Councils and COVID-19: Preparing for the winter
Ian Caminsky explores what impact the pandemic has had on employee absence in local government.
New £85m bailout for Welsh buses
24/09/2020 The Welsh Government has announced a further £84.6m for the country’s bus industry, which it said will help companies ‘meet the challenges of coronavirus and run more services’. |
Transport group warns of ‘rapid and deep cut’ in bus services
24/09/2020 A consultancy group has warned there could be a reduction of bus services of between 30% and 40% if financial support is withdrawn from transport services. |
Wandsworth suspends LTN trials one month in
16/09/2020 Wandsworth Council have suspended their Low Traffic Neighbourhood (LTN) trials over ‘concerns with emergency access and traffic flows’. |
Coventry e-scooter trial ‘paused’ due to misuse
16/09/2020 An e-scooter trial in Coventry has been paused after reports that some users have been riding the scooters on pavements. |
Citizen's Climate Assembly calls for reductions in car and air travel
15/09/2020 The first citizens’ assembly on climate change has called for tough action including limiting the growth of car and plane travel. |
ADEPT backs e-scooters to tackle pollution threat
14/09/2020 Council place directors have backed the legalisation of e-scooters but said there are a number of questions that need to be answered. |
Highways England to invest £9m in EV ‘try before you buy’ scheme
09/09/2020 Highways England has announced that it is investing over £9m in a local government electric vehicle (EV) ‘try before you buy’ scheme as part of World EV day. |
Over 500 new chargers per day needed to achieve zero emission car market
07/09/2020 Survey reveals that despite billions invested in the development of EVs, UK buyers are still reluctant to buy them and hundreds more charge points are needed. |
Scottish Government shells out £10m for greener buses
04/09/2020 The Scottish Government has awarded over £9.75m to 19 bus and coach operators to retrofit 594 vehicle exhausts over the next financial year. |
Safely into school
27/08/2020 How many plans can be made when it comes to transport to education settings? Liz Davidson reports. |
Scottish councils get active travel funding boost
26/08/2020 The Scottish Government has cut its match funding requirement for permanent active travel infrastructure after giving councils nearly £39m for pop-up physical distancing schemes. |
Council to amend school transport appeals policy
20/08/2020 Coventry City Council has agreed to change the way it handles appeals about free school transport following an investigation by the ombudsman. |
Council hits out at ‘flawed’ bus lane review
18/08/2020 Newcastle City Council has warned that a review into its bus lane signage contains a ‘number of legal errors’. |
The ‘Great Reset’: Reshaping transport for a greener future
17/08/2020 Sandra Witzel explores how Mobility as a Service (MaaS) can help local transport authorities encourage active travel. |
Roads to recovery
14/08/2020 Alex Glassbrook explores if councils were legally allowed to make amendments to traffic regulation orders in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic. |
Ombudsman criticises council for lack of transport for SEN pupils
13/08/2020 Buckinghamshire County Council has been criticised for its lack of suitable school transport for children with special educational needs. |
How local authorities could help their private hire and taxi drivers
13/08/2020 Dr. Tom Vickers outlines how local authorities can help improve the working conditions and economic insecurity among private hire and taxi drivers. |
Northern leaders announce £5bn infrastructure plans
12/08/2020 Business and civic leaders across the North have called on the Government to back plans for a £5bn pipeline of infrastructure projects which they say could create up to 20,000 jobs. |
Government extends emergency bus and tram funding
10/08/2020 Ministers are giving bus and tram services in England outside London up to £256m to help them ramp up services ahead of expected increases in public transport use next month. |
Councils awarded £40m to set up more home-to-school transport
10/08/2020 Local authorities have been given a £40m funding boost to increase home-to-school transport provision from September. |
Micromobility: Lessons from Australia
31/07/2020 Joshua Sattler explores how micromobility can help UK towns and cities recover from COVID-19. |
Councils welcome £2bn active transport 'revolution'
28/07/2020 Thousands of miles of new cycle routes will be built in towns and cities as part of the Prime Minister’s £2bn ‘cycling and walking revolution’. |
The impact of a green recovery on local authorities
21/07/2020 Jon Beasley explains why local authorities are sitting on the precipice of a transport transformation. |
Putting councils in charge of the micromobility revolution
09/07/2020 Zachary Wang explains what councils should consider when planning an e-scooter trial. |
Seize the transport moment, says new report
07/07/2020 Campaigners have called on ministers to accelerate the shift to sustainable transport by introducing new charges for drivers and improving public transport, walking and cycling. |
Mayor announces UK's first trial of e-scooters
03/07/2020 The first UK trial of e-scooters is due to take place in Teesside, Darlington and Hartlepool, Tees Valley Mayor has announced. |
Trials of e-scooter rentals to be fast-tracked from this weekend
01/07/2020 Local authorities will start hosting the trial of rental e-scooters from this weekend to help ease the burden on public transport as lockdown restrictions are lifted. |
Councils get new powers to tackle misuse of cycle lanes
10/06/2020 Local authorities will be given the power to use CCTV to fine drivers who misuse mandatory cycle lanes, the Government has announced. |
Councils on deadline to secure first tranche of active travel cash
04/06/2020 Local authorities are on their last chance to secure a slice of the first tranche from the £225m emergency active travel fund, with the deadline for completing the form tomorrow. |
What will the car-free cities of the future look like?
