The House of Commons Transport Committee will soon judge a series of pitches from transport experts and enthusiasts who are vying to convince MPs to adopt their idea as the subject of the Committee’s next inquiry.
It comes after the Committee launched its ‘Our Future Transport’ crowdsourcing appeal in January 2023, hoping to hear about new innovations and disruptive technologies that could change the transport sector.
Over 220 applications were received from across the UK’s transport sector, including from academics, charities, operators, campaigners, and members of the public.
The cross-party Committee has narrowed down its top 12 submissions (summarised below). Applicants have been invited to pitch in-person to the Committee to help MPs decide which ideas to take forward as the premise of a future inquiry.
The two sessions, on 9-10 May, will be broadcast live from the Macmillan Room in Portcullis House, Westminster.
Session 1 (9 May, from 15:00)
Maggie Simpson, Director General, Rail Freight Group: Growing the UK’s rail freight sector in order to cut carbon emissions and boost the economy.
Peter Gordon: Developing an integrated national public transport timetable, as used in Switzerland and being developed in Germany.
Malcolm Brown, CEO, Angel Trains: How new transport infrastructure could be funded privately using different financing models.
Fran Collins, Chair, Maritime and Transport Action Group: Scrutinising the Government’s policy on integrating the UK’s road, rail, sea and air transport networks for passengers and freight.
Cllr Jim O’Boyle, Cabinet Member, Coventry City Council: Developing Very Light Rail (VLR) networks in towns and cities.
Chris Paul, University of Manchester: The importance of parking policy and practice within the framework of future transport policy.
Session 2, (10 May, from 09.30)
Mark Plowright, Director, Virgin Trains Ticketing: Developing a new, centralised online ticket retailing system for the UK.
Richard Dilks, Chief Executive, CoMoUK: Integrating transport systems and encouraging modal shift away from car use.
Oliver Howes, Principal Consultant, TRL: Innovations for managing kerbside spaces and how they are used.
Martin Tugwell, Chief Executive, Transport for the North: Devolving transport policy to the regions and developing a national transport strategy.
Nick Bromley, Matatika: Improving passenger travel data collection and analysis to better inform policy making.
Milda Manomaityte, Innovation Director, Railway Industry Association: Realising the benefits of AI, data and digital transformation for rail.
The sessions can be viewed live online on the following links:
Image credit: istockphoto.com
