North East regional factsheet

People in England want efficient, reliable and safe systems of transport. Of course, local transport problems need local solutions.

The Government is keeping the promise it made in the 10-Year Plan for Transport by giving local authorities £8.4 billion over the next five years to be spent locally on projects identified at a local level.

As part of the settlement, authorities in the North East have been given £95 million for 2001/02, and are expected to receive at least £344 million for the five-year period. In addition the region will benefit from a share of resources for future years that have not yet been definitively allocated. The settlement covers:

• major public transport and road schemes costing over £5m.
• integrated transport schemes costing under £5m; and
• local road maintenance and bridge strengthening schemes.

Major schemes have earmarked funding, however, local authorities decide which of the other transport schemes identified they fund.

Major schemes in the North East

The following have been accepted and will receive Government funding.

Tyne & Wear Centrelink - £26.4m
Dedicated busway, featuring state-of-the-art buses, connecting a new public transport interchange at the MetroCentre, with Gateshead and Newcastle.

Tyne & Wear Stephenson's Corridor Jobslink - £10.9m
High quality public transport services to regeneration areas in North and South Tyneside, providing interchange with the Metro, railway and ferry.

Tyne and Wear - Track Dualling - £9.6m
Doubling the track capacity of a section of the Metro network providing more operational flexibility and timetable improvements.

Newcastle Quayside Public Transport Project - £5.2m
High quality public transport access to new developments on Newcastle and Gateshead Quaysides.

The following schemes have been accepted and will receive Government funds subject to:

• the completion of the Statutory approval process, or
• further work on the case, or
• funding being secured from a third party.

Darlington Eastern Transport Corridor - £5.7m
New single carriageway road providing access to key development sites with associated regeneration and land use benefits.

Durham - A689 Sedgefield to Wynard Improvements - £9m
Upgrading to a dual carriageway of a currently sub-standard strategic East -West route.

Durham - A167 Chilton Bypass - £7.6m
Rural bypass removing through traffic from the village of Chilton.

Durham - A688 Wheatley Hill to Bowburn Link - £6.2m
Rural bypass providing an improved route from East Durham to a proposed rail freight development (where) and the A1(M).

Sunderland - Southern Radial Route - £17m
Urban relief road providing improved access to brownfield regeneration sites.

Tyne & Wear Scotswood Road Improvement - 13.4 m
Upgrading an important access route to Newcastle to a dual carriageway.

NB. Figures relate to gross scheme costs

In addition, there are a number of schemes for which we do not yet have sufficient information to form a view. The Government is keen to work with the authorities concerned to assist them in completing the work necessary for each scheme to be evaluated by Government against New Approach to Appraisal (NATA) criteria. The schemes in this category are:

Durham	Belmont Interchange and Durham Park & Ride
Durham	East Durham Link Road
Durham	Leamside Line
North Tyneside	A1056 Northern Gateway Stage 2
North Tyneside	A1056 Northern Gateway Stage 3
Sunderland	Central Route
M'borough/Redcar	East Middlesbrough Transport Corridor
Northumberland	Ashington Blyth & Tyne Railway

Integrated transport schemes in the North East

The settlement provides funding for authorities in the region to introduce:

Up to 20 interchange schemes, including:

• new rail stations, for example, at Hart and Billingham, to improve access to the national rail network;
• improvement of interchange facilities in Berwick, Hexham, Gateshead Town Centre and at the MetroCentre; and
• upgrading of interchange facilities in both rural and urban areas across County Durham.

Up to 14 new or extended park and ride schemes. For example, authorities are considering proposals for sites at:

• Longbeck, Redcar & Cleveland;
• Heworth, Gateshead, and other sites in Tyne and Wear; and
• 3 sites around Durham.

