Transport Secretary Unveils Future Vision

Thank you, David, for that introduction. 

Good evening, everyone, and welcome to the National Railway Museum in York.

I'm tempted to say we're in the country's finest transport museum, but as a Swindon MP and a former Deputy Mayor for Transport in London, I feel I should tread carefully.

So welcome to ONE of the VERY BEST transport museums in the country!

It feels fitting for me to do my first big transport speech here.

The history of our transport network - the stories of the men and women who designed it, built it, operated and used it - are woven into the fabric of our communities in 21st century Britain.

And it's you - the people in THIS room - who are adding to that rich tapestry every day.

You keep life moving.

You get children to school, commuters to work, and families to their holidays.

You move the goods that stock our shelves, fuel our industries, and keep businesses thriving.

You don't just connect places - you connect people with the things that they need to get on in life.

And it's in the spirit of connection that I'd like to tell you a story.

I hope you won't be disappointed to learn that I haven't invited you here for a big policy announcement or news headline, but rather to share a little bit about who I am and what I believe.

I want to tell you a story about the people and places who have shaped my thinking.

I grew up in Swindon.

A proud railway town on the M4 corridor - a place with much to be proud of.

It's also a humble football town - and I can tell you, that as a Swindon Town supporter, I have learnt the lessons of humility all too well.

By fate and circumstance, that's where my journey began.

Outside our semi detached house, I remember my dad's first van parked up - 'Malcolm Alexander Electrical Services'.

I remember the first bike I was given - blue with a basket on the front - a bit like the blue crate I've got on my bike now.

And I remember learning to drive around the town's infamous Magic Roundabout.

And the car factories that punctuate the town's history - Rover, Honda and now, BMW.

It's fair to say that in 1980s Swindon, the car was king. 

It still is.

The proliferation of out of town shopping centres, urban expansions and a minimal public transport network shaped the transport destiny of my town.

Now, I won't pretend that urban planning preoccupied my teenage mind too much.

Back then, I was much more concerned about whether Wham! were going to make it to Number 1.

But when I moved away and got my first job, I began to see the bigger picture…

… that a poor transport network will limit choices. 

… that it can block the aspirations of young people.  

And, most important of all, a good transport network can do precisely the opposite.

I was the first person in my family to go to university.

And like so many, I found work and opportunities in the capital.

And so it was, at the age of 29, I walked into Lewisham Town Hall as a newly elected councillor - becoming the cabinet member for regeneration just two years later.

I loved that job, and I fell in love with transport.

Now, I'll admit …

It wasn't the language of highways management that enthralled me: "There's no such thing as a speed hump Cllr Alexander, only speed tables and speed cushions."

But it was the extension of the East London Line, the creation of new brownfield sites around major railway stations, the improvements to walking and cycling links that really got me hooked.

I learnt quickly that transport shapes a lot more than roads and railways.

And equally important, I learnt that it takes a lot of people to shape transport itself.

At Lewisham, I saw first-hand how transport investment could make a dramatic difference to people's lives.

Take Brockley Railway Station.

For years, it was an uninspiring, inaccessible place.

Uninviting, a bit run down.

Not somewhere you'd instinctively love as you rocked up for your morning commute.

But working with local campaigners, we delivered step-free access, a stunning landscaped ramp and better connectivity along the London Overground.

Today, Brockley is thriving.

It's a place where the old and the new coexist.

The Wetherspoons on the corner and fried chicken shops sit side-by-side with bakeries, breweries and a pedestrianised square.

It was a transport scheme that built a stronger, more connected community.

And, it was transport that made the difference down the road in Lewisham too.

We transformed it - relocating and improving a bus station, moving a roundabout, redesigning the roads, creating land for new homes, new public spaces and new opportunity.

And when I say "we", I mean the hundreds of people from different organisations who made it happen - people like you.

When a few years later I became the Member of Parliament for Lewisham East, transport was always right at the top of the list of my constituents' concerns.

The longer train station platforms that were worse than useless without the longer trains to stop at them.

The toxic air being pumped into homes around the South Circular.

And when I later became Deputy Mayor for Transport in London, I had the privilege of working on those concerns more closely than I had ever done before.

Look, London is big.

So yes, naturally, I'm proud of the big stuff:

Straining to keep the capital moving through Covid.

Working on the Elizabeth line to deliver the jewel in the crown of the UK's rail network.

Sticking to my guns on the Silvertown Tunnel, a new river crossing that enables London's red double-deckers to go under the Thames to the east of Tower Bridge for the first time.

But honestly, big doesn't always mean beautiful.

Transport isn't just about the price tag on the project.

It's about delivering a better everyday experience - buses that come on time, accessible stations, well managed road works.

I'm just as proud of the smaller projects that made a big difference - many delivered in London by my good friend and then colleague Will Norman - segregated cycle lanes on Jamaica Road and Evelyn St, more secure cycle parking, slower speeds on roads with high KSIs, a direct vision scheme to improve visibility from the cabs of HGVs.