19/05/2020 Ben Mercer explores what car-free cities could look like and how will these policies will change our city-centre commutes. |
Government announces £250m emergency active travel fund
11/05/2020 The Government has announced the largest ever funding boost to create a ‘new era’ for cycling and walking. |
A greener future?
01/05/2020 Steven Meersman warns that transitioning to net-zero must continue to be a priority despite Covid-19. |
MPs launch inquiry into use of electric scooters
22/04/2020 An inquiry looking at the safety and legal implications of e-scooters has been launched by the Transport Committee. |
Councils welcome £400m funding boost for bus services
03/04/2020 The Government has pledged nearly £400m funding to help keep bus services running during the coronavirus pandemic. |
Councils warn bus services could collapse as a result of coronavirus
31/03/2020 Council chiefs have called on the Government to provide emergency funding to ensure bus services do not go bust during the coronavirus epidemic. |
NIC launches future of rail consultation
26/03/2020 The National Infrastructure Commission has launched a consultation on the future rail landscape of the North and the Midlands as part of the Government’s ‘levelling up’ agenda. |
Welsh councils get new powers to reshape bus services
17/03/2020 Councils in Wales will be given new powers to run their own bus companies and franchise bus services on routes. |
London council launches ‘Electric Avenue, W9’
17/03/2020 Westminster CC has joined Siemens in order to deliver the UK’s first avenue that has been fully converted to provide lamppost electric vehicle charging points. |
Shapps announces £90m tech fund to make journeys ‘greener’
16/03/2020 The Government has launched a multi-million pound fund to trial new technology aimed at making journeys ‘easier, smarter and greener’. |
Budget 2020: Mayoral authorities win big in transport
11/03/2020 The Government has unveiled £4.2bn for urban transport as part of its spring budget giveaways. |
Over £30bn annual investment needed to reach net zero by 2050
09/03/2020 An estimated £33bn of investment is needed every year for the next three decades if the Government is to meet its carbon emissions target of net zero by 2050. |
Council chiefs call for ‘stable, devolved’ infrastructure budgets
06/03/2020 Local authority leaders have called on the Government to provide all councils with ‘stable, devolved infrastructure and public transport budgets.’ |
Islington Council launches ‘revolutionary’ energy centre
05/03/2020 Islington Council today launched an energy centre which converts waste heat from the London underground into heating for homes, schools and leisure centres. |
Flybe collapse hits council-owned airports
05/03/2020 The airline entered administration this morning, leading to the grounding of all flights. |
The road to an electric bus fleet
04/03/2020 Jonathan Bassett argues an 'all-electric bus town' presents an opportunity not to be missed for local authorities. |
Public is ‘supportive’ of plans to invest in cycling, study shows
04/03/2020 Over half of residents in major urban areas across the UK support more investment in cycling, new research reveals. |
TV presenter launches legal challenge against ‘vanity project’ HS2
04/03/2020 The TV presenter and naturalist Chris Packham has launched a legal challenge against HS2 in order to stop the ‘largest deforestation project’ since WWI. |
Council chiefs warn of ‘chronic need’ for bridge repair funding
02/03/2020 Local leaders have said there is a ‘chronic need’ for investment in local roads in response to a report on the number of substandard road bridges in Britain. |
Councils awarded share of £93m fund to repair potholes
02/03/2020 Local authorities are to be awarded a share of a multi-million pound funding pot to repair roads and bridges, the Government has announced. |
Councils spend average of £2 per head on cycling infrastructure, study reveals
26/02/2020 Local authorities have spent on average just £2 per head of population per year on cycling infrastructure over the last ten years, new research reveals. |
Council ‘surprised’ by criticisms of its SEND transport policy
25/02/2020 A council has expressed surprise at a ruling by the local government Ombudsman which criticised its transport policy for adult learners with special educational needs (SEND). |
London Councils drives forward co-ordinated approach to car clubs
20/02/2020 London Councils has launched a new online resource to help boroughs take a more co-ordinated approach to car clubs. |
Councils set out joint vision for £100m transport transformation
18/02/2020 Derby City Council and Nottingham City Council have submitted a bid for over £100m funding to enhance transport links between the two cities. |
The balancing act: reducing emissions and improving transportation
17/02/2020 Paul Moorby outlines how using Big Data to analyse real-time traffic information can help councils to refine traffic management policies whilst reducing carbon emissions. |