Up to 500 road safety schemes, including:

• 20mph zones, at a number of locations across Middlesbrough, including special 20mph school zones to improve safety outside schools;
• traffic calming measures, for example, at Front Street in Prudhoe where improved pedestrian facilities together with traffic calming measures will be introduced to reduce accidents on this busy shopping street; and
• school travel plans at schools across the region, including The Lakes Primary School in Redcar and Normanby Primary School.

Up to 340 kilometres of cycle routes and cycle lanes and other measures to encourage cycling, including:

• better cycle parking provision at railway stations, libraries, sports centres and other public buildings in Northumberland;
• audits or reviews of cycle routes in, for example, Hartlepool, where the council intends to carry out a cycle audit of all new highway and traffic schemes to ensure that the needs of cyclists are taken into account;
• the introduction of partnerships for action in, for example, Darlington where the local authority is looking at the potential for a public/private partnership to provide a "Bike Shop" with cycle parking, showers, changing facilities, luggage storage and cycle repairs in a town centre location;
• the provision of safe cycling facilities, for example, a cycle crossing of the A689 at Wynyard, on National Cycle Network Route 1;
• construction of the A1018 South Shields - Sunderland cycle route to provide a safe route for cyclists on this key link; and
• the Five Villages Project which will create a network of trails and cycle paths between Quarrington Hill, Coxhoe, Bowburn, Cassop and Kelloe in County Durham.

Up to 30 kilometres of footway improvements, pedestrianisation and other measures to encourage walking including:

• a new pedestrian route linking urban areas of Darlington with the Tees Forest providing improved recreational opportunities;
• extensions to the pedestrianised areas in central Middlesbrough, to improve the environment, accessibility and safety for pedestrians;
• footway maintenance schemes, for example, the maintenance of over 50 footbridges across County Durham to ensure continuing safe and ready access to all users;
• better personal security for pedestrians. For example, CCTV at a range of locations across Tyne and Wear in response to particular public concerns;
• partnerships for action, for example, the partnership between the Tyne and Wear authorities and the Department of Child Health Protection at Newcastle University. Research into accident risk and perception of safety in schoolchildren will be used to help the partners develop their school travel strategy; and
• improved mobility arrangements for people with disabilities, for example, provision of street tactile guides in Stockton town centre and the installation of dropped kerbs and tactile surfaces at more than 500 road crossing points around the region.

Public Transport Schemes

Improvements to local transport through:

• accessibility schemes, including:
• better rural bus services in Tynedale and North Northumberland;
• improved arrangements for using taxis and private hire vehicles in Darlington, where the authority are working with operators to improve accessibility for disabled people; and
• innovative community/ voluntary transport schemes in the Northumberland Coalfields area.

A number of improvements to bus transport, including up to 170 kms of bus way, Quality Bus Corridors, bus lanes and bus priority measures including:

• new Bus Partnerships at, for example, Stockton-on-Tees to provide better services and enhance the attractiveness of public transport;
• bus priority schemes at York Road, Hartlepool and in Durham City Centre;
• enhanced funding for bus corridors at, for example, North Road and Yarm Road, Darlington. These will provide improved bus journey times of around 10 per cent and improved journey times for other modes of traffic of around 5 per cent;
• better lighting and security arrangements for bus passengers including the provision of additional security lighting at bus shelters on the main transport corridors across Middlesbrough; and
• better bus information systems at, for example, Middlesbrough Bus Station and in Durham City where it is proposed to introduce real time information.

Local Roads Schemes

Improvements, including:

• junction improvements at: Redheugh Bridgehead, Newcastle upon Tyne;
• road widenings such as Boldon Lane, South Tyneside; Ponteland Road, Newcastle upon Tyne; and Fossway/ Shields Road Corridor, Newcastle upon Tyne;
• traffic management measures, such as new traffic control systems at Redcar and parking strategies in Durham City Centre.

Maintenance schemes in the North East

The 5-year LTP settlement also provides funding for authorities in the North East to address the maintenance backlog on the region's 15,600 km of local roads, and to start restoring the 324 bridges that need strengthening.