The Department for Transport’s aim is transport that works for everyone. This means a transport system that balances the needs of the economy, the environment and society.

One of the Department’s five strategic objectives is to promote greater equality of opportunity for all citizens, with the desired outcome of achieving a fairer society.

We aim to tackle social exclusion through subsidies to people, providing better services and a major spending programme to improve infrastructure. We are also improving personal security, availability, accessibility and affordability which will all help to tackle social exclusion.

A key element of our strategy to improve access to jobs and services has been the introduction of accessibility planning in the Local Transport Planning process. This has created a clearer responsibility locally for identifying and tackling problems around peoples’ access to key services.

Other DfT initiatives contributing to reducing social exclusion include:

• Providing free, off-peak bus travel for elderly and disabled people in England.
• Targeting resources at improving transport links for socially excluded people in urban areas.
• Expanding rural transport schemes to increase accessibility to bus and community transport services.
• Enhancing the role of community transport in providing a more flexible, demand responsive public transport service.
• Encouraging access through better information on transport services.
• Reducing crime and the fear of crime wherever it occurs in the transport system.
• Introducing measures to reduce child pedestrian casualties in disadvantaged communities.
• Amending regulations and issuing guidance to facilitate flexibly-routed bus services which can improve accessibility to key services.
• Encouraging new forms of bus partnerships through the publication of the Service Stability Code of Practice.
• Issuing guidance to all local highways authorities on "tackling the road safety implications of disadvantage".
• Continuing to build on the progress that has already been made following the introduction of accessibility regulations for trains, buses and coaches under the Disability Discrimination Act 1995 (DDA).
• Helping disabled and older drivers to continue to use their car as a means of accessing the services they require.
• Looking to encourage the number of Travel Training Schemes to help disabled people travel independently on public transport.