounce back from the challenges posed by COVID-19. Green transport schemes not only help areas to build back better but bring long-term environmental benefits too.

“They have a strong role in reducing transport emissions, improving air quality, and providing an economic boost for local areas. Green public transport systems provide some of the tools areas need to tackle congestion, bring greener living and lever in investment and jobs.

“Alstom is helping deliver these schemes across the world and we’ve seen the benefit at first hand. There is a huge opportunity in the UK to create a step change. We can create a win for regions, a win for the environment and a win for the economy.”

Photo credit: Alstom

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