Local Sustainable Transport Fund
The Department for Transport (DfT) is making £560 million available over the next four years through the Local Sustainable Transport Fund (LSTF). This funding is being offered to help local transport authorities support the local economy and reduce carbon emissions.
Plymouth Transport and Highways submitted two bids to be considered for funding from the LSTF:
- Plymouth Connect
- Smart ticketing throughout all south west England (Plymouth co-ordinated a partnership bid with 14 other local transport authority areas covering the whole South West region)
The DfT recently announced that both bids have successfully secured a total of £7.31 million to deliver transport improvements in the city.
Plymouth Connect
The Plymouth Connect scheme has been awarded £4.33 million to support links to jobs, education, healthcare and other essential services across geographical, social and economic barriers. The scheme focuses on the corridor between the communities of Devonport and Stonehouse in the west, through the city centre and to the East End, Plymstock and Plympton in the east.
Plymouth Connect will include:
- Upgrading west-east walking, cycle and bus routes
- Restoration of the iconic Laira rail bridge for pedestrian and cycle use
- Personalised travel planning for approximately 43,000 households
- Travel mapping and information
You can view the Plymouth Connect bid below.
Smart ticketing throughout all south west England
This Bid has secured £2.98 million from the LSTF. The project will be delivered through a new company hosted within the Institute of Sustainability Solution Research at Plymouth University. South West Smart Applications Ltd (SWSAL) is a not-for-profit company formed in October 2010 and owned by 15 transport authorities and 15 major bus operators in the south west region.
Smart ticketing will open up a range of opportunities to make using public transport even easier. Different ticket products, such as day returns or annual passes can be loaded onto a smart card at the convenience of the passenger using various payment options, including travel shops and online – and the card is simply tapped onto a card reader on the bus. This project will deliver the foundations for a future expansion of new types of ticketing linking different forms of transport services and creating better integration.
The SWSAL smart ticketing project is worth £9.4 million in total, made up of funding contributions from councils across the region. The LSTF funding award of £2.98 million is crucial to the scheme and is expected to deliver:
- Smart ticketing equipment on all 3,400 registered local bus services in the south west
- The extensive back office software to support this
- Support for the region’s Community Transport and Community Rail Partnership in moving towards smart technology
You can view the smart ticketing throughout all south west England bid below.