South East Region

Which is comprised of Buckinghamshire, Oxfordshire, Surrey, Sussex, Kent, Hampshire,
 

Timetable

The Regional Transport Strategy (RTS) as published by the Secretary of State in July 2004 forms the basis of the draft transport policies for the South East Plan. The RTS is part of PRG 9. (now RSS and called the SE Plan.

Public consultation on the first draft of the South East Plan finished on 15 April 2005. The finished Plan will be submitted to the Government for approval in October 2005. There will be an independent panel to test the robustness of the plan at the end of 2005 and be finalized in 2006.

Once it has Government approval it will become a legal document that local authorities and other government agencies in the region will have to follow.
 

SE Plan – Policies to promote and protect rail freight T9.

Key Management Issues
1.16 By focusing on the need to rebalance the use of the transport system away from its current dependence on the car and lorry, the RTS will assist in reducing the impact of the transport system on both the natural and built environments.
1.43 Priority should be given to improving rail access to the region’s deep-sea container port facilities at Southampton and Thamesport in order to support existing operations. Priority should be given to improvements in terms of physical infrastructure and gauge clearance and also in terms of availability of paths.
1.46 The Government’s White Paper, ‘The Future of Transport’ committed the Government to undertaking a review of the national ports policy framework. One of the key issues identified for the review is the need to ensure that road and rail improvements needed to serve future major port developments are brought on stream effectively. The Assembly welcomes the review. The policies in the RTS may need to be reviewed in light of the outcome of the review.
 

D4 Rail Freight

1.75 The Gateway Function – The primary generators of long-distance movement arising from the region’s gateway function are the ports and the Channel Tunnel. Improved rail access into the gateway ports would enhance the opportunity for rail freight to compete with road haulage.
Improved rail access would also enhance the ports’ potential role as access points to the proposed European network of short sea shipping routes. In addition, there is a need to protect paths on the rail network that benefit freight movements and to address bottlenecks on the network that adversely affect freight movements.
1.76 London remains a key bottleneck for rail freight movements originating from a number of the gateway ports. Work undertaken by the Thames Gateway Strategic Executive as part of the development of a transport vision for the Thames Gateway has identified the context within which a potential Lower Thames Crossing might be considered. The Highways Agency and the SRA have taken forward separate work to look at the issues affecting the networks in the area and to report to Transport Ministers.
1.77 The potential for increased rail freight movements from the Port of Southampton and, potentially the Port of Portsmouth, has already been recognised by the commitment of the SRA to provide improved gauge clearance on the route through to the West Midlands. However, realisation of the full potential of this enhancement will only be possible once Midlands are implemented.
 

Freight and Site Safeguarding

1.78 The majority of freight movements within the region are made by road and this will continue to be the case due to the mode’s flexibility and general suitability to accommodate a wide range of Movements and consignments.
1.79 The capacity of the highway network is at present insufficient to accommodate the demand for road-based freight movement, resulting in unreliable journey times. This unreliability in turn affects business efficiency. In considering the future allocation of highway space, consideration should be given to giving higher priority to road freight vehicles.
 

Inter-Modal Interchanges

1.80 Work undertaken by the SRA has identified the need for between three and four inter-modal interchange terminals to serve London and South East England. This suggests that to support development of rail in the general freight market, a small number of large new interchanges will be required with both inter-modal capacity and rail connected warehousing. To be efficient these must be large enough to accommodate longer trains with modern wagons, rapid means of cargo transfer, handling and storage. They may also need
 

POLICY T15:

FREIGHT AND SITE SAFEGUARDING

Relevant regional strategies, Local Development Documents and Local Transport Plans should include policies and proposals that:

1. promote the most appropriate mechanism for securing the efficient distribution of goods, including making more use of Freight Quality Partnerships
   
2. safeguard wharves, depots and other sites that are, or could be, critical in developing the capability of the transport system to move freight, particularly by rail or water
   
3. safeguard and promote sites adjacent to railways, ports and rivers for developments, particularly new intermodal facilities and rail connected industry and warehousing, that are likely to maximise freight movement by rail or water
   
4. encourage development with a high generation of freight and/or commercial movements to be located close to intermodal facilities, rail freight facilities, or ports and wharves.
    

POLICY T14:

RAIL FREIGHT

The railway system should be developed to carry an increasing share of freight movements. Priority should be given in other relevant regional strategies, Local Development Documents, and Local Transport Plans, providing enhanced capacity for the movement of freight by rail on the following corridors (in priority order):

1. Southampton to West Midlands
   
2. Dover/Channel Tunnel to and through/around London
   
3. Great Western Main Line
   
4. Portsmouth to Southampton/West
   

Midlands Corridor.
100 The South East Plan to provide activities such as warehousing, stockholding or processing, all of which may be regarded as adding value to the process of modal transfer.
1.81 Potential sites for these terminals will need to meet a number of criteria. In particular they must:

1. be of sufficient size and configuration to accommodate an appropriate rail layout, transfer operation and added value activities
   
2. be already rail connected or capable of rail connection at a reasonable cost
   
3. have adequate road access or the potential for improved road access
   
4. be situated away from incompatible land uses.
   

1.82 Areas of search for potential sites should be identified in partnership with the SRA and Highways Agency for more detailed discussion with local authorities.
 

POLICY T16:

INTER-MODAL INTERCHANGES

The Regional Assembly should work jointly with the Strategic Rail Authority, Highways Agency, Freight Transport Association, and local authorities, to identify broad locations within the region for up to three intermodal interchange facilities. These facilities should be well related to:

1. rail and road corridors capable of accommodating the anticipated level of freight movements
   
2. the proposed markets
   
3. London.