Transport for the North, a new organisation comprising major northern cities, has started work on a freight and logistics strategy for the region.
Consultants Mott MacDonald and MDS Transmodal have been appointed to help drive development of the strategy to create an integrated transport network to support the growth of the logistics sector.
The updated strategy will outline plans for rail and highways as well as freight and logistics. The plan is also to improve the international connectivity of northern air and sea ports.
The Northern Freight & Logistics Strategy will form part of the updated Northern Transport Strategy, to be presented to the Chancellor by the 2016 Budget.
David Brown, director general of Merseytravel and who sits on the TfN Executive Board, said: “This is the north doing things differently – the public and private sectors working together and looking holistically at what we can do to boost our freight and logistics potential.
“Despite the fact that up to 60 per cent of containers entering the UK are destined for the midlands and the north, 90 per cent arrive through southern ports. This needs to be rebalanced. An efficient, sustainable freight industry is of massive importance to economic growth, supporting countless industries.
“Mott MacDonald and MDS Transmodal have been brought in to devise a clear strategy across road, waterways, rail and air which will underpin the transformation of northern connectivity, supporting northern industry and paving the way for a northern powerhouse.”
Transport for the North has a board made up of city regions, their LEPs, Central Government and national agencies, including:
- Greater Manchester
- Liverpool
- Leeds
- Sheffield
- North East
- Hull and the Humber
- Department for Transport
- Highways England
- Network Rail
- HS2 Ltd
