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CHAPTER 2: THE NEED FOR NEW TRAFFIC MANAGEMENT MEASURES
2.1 Congestion is a serious problem in some of Scotland’s cities and larger towns, particularly during peak commuting periods. It can also be a problem on sections of the trunk road network, including key inter-urban links, in certain rural areas during holiday periods, at popular tourist spots and at special events. Congestion reduces the efficiency of road transport and imposes considerable direct costs on road users through longer journey times, journey time unreliability, and frustration and discomfort for vehicle drivers and passengers. At the same time, congestion imposes considerable external costs on society, particularly through vehicle emissions, noise and nuisance, which have a detrimental effect on the quality of life. Congestion can also damage the viability and vitality of city centres by discouraging visitors and encouraging relocation to out-of-town areas. It also makes it more difficult for bus operators to provide an efficient and reliable service, and makes the roads unpleasant places for cyclists and pedestrians.
2.2 The most recent National Road Traffic Forecasts1 (NRTF) predict that, across Great Britain, traffic will increase at an average annual rate of between 1.1% and 2.1% between 1996 and 2016, with a central forecast increase of 1.6%. However, these forecasts are based on the assumption that previous transport policies will continue unaltered. In fact, the UK Government, through the UK and Scottish Transport White Papers, signalled a very clear change in policy with a particular focus on improving travel choices through the promotion and encouragement of improved public transport and other sustainable alternatives to the car. This focus has been reaffirmed in Partnership for Scotland which said:
"We will deliver an integrated transport policy which will provide genuine choice to meet transport needs as well as protecting the environment."
While such supply type measures can be expected to contribute to tackling congestion, it is apparent from research2 that any action taken must include measures to manage the demand for motorised travel, particularly by private car, as well as measures to encourage the use of more sustainable alternatives.
2.3 Local authorities in Scotland already have a wide range of powers available to them to restrict or prohibit traffic from specified roads or areas, to reallocate road space to give priority to modes other than the car and to control the price and availability of public on and off-street parking. However, experience has shown that existing traffic management measures can only go some of the way to tackle congestion and the situation can only be expected to get worse given the forecast traffic growth. The UK Government stated in its White Paper that road authorities should have new powers available to them to deal with the problems of congestion and the pollution and environmental damage which results. This commitment has now been reaffirmed in the Partnership for Scotland document.
2.4 It has been known for some time that, for some journeys, particularly peak hour journeys in urban areas, the current costs of road transport do not reflect the true economic and environmental costs of motor vehicle use. The Scottish Executive has concluded that in certain circumstances it would be appropriate to expect motorists to pay for road use, reflecting the fact that road space is a scarce resource and that charging can assist in allocating it efficiently. Such charges will confront road users with the wider costs of their actions and will encourage them to seek out alternatives. New primary legislation will be required to implement this policy and this consultation paves the way for early introduction of such legislation.
2.5 As stated in the White Paper, the demand for road use is linked not only to the availability and cost of road access, but also to the availability and cost of car parking at the end point of a journey. Free parking at the workplace is a real incentive for many employees to drive to work and these journeys make a significant contribution to the congestion experienced at peak time. The scale of this incentive in Scotland is evident from the statistics showing that 54 per cent of the workforce drive to work3 and of these, 75 per cent have parking provided by their employer.
2.6 Although local authorities can, through the planning process, impose strict conditions on the provision of car parking for new developments, they have very little real control on existing parking spaces at workplaces4. One means of influencing traffic levels would be to introduce a levy on private non-residential parking at the workplace. The Scottish Executive believes that appropriate powers should be available and, as stated in Partnership for Scotland, will introduce legislation to allow local authorities to adopt schemes to levy a charge on workplace parking.
2.7 Local authorities wishing to introduce road user charging schemes or a workplace parking levy will need to have a Local Transport Strategy setting out clear objective reasons for doing so5. These reasons will need to be explained fully in, and entirely consistent with, the strategy. Local authorities may wish to work in conjunction with each other to produce a regional scheme for road user charging or workplace parking levies and, where applicable, their Local Transport Strategies should reflect this joint approach. Such co-operation may often be appropriate as both road user charging schemes and a workplace parking levy may have impacts which cut across local government boundaries. This regional context is the subject of the recent consultation paper on Regional Transport Bodies6. In addition to their principal purpose of reducing the problems of congestion and pollution, both road user charging and a levy on workplace parking provide a potential new revenue stream which will assist in the delivery of the improved transport provision envisaged in the Local Transport Strategy.
2.8 The introduction of road user charging and a workplace parking levy raises many complex issues which need to be considered before any enabling legislation is introduced and schemes implemented. The Scottish Executive wishes to consult widely on the details of its proposals before introducing legislation and this document represents an important part of that consultation. In addition, the Scottish Executive is co-operating with the UK Government in implementing a demonstration project designed to test a free flow electronic charging system (ie one in which vehicles would not have to stop at toll barriers) in a real world situation. This will build on the experiences of test track trials which have already been conducted and which have demonstrated that the electronic equipment works well in the controlled environment of the test track7. There is now a need to demonstrate that the equipment works equally well on real roads, with real road users and in all types of traffic and weather conditions. In addition, while the technology is clearly important, there is also a need to consider the ‘back-end’ supporting arrangements which were not examined during the test track trials. This will not involve actual charges but, otherwise, will aim to simulate the conditions which would be faced in implementing a real system. As part of the demonstration, a sample of motorists will be asked to carry electronic on-board units in their vehicles. One of the UK sites will be on the M8 at Hermiston Gait, Edinburgh. This demonstration will be part of a wider UK research project on road user charging being led by the Department of the Environment, Transport and the Regions. The conclusions of the demonstration project and of the wider research will also be relevant to the implementation of local road user charging schemes.
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