Short-term approach to funding urban transport networks ‘inefficient’
12/02/2020 A transport group has warned that the ‘excessive reliance’ on short-term competition funding for transforming urban transport networks is ‘inefficient’. |
Council chiefs call for ‘urgent’ consultation on post-Brexit trade checks
11/02/2020 Local authority leaders have called on the Government to ensure that port authorities have the resources and capacities needed to carry out checks on EU goods. |
Ministers announce £5bn cycle and bus fund
11/02/2020 PM pledges £5bn, five-year bus and cycling fund to support simpler fares, thousands of buses, higher service frequencies, and 250 miles of cycle paths. |
Green energy - the linchpin of EV success
11/02/2020 Thomas Newby explains why green energy is the linchpin of electric vehicles success for local government. |
Plans outlined for Britain’s first all-electric bus town
06/02/2020 One local authority is set to receive £50m to become Britain’s first all-electric bus town. |
Brighton considers becoming a ‘car-free’ city
28/01/2020 Brighton & Hove City councillors have agreed to look into the possibility of the city becoming ‘car-free’ by 2023. |
Leeds council launches electric vehicle trial
24/01/2020 Leeds City Council has launched a new scheme giving businesses, organisations and charities in West Yorkshire the opportunity to drive electric vans free of charge for up to two months. |
Funding doubles for residential charge points
21/01/2020 Funding for on-street charge points has been doubled to help end the ‘postcode lottery’ for the uptake of electric vehicles. |
Council chiefs call for help with £700m gap in bus fare scheme
20/01/2020 Local authority leaders have called on the Government to help them support bus routes as the distance local buses travel drops to lowest level since mid-1980s. |
Councils warned to cover foster carers’ school transport costs
17/01/2020 Councils have been reminded by the local government ombudsman that they should be providing financial support to foster parents to pay for school transport. |
Whitehall announces £3.4m investment in wireless charging tech
17/01/2020 The Government has announced that it is investing £3.4m in wireless charging technology trials at taxi ranks in Nottingham. |
Medway caves after Ombudsman rap
16/01/2020 Medway Council has finally accepted the recommendations in a Local Government Ombudsman public interest report after a two-year stand-off. |
Hydrogen for transport
16/01/2020 Mark Griffin explains why Aberdeen City Council has introduced a fleet of hydrogen fuelled buses to help reduce emissions. |
Islington Council launches electric vehicle charging partnership
16/01/2020 An electric vehicle charging partnership with Islington Council was launched yesterday as part of the London borough’s push to reduce harmful air pollution. |
HS2 based on false prospectus, Berkeley claims
06/01/2020 HS2 will cost at least £107bn to complete and its business case is based on unrealistic claims about how many trains could run on the new line, according to the former deputy chair of the Government’s review into the scheme. |
Council aims to make York city centre ‘car free’
02/01/2020 York city centre could become a ‘car free’ zone as part of a council effort to make the city carbon neutral by 2030. |
Charity calls for devolution to end ‘nightmare rail journeys’
02/01/2020 A charity has called for a radical overhaul of the UK’s rail services including giving city authorities more control over the management of regional networks. |
Over 12,000 Blue Badges granted to people with ‘hidden disabilities’
02/01/2020 Thousands of people with hidden disabilities have benefitted from the Government’s extended Blue Badge scheme, new figures reveal. |
Council chiefs warn of ‘bogus' Christmas taxi drivers
20/12/2019 Local authority leaders have warned revellers of the dangers of unlicensed rogue drivers around Christmas time. |
West Midlands bus passenger numbers ‘rocket’ by eight million
19/12/2019 The number of people catching the bus in the West Midlands has increased by almost eight million over the last year thanks to major investment in the network. |
Welsh government commits £74m to ‘green transport network’
19/12/2019 The Welsh government has committed to investing £74m into initiatives aimed at building a ‘clean, green transport network’. |
Siemens launches 'great model' for EV charging network
17/12/2019 Siemens Mobility has announced a partnership to deliver a series of charging hubs and more than 120 electric vehicle connections across the West of England. |
City of London Corporation launches UK’s first 24/7 zero emission street
17/12/2019 A busy thoroughfare in the City of London is set to become the UK’s first street where polluting vehicles are banned all year round. |
Warrington council opens £20.5m railway station