These were transport interventions which ultimately delivered better public health, as well as better public realm.

So when I moved back to Swindon a couple of years ago, I wasn't just carrying a dream about becoming the MP for my home town.

I arrived with baggage - determined to deliver for Swindon in a similar way to London.

Not the same solutions - as every place is different, but to give people options and opportunity.

There isn't something in the water that makes Swindonians love their cars more than Londoners.

Just a reality that public transport is better in London.

And I think it's a failure of imagination, as much as a failure of policy, that young people in Swindon don't have better options than I had decades ago.

Because change is possible.

Across the country - from Swindon to Shrewsbury, Rotherham to Peterborough - we have underused transport assets.

Unloved railway buildings - land surplus to requirements or land that could be made so.

Neglected stations, like Brockley.

Potential that shouldn't go to waste, but we know that, too often, it does.

And with vision, funding and collaboration, these could become hubs of regeneration, places that don't just usher people through - but bring people together.

We talk about delivering "London style" transport to other places.

But I think we should talk more about "Swindon style" transport for Swindon, or "York style" transport for York.

And I want to support the capability and capacity within councils and combined authorities to deliver regeneration, investment and tangible improvements.

We have great mayors.

We have great local leaders.

We have great organisations working nationally and regionally.

We have a lot of talent in this room and beyond.

So, the question for me, is how do we best harness that?

Obviously, this is a question that has vexed me particularly since I took a call from the Prime Minister at the tail end of November, asking me to serve as his Transport Secretary.

And as someone who has skin in the game as a local MP and a passion to build on the work started by the force of nature, Lou Haigh, I naturally said yes.

And here I am.

Full-circle in some ways, and trying to shape a new path in another.

And the task is to build a better decade for transport.

Towards a better railway…

Laying the foundations for reform - establishing Shadow Great British Railways and launching a consultation on the upcoming Railways Bill to unify track and train .

Towards public ownership…

Passing the Passenger Railway Services Act, with the first operators - Southwestern and c2c - moving into public hands in the coming months.

Towards better buses…

Introducing the Bus Services Bill, giving local authorities greater control over routes, timetables, and fares - backed by over £1 billion in investment to improve reliability and frequency.

Towards better roads…

Investing £1.6 billion in local highways, an uplift of £500 million on last year - enough to fill an extra 7 million potholes.

Towards fairer work…

Enshrining greater protections for seafarers in law.

Towards cleaner skies…

Introducing the Sustainable Aviation Fuel mandate and launching a consultation on the revenue certainty mechanism.

Towards a fossil-free future…

Supporting the installation of thousands of new EV charge points-helping to drive record electric car sales, with 31% of new cars sold in December last year being electric.

And towards a transport system that supports the aspirations of everyone in this country…

It's why I am so proud to work with the ministerial team at the Department for Transport.

Like me - and like all of us - they've seen the difference that good services make…

…Whether it's the tap-and-go trams and buses in Mike Kane's patch, with fares capped at £2 on Greater Manchester's Bee Network.

…Or in Simon Lightwood's patch, where the mass transit system will improve integrated travel options in West Yorkshire, improving access to opportunities for people in Leeds and Bradford.

…Or, in Nottingham, where one of the local bus operators, Nottingham City Transport, has been voted UK operator of the year a record six times, with passenger satisfaction amongst the highest in the country. I hear Lilian Greenwood is a pretty good local MP too …

And as for Peter Hendy, who is his own walking museum of transport knowledge, he has a phrase that I would like to steal.

He talks about transport needing to be "boringly reliable".

And he's right.

If public transport options are boringly reliable, then it means day-to-day life is easier for everyone.

So, by 2035, I want public transport to play a greater role in national life, becoming the easiest, most attractive choice… brilliantly and boringly reliable.

Enrique Peñalosa, a former mayor of Bogotá, once said:

"An advanced city is not one where the poor have to own a car, but one where the rich choose to use public transport."

That's a vision I believe in.

But I can picture the headlines now - so let me counter the column inches before they emerge: there is no such thing as a war on motorists.

I drive. I own a car and I love it - a racing green Mini Cooper convertible.

I walk. I cycle.

I take buses, trains, and taxis.

And I'll bet most of you do too.

No serious person is proposing to ask people like my dad, a self employed electrician, to swap their van for a bus, forcing them to lug all their kit around - I certainly am not. 

Through his career, my dad was a professional problem solver, and I hope I'll carry the torch for that family tradition. 

But I'll be focussing on solving the real problems, not wasting time on the invented ones. 

Because I'm sure everybody in this room would agree that where you live shouldn't determine what you can achieve…

…that your hometown, no matter how big or how small, should provide the transport options to meet your aspirations…

… and that - if transport doesn't nurture young people with the opportunities they deserve, then our entire economy misses out on the talent it needs to grow.

That's why we're here today.

To have the conversations that bring us closer together.

I want to harness your talents, your expertise and your drive to solve real problems.

Because, no matter where people are travelling to, they should be proud of where they're coming from.

Thank you, and have a lovely evening.