Sustainable Public Transport for Hereford. July 2019

Following our submission to the Department for Transport on Light Rail Opportunities in May 2019, HSTG prepared a detailed thirty-five-page report on Sustainable Public Transport for Hereford. The Executive Summary to that report is given here and the full report is available as a pdf by email from Gareth Calan Davies at ghal@brinternet.com

Executive Summary

The purpose of this report is to investigate and encourage the detailed consideration of a modern 21st century sustainable public transport system for the City of Hereford as a matter of Herefordshire Council priority.

Hereford is a self-contained city. The link between land use and transport is strong. Congestion in the city is primarily caused by the city. The aim of any modern transport plan or package must be to reduce traffic by effecting a modal shift from the car to public transport and active travel measures.

New road building, involving considerable loss of valuable countryside and landscape can never be the answer to the current transport problems within the city.

A significant modal shift to a modern public transport Very Light R and electric bus network with transport hub increases the attractiveness of the city to inward investment and scientifically aids both regeneration and new development. It positively addresses the climate change emergency. It has far greater environmental and social benefits and advantages than previous transport packages based on new road building.

Estimated costs are more favourable than extensive road building schemes and are included in report. Timed phasing is anticipated to be quicker than a road scheme involving a long river crossing.

It is to be hoped that the new Herefordshire Council will, as a matter of priority, instigate a quick detailed study into an integrated VLR and electric bus network for the city giving urgent and due accord to its environmental and regeneration advantages.

This report gives a new practical vision for the city – Hereford, a clean, environmental city of the future: We can achieve this by a fresh, energetic start now.