Southampton election key issues: active travel and transport

Councillors have engaged in lengthy debates over cycle lanes, pedestrianised areas and 20mph zones.

The local authority’s local transport plan – Connected Southampton 2040 – is the current policy document which underpins work in this area.

Alongside Hampshire County Council, the city council was awarded £57million from central government for a three-year £68.5million project through the Transforming Cities Fund.

The significant investment in sustainable and active travel aimed to have a positive impact on people’s journeys by bus, walking and cycling, with several schemes delivered across the city.

Ahead of the local elections on Thursday, May 2, the Local Democracy Reporting Service asked all of the parties fielding candidates for their position on active travel and transport schemes.

Conservative – Group leader Daniel Fitzhenry

A Conservative council would stop Labour’s war on motorists and enact sensible, pragmatic alternative travel options.

We would get the water taxi programme under way to create the city’s first stops, we we would continue to push government to support a “mass transit” system for Southampton, increasing train frequencies across our cities train stations and pushing for a new station for Ocean Village.

We would be bold, ambitious and pragmatic, providing sensible alternatives whilst ensuring our city was open to all who wish to visit by car, train or bus.

Green – Co-ordinator Lisa Fricker

The city has been bidding for funds from central government to implement Connected Southampton and this is to be applauded. The citizen’s assembly was set up by the Labour team and the speakers at it were a range of local and national speakers. More diverse speakers were suggested by the Green Party but these were not taken up.

To get the city to more sustainable traffic flows bus lanes are needed but these were removed by the previous administration and have not been reinstalled. Without these the city will reach gridlock soon. An example of mismanagement was the installation of a cycle way along Glen Eyre Road, this cost £800,000 and has put huge indents into the road.

Cyclists the Green Party councillor has spoken to have said what a waste of money this was, there are roads across the city that need cycle work done on them. This was not one of them. The lead for this project proudly spoke about reducing average speeds from 28 to 21 through this work. Were there being accidents along this road, could a flashing speed limit sign have had the same impact?

Labour – Group leader Lorna Fielker

We believe people have the right to choose how they can move around the city be that by car, walking, wheeling, or cycling. It’s good for their health, wellbeing, and pocket. Congestion is high, particularly in the city centre and the population is growing. If we do nothing this will only get worse.

We have successfully secured funding to invest in pedestrian and cycle improvements, safe routes to school and school streets and active travel zones.

Labour is committed to addressing the challenges presented by climate change and has set ambitious net zero targets. However, how a place responds to the climate emergency we are facing is a politically charged subject. People have strong views, and it can be hard to find common ground, and we have seen that it is changes to transport which are the most controversial and contentious.

To take the politics out we held a citizen’s assembly, taking politicians out of room and getting a representative group of residents to look at the challenges to decide what should be done. This is the blueprint we are using to inform our decisions.

Liberal Democrat – Bassett ward councillor Sam Chapman

Southampton Liberal Democrats are committed to developing realistic, sustainable, and common-sense active travel policies.

Our city faces increasing congestion and environmental challenges. Under the current Labour administration, we’ve seen a lack of decisive action on sustainable transportation and schemes that have been designed poorly as is the case with the Glen Eyre ‘Quietway’. Their failure to introduce a park and ride system has worsened traffic congestion and air pollution. Projects that continue to constrain existing traffic flows in the absence of alternatives is only exacerbating the city’s problems.

Southampton’s Liberal Democrats believe in halting any further road constraining projects until we successfully introduce a park and ride system. This will provide a tangible and realistic option for visitors to the city, cruise ship passengers, football fans and shoppers for which active travel is an unrealistic alternative.

In addition, the creation of a central transport hub linking, trains, buses, coaches, ferries, and other transport types should be prioritised as a keystone of Southampton’s on-going infrastructure requirement. This initiative will not only alleviate traffic congestion but also contribute to a cleaner and greener environment for all residents.

Reform UK – Campaign lead Philip Crook

Motorists are under attack! The Labour council has used government and local taxpayers money to create more congestion with 20mph limits, traffic delaying schemes, uncontrolled use of Beryl bikes, which the council is allowing with the creation of docking stations for free despite the impact on the roads. The council should charge rent for these stations!

With new fuels, better engines and EVs, the issue is congestion rather than pollution. We are a commercial city and need major investment to get the roads open and moving. Reform UK would use the position as a major UK port to attract government finance to carry out major road infrastructure works to improve access: Millbrook fly-over, the M3 and A27 access to the city for example.

Local improvements such as building back bus bays, solve the choke points (Woodmill Lane, Bassett Avenue/M3), look at the options of trams, bus services, parking, improve the access and parking in commercial areas such as Shamrock Quay and Saxon Wharf.

On street parking is blocking our streets, we need to look how we can reduce this problem and deal with HMOs. Reform UK will get the city moving both commercially and for the public.

Trade Unionist and Socialist Coalition (TUSC) – Swaythling ward candidate Nick Chaffey

The government’s active travel programme aims for “half of all journeys in towns and cities to be cycled and walked by 2030″. We would all welcome such a goal. Yet as a city with poor public transport, many workers and families rely on cars to get to work and schools, and face the daily gridlock. Unless a real alternative is provided with cheap, reliable city wide bus services the grid lock is set to continue, with active travel a pipe dream.

Why doesn’t the council bring bus services back in house? Privatisation has failed. A city-wide plan drawn up by every community to link bus and rail, incorporating walking and cycling routes via our parks and green spaces, would go a long way to making that goal achievable.

But we would also call for a change in lifestyle for all workers. The cost of living crisis, long hours and two job culture is not going to allow us to walk to work or schools. Let’s reduce the daily stress of life with a shorter working week, with no loss of pay, funded from the huge profits of big business.