17/12/2019 Warrington Borough Council has announced the official opening of the town’s new multi-million pound railway station. |
In a nutshell: What the election result means for local government
13/12/2019 With the Conservative party securing its biggest majority since the 1980s, what does this mean for local government? |
‘Vast majority’ of council vehicles run on diesel despite pollution concerns
11/12/2019 Over 90% of vehicles operated by local authorities run on diesel despite council efforts to tackle air pollution, new research has revealed. |
Measuring the true value of community transport
11/12/2019 ECT Charity explains why community transport is worth its weight in savings. |
Top 100: Our most popular local government stories of 2019
10/12/2019 From calls to a 10% pay rise for council staff to declaring a climate change emergency, here is our countdown of the 100 most popular stories on LocalGov during 2019. |
Cycling key to stopping plastic polluting the ocean, charity says
10/12/2019 A charity has called on the next Government to invest more into the promotion of cycling and walking as part of the effort to prevent plastic polluting the ocean. |
It’s party time
05/12/2019 Paul Marinko tries to help the sector navigate the web of policy commitments for local government on offer after 12 December. |
Khan urged to make transport ‘fairer’ for Londoners on low incomes
04/12/2019 A think tank has called on Mayor Khan to make public transport more affordable for lower-income residents in London. |
Uber loses licence to operate in London
25/11/2019 Transport for London (TfL) has ruled against granting Uber a new private hire operator’s licence, deeming it to 'not be fit and proper' to hold one. |
Cities can address climate crisis by ‘joining the dots’ between sectors
14/11/2019 Cities can help protect the environment by linking up their policies on transport, energy and the built environment, according to campaigners. |
Councils warn about spiralling cost of free school transport
04/11/2019 Councils will be spending £1.2bn on providing free school transport by 2024, new research has found. |
Outdated taxi laws putting public at risk, councils warn
01/11/2019 The Government has been urged to reform 'outdated and flawed' taxi laws by the Local Government Association (LGA). |
Birmingham CC welcomes extension of injunction banning ‘street cruising’
31/10/2019 A court has agreed to extend an injunction banning street cruising from the roads of Birmingham for another three years, the city council has confirmed. |
Khan launches ‘world-leading’ scheme to get dangerous lorries off the road
30/10/2019 The mayor of London has launched a scheme to remove ‘the most dangerous’ Heavy Goods Vehicles (HGVs) from the capital’s streets. |
Bristol council considers banning diesel vehicles
30/10/2019 Bristol City Council is considering banning diesel vehicles in what it claims will be the quickest way to reduce nitrogen dioxide in the air. |
Reading to ditch polluting Hackney Carriages
25/10/2019 Older black cabs in Reading are set to be replaced with low emission vehicles as part of the council’s effort to make the city carbon neutral. |
Funding for buses cut by 40% in last decade
25/10/2019 Local authority funding for buses in England has fallen by more than 40% in the past decade, new figures have revealed today. |
Charity calls for ‘whole Government approach’ to health of young people
16/10/2019 Whitehall should transform its policies across housing, transport and education in order to secure the future health of today’s young people, charity says. |
North and Midlands ‘must take control’ of HS2, report says
16/10/2019 A review of HS2 has warned against stopping work on the high-speed network and insisted that the North and Midlands ‘must take control’ of the project. |
Queen's Speech 19: Whitehall unveils major infrastructure and rail plans
14/10/2019 The Queen's Speech pledges infrastructure strategy, aviation bill and proposals for rail reform. |
Study uncovers six factors driving bus use
09/10/2019 New research has revealed the underlying factors that best predict levels of bus use in local areas. |
Greater Manchester first to consult on bus franchising
09/10/2019 Greater Manchester is set to become the first city-region in the UK to hold a public consultation on the introduction of a bus franchising scheme. |
Not so fast - HS2 could be cut at both ends
07/10/2019 Council leaders in West Yorkshire have warned of ‘grave consequences’ after it was reported that the leg of HS2 from the Midlands to Leeds could be axed. |
This issue of Public Property examines how how flexible workspaces can lead the way in regeneration for local authorities, Why local authority intervention is key to successful urban regeneration schemes and if the Government’s challenge of embracing beauty is an opportunity for communities.
The March issue also takes a closer look at Blackburn with Darwen Council's first digital health hub to help people gain control over health and care services.
