Contemporary urban transport planning in the United Kingdom

This paper examines some of the salient features of local transport planning in the U.K. over the last decade, and in particular provides an overview of the policy changes emanating from national legislation. After providing a background to the philosophy of the new Conservative Administration in relation to public service provision and its administration, the paper considers in turn: investment in urban highways; developments of public transport systems based on Light Rail Concepts; the deregulation of local bus services; and the restraint and management of urban traffic. Examples are taken from various British towns and cities to illustrate some of the features of this era. The paper concludes with some views on the prospects for urban transport planning in the U.K.