Chair's Message - February 2024

These continue to be turbulent times, both in UK politics and in the wider world. The prospect of a forthcoming general election and recent by-election results mean that the political temperature continues to rise in Westminster and Whitehall.

This year, almost half the world’s population is taking part in national elections including in the UK, the US, Russia and India. The outcome of these elections will prove to be consequential for many years and possibly for humanity’s future given their potential impacts on efforts to tackle the climate and ecological emergencies. 

Meanwhile, farmers’ concerns about the impact of extreme weather and flooding on UK agricultural yields have dominated the NFU conference and new research suggests that the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Cycle (AMOC) could collapse much quicker than previously thought. If you haven’t heard of the AMOC, you soon will as it’s the climatic system that helps regulate the global climate and keeps the UK warmer and wetter than it should be given how far north it is. 

With transport accounting for a substantial proportion of the UK’s greenhouse gas emissions, all of this means that the TPS and its members need to maintain a positive voice in the debate about the transition to a sustainable, equitable and decarbonised transport system.

Events and engagement 

The TPS continues to be actively involved in events, either organising them ourselves or attending other people’s events.

Parking webinar – “Just the Ticket” 

TPS organised a webinar on parking on 27 February to discuss the findings of the “Just the Ticket” parking report prepared by Parking Solutions. I had previously sent a copy of the report to a number of ministers and officials but as yet have not received any replies.

Interchange 

Kieran Seale and I attended the second year of the new Interchange conference on 27-28 February in Manchester. Interchange is a major conference exploring how to improve integration in the transport sector and between transport and other sectors such as energy in order to accelerate the transition to a decarbonised transport system. There were several excellent presentations and workshops, including from Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham and a very impressive turnout in terms of delegates.

Fireside Chat – Triple Access Planning 

I will be chairing the latest “Fireside Chat” webinar on Triple Access Planning (TAP) on 7 March. The event has been organised by Glenn Lyons, who has been promoting TAP for some time.

Transport Planning Day 2024 

Planning for TPD24 is underway and the day will be on November 11^th. Discussions are underway with potential sponsors including with last year’s sponsors, all of whom were very positive about the event. The Platinum Sponsor will be invited to join the steering group as soon as they are confirmed and we will finalise the theme for the day and supporting events.

TPS Governance and organisational development 

TPS AGM 

The TPS 2024 AGM is taking place on-line at 1800 on Thursday 7 March. I would encourage TPS members to join the AGM to make sure you can hear the outcomes of the Board elections and raise any questions you have about the TPS’s programmes and plans for the future. Further details about the AGM can be found here. 

The AGM will be followed by a lecture by TPS Transport Planner of the Year Will Pedley, who will be talking about “Implementing Decide and Provide in Oxfordshire: initial experiences and challenges”. It promises to be a fascinating evening.

TPS Board Strategy Day and Business Plan 

The Board is continuing to develop its plans for 2024 and longer-term following the Strategy Away day in October. The focus will be on how we can leverage the organisation’s existing activities and resources to increase its profile and impact and support for transport planners and transport planning. Work is underway as part of this to develop our relationship with the TPS’s corporate supporters, including stakeholder members and event sponsors.

TPS/CIHT Skills Partnership Group (PMG) 

Keith Buchan and I are attending the regular PMG meeting with CIHT officers and other external members on 11 March. We will review the budget for 2024 and costs so far this year to ensure that the skills programme covers its costs as a minimum. 

Policy Developments

Transport and Land Use Planning guidance 

TPS is working with the CIHT and the RTPI to design and undertake a survey for the three organisations’ memberships on the Planning Practice Guidance (PPG) on Travel Plans, Transport Assessments and Statements. The results of the survey will be used to inform the debate on how useful transport planners find the guidance, whether it needs updating or changing to align with new developments such as the forthcoming National Development Management Policies.