Europe Cars & Trucks News

Transport for London’s Rail Freight Strategy document was published on the 6^th September 2007. The chief aim detailed within is the removal of up to 176 million lorry miles from the UK’s motorways and roads per annum, which, it is hoped, will reduce levels of both accidents and gas emissions.

Rail Freight Strategy outlines the TfL’s objectives over a ten year timeframe, backing London Mayor Ken Livingstone’s directives concerning congestion, road traffic accidents and greenhouse emissions. It makes provision for the expansion of traffic within the rail freight sector, along with increasing demand for rail services from passengers. It additionally highlights awareness among the TfL’s members of the need to preserve equilibrium between the twin demands of freight and passengers. This, it adds, is best served by using the present rail framework to its maximum allowable efficiency.

The Managing Director of London Rail, Ian Brown, described the document thus:

"The London Rail Freight Strategy sets out our view of how the rail freight network and facilities should develop in London to 2016. The rail strategy is part of a multi modal plan for addressing the freight objectives in the London Plan and the Mayors Transport Strategy. It was developed in liaison with rail industry partners, and provides the basis of TfL`s recommendations for investment in rail freight. "

A feature of the Rail Freight Strategy is a toolkit, designed to assist officers within the London boroughs with issues surrounding the development of new freight hubs.

According to Transport for London, emissions generated within the rail freight sector are currently ninety per cent less than when the equivalent freight is transported over road by HGVs. Additionally, as per the document: "In London in 2005, there were 1,040 casualties associated with goods vehicles. There were none in the rail freight industry."

Source - Freight International’s London Reporter

Rail Freight to Benefit from Government Funding

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