Transport Submission to London 2012

February 2007

Introduction – Why Transport Improvements Are Needed Beyond London

The 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games will impact on the transport network beyond London.

It will inevitably impact on the transport network of the West Midlands region. This is not just because Villa Park in Birmingham will host Olympic football matches nor the fact that the West Midlands region could be the base for training camps and training facilities for international teams.

While these are factors relating to transport usage the implications for the transport network also relate to the patterns of economic activity surrounding the Olympic and Paralympic Games.

Modern Olympic tournaments have shown that an economic impact takes place at least 2 hours 30 minutes driving time from the Olympic host city. During the 2006 Winter Olympics, Olympic sponsors held events in Milan – 2 hours 30 minutes from the Olympic host city of Turin. Queensland economically benefited from the Games – even though the 2000 Olympic host city was Sydney.

Then there are the hotel opportunities which many people will take advantage of in the West Midlands region as hotel rates are likely to be lower than in the London area.

The West Midlands region fits the pattern of regions near Olympic host cities that will be directly impacted by the Games. That is why the need to improve the transport network is so important.

It also relates to the commitment of the Government and London 2012 for the 2012 Games to be seen as benefiting the whole of the United Kingdom – not just London.

Improvements in transport linkages between London and the West Midlands region would not just benefit the Midlands. For as the region is at the crossroads of Britain improvements in transport would mean the Games would be in reach of the majority of people in Britain.

Improvements in the UK transport infrastructure would also improve the perception of the country in the eyes of international visitors and would therefore meet the Government's aim of a positive legacy for tourism following the Games.

The economic implications of the need to improve the transport infrastructure have been well established as a consequence of the publication of the Eddington Review by HM Treasury in December 2006.

Therefore we would propose that this consultation has to take on board the consequences of the findings of the Eddington Review and the need for transport improvements beyond the London area.

Milton Keynes South Midlands and the Olympics

The pressure on the transport links between London and the Midlands as a consequence of the Olympic and Paralympic Games will be magnified by the large housing led development that lies between London and the West Midlands.

The Milton Keynes South Midlands (MKSM) growth area is a housing led development initiated by the Government following the publication of the Sustainable Communities White Paper. This, in time, will lead to the population of the growth area being twice the size of the population of Birmingham.

By 2012 it is expected that work will have commenced to some degree on this significant development and, therefore, any consideration of transport has to take into consideration the implications of the MKSM growth area.

Transport Recommendations – Aviation

The pressures on the London airports of Gatwick and Heathrow and the supporting airports of Stansted and Luton will be substantial.

While the development of Terminal 5 at Heathrow will assist there is no doubt that the strain on international airports as a consequence of the Games will be significant.

The nearest long haul aviation hub to London, outside of London's own airports, is Birmingham International Airport (BIA). This airport has a superb track record and has developed a range of services to North America, South Asia and the Asia-Pacific.

However, if the runway at Birmingham was extended in advance of 2012 then the opportunities for BIA to support the range of services operating from Gatwick and Heathrow would be significant and would limit the impact of the potential of aviation gridlock.

Transport Recommendations – Rail

The traffic flows to London could be significant and therefore the need to ensure that the national rail hub, Birmingham New Street Station, can cope with this increase is paramount.

The business community and the public sector with Network Rail support the plans for the redesign of Birmingham New Street Station to improve the passenger handling capacity of this national rail interchange.

With volunteers, tourists, business visitors and others travelling to the Games these journeys could be disrupted if the existing station infrastructure is still in place with increased passenger flows.

Routes from Herefordshire via Worcester to London are currently hampered by the lack of dual tracking via Worcester and Evesham – as well as at Oxford. This restricts the ability to expand rail services on this route. Journeys from and to Herefordshire and Worcestershire are also hampered by the lack of investment in signalling between Worcester and Droitwich.

Transport Recommendations – Roads

The road network between London and the West Midlands has a number of issues that, if rectified, would go a significant way to improving traffic flows to the Games.

This includes the need to improve capacity and address congestion on the A5 in Staffordshire so that traffic gets onto the M1.

There is a vital need to improve road capacity on the road network at some key junctions and along some link roads such as with the M40 Junction 15 (Longbridge), M1 Junction 19 (the junction of the M1, M6 and A14), A46/A45 Junction (Tollbar) and M6 Junction 1 to Junction 4.

Transport Recommendations – Villa Park

The need for frequent bus services between Birmingham New Street Station and Villa Park for the Olympic football matches is fundamental.

We would therefore propose that London 2012 enters into discussions with the bus operators in the Birmingham area and Centro, the operating name for the West Midlands Passenger Transport Authority, to address this matter.

 Transport Recommendation – Public Transport

While progress has been made, there is a need to ensure that public transport is able to address the needs of the Olympic and Paralympic Games. Disabled access on some forms of public transport, such as buses and trains, have improved in recent years but we believe a wholesale review of public transport options is considered to ensure there is no difficulties whatsoever with disabled access with public transport.

Conclusion

The 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games is a United Kingdom event and therefore the consideration of a transport strategy requires a United Kingdom response.

The business community in the West Midlands region, via the West Midlands Business Council – with business representative organisations – recognise the implications of the Games upon the transport infrastructure.

That is why we would urge London 2012 and the Government to consider the recommendations in this submission as a positive contribution to ensuring the Games are a success for London, the West Midlands region and the United Kingdom.

We appreciate that London 2012 can not address all these issues alone.

We believe that if these issues are included in the Transport Strategy then, in partnership, with the Government, these issues can be resolved to help ensure the Games are a success.

West Midlands Business Council

Albert House

Quay Place

92/93 Edward Street

Birmingham

B1 2RA

T: 0121 245 0140

F: 0121 245 0141

E: info@wmbusinesscouncil.org.uk

W: www.wmbusinesscouncil.org.uk