THE government's new transport boss told a Manchester audience that the region had shown 'courage, vision and commitment' with its approach to cutting traffic levels. Referring to the congestion charge plans, during his keynote speech to the Passenger Transport 2008 event at Bridgewater Hall, Transport Secretary Geoff Hoon, said Greater Manchester had 'recognised that congestion represents a serious brake on its economy if nothing is done about it, to say nothing of the environmental impact'.

 He told the event, which looks at public transport challenges and government policy: "I applaud Greater Manchester for having the courage, the vision and the commitment to develop a serious package targeted at the very real problems of congestion that face us."

Evidence

Mr Hoon said there was no evidence from London congestion charging to suggest businesses would relocate away from Manchester. He also reiterated that there was no 'Plan B'. If the people of Manchester rejected a congestion charge scheme, the £3bn transport scheme would collapse.

Sir Richard Leese, leader of Manchester council, told the audience that opponents of the congestion charge scheme would never have built Manchester Ship Canal. Making his case for road charging alongside massive improvements to Greater Manchester's public transport system, he said he was prepared to stake his political career on the Transport Innovation Fund (TIF) bid and criticised opponents for their lack of ambition.

'Ambition'

Sir Richard said: "These are the sort of people who would never have built Manchester Ship Canal, would never have made Manchester a great city, because they don't have any ambition whatsoever. I would risk it all on this referendum because we're talking about something that will have more impact on Greater Manchester than anything else I've done in the last 18 years.

"There is nothing more important for the conurbation than getting our TIF proposals through." Greater Manchester's 10 councils are jointly bidding for more than £2.75bn of investment from the fund, including £318m to set up a peak-hour, weekday-only congestion charge. Some £1.2bn of the total would be in the form of a loan, paid back over 30 years out of profits from the charge.

Improvements
Sir Richard highlighted the transport improvements in his speech at the Passenger Transport 2008 conference at Manchester's Bridgewater Hall. He said: "It is investment on a massive scale on a once only basis. If we don't take it now it is gone. There will be a 10 per cent increase in the bus network. That will be matched by a simpler fare structure and fare capping.

"There will be longer trains, an extra 30 per cent peak-time capacity, 7,000 extra seats, but also the potential for extra stations on existing lines, or even new lines and new services." Sir Richard said the Metrolink tram network would be extended by a third, park-and-ride services expanded and a new fleet of school buses introduced. He said the changes were needed to maintain economic growth and protecting the environment. And he said 80 per cent of the improvements would be in place before the introduction of the controversial peak-time congestion charge scheme in 2013.

The charge would be capped at £5 a day, with motorists who drive through two rings surrounding Manchester charged. An independent regulator would ensure it could not be increased arbitrarily. Ballot papers will be posted to homes later this month for the referendum. They include a 12-page information leaflet together with a voting slip. The results will be announced on December 12. People in at least seven local authorities must vote 'yes' for the scheme to go ahead. Supporters say it will reduce the worst peak-time congestion by an estimated 30 per cent. Taxi drivers, blue badge holders, motorcyclists and people with health appointments will be exempt, as would HGV drivers for the first year and Trafford Park workers before the tram extension. But low-emission vehicles will pay.