The South East needs better transport to support economic growth, the South East England Regional Assembly said this week at the hearing into the South East Plan.

The Assembly has drawn up an action plan for the region's improving transport. It estimates that between £37 billion and £47 billion of investment is needed over the next 20 years for transport and local services. The Plan's goals include an integrated transport network, increased investment in public transport, and reduced car use, congestion and pollution. Besides helping competitiveness, better transport will improve our environment and quality of life.

Cllr Keith Mitchell, Chairman of the South East England Regional Assembly said:

"Investment in infrastructure, such as transport and local services, is a central theme in the South East Plan. The Plan insists that facilities and services need to be in place before or at the same time as new development. To remain a successful region, we must improve links across the region as well as with London, the rest of the country and the world. The challenges we face to improve the transport network, including public transport, are partly due to under investment in the past. The Assembly has set out what needs to happen, where, when and how in an action plan to deliver sustainable development."

Topics at the hearing (formally called Examination in Public) this week:

• Tuesday 12 December - Regional Transport Strategy
• Wednesday 13 December - Affordable housing
• Thursday 14 December - Employment land
• Friday 15 December - Waste and minerals

Contacts

Lesley van Dijk, Assembly PR Executive - 01483 555223

Heather Bolton, Assembly Communications Director - 01483 555220

Notes to editors:

1. Recent transport data from the Assembly's Monitoring Report (2006) shows that changes in some South East residents' travel habits are helping to ease congestion on the roads.
   - Reduction of 187.5 miles (300 km) in distance travelled per person per year in past three years (down from 8,000 to 7,700km).
   - More people are using the train (up from 5% to 6% in 2004). This represents a 20% increase in train use compared to other ways of travelling.
   
   
2. The region's ports handle about 95% of the country's trade.
   
   
3. What is the South East Plan?
   It sets a framework for how the region needs to change through to 2026 - for example to provide the jobs, homes and environmental protection that will make sure we continue to be economically successful and offer all residents a good quality of life. The Plan is based on evidence gathered over three years, with significant input from councils, businesses and community organisations and extensive public comments.
   
   
4. Examination in Public
   Four months of public hearings, which started on 28 November, will examine the Assembly's South East Plan. The hearing on Wednesday 6 December will discuss the level of housing. A panel of three independent planning inspectors will hear views on the Plan's content from organisations in the region before making recommendations to Government about any changes they think may be needed.
   
   
5. Facts and figures about the Assembly and the Examination in Public
   
   
6. The Assembly's statements
   
   
7. The South East England Regional Assembly is a regional partnership with 112 members representing local authorities as well as social, environmental and business sectors.
   
   
8. The Assembly was established by South East local government in January 1999 to provide a representative voice for the region, which covers Berkshire, Buckinghamshire, East and West Sussex, Hampshire, Isle of Wight, Kent, Oxfordshire and Surrey.
   
   
9. Assembly members include elected councillors from the region's 74 local authorities and 37 representatives from other sectors of the community (including business, trades unions, education, housing, health, sports, culture, tourism, faith groups, environmental, community and voluntary organisations) as well as the New Forest National Park Authority.
   
   
10. The Assembly has four key roles:
1. Advocacy
   Pressing the South East's interests in London and Brussels.
2. Accountability
   Scrutinising the plans and performance of regional bodies such as SEEDA to align the region's priorities.
3. Regional planning
   Preparing and delivering the South East Plan - the 20-year statutory plan for the region that sets the framework for the sustainable development of the South East.
4. Regional policy
   Advising Government on the co-ordination of regional strategies and spending priorities for housing, transport, planning and economic development to improve the impact of public expenditure.

Our vision is for a distinctive, outward-looking, accessible region of prosperous, sustainable communities, with a high quality of life and environment.

Last updated: 21 August 2007