Transport improvement plans to be considered by the Government

Ambitious £22 million plans for transport improvement around Sheffield will be submitted to the Government for approval.

Ambitious transport improvement proposals for the future of the Sheffield City Region’s transport network were agreed by the Mayoral Combined Authority and will now be submitted to Government. At a meeting, the MCA agreed on the content of a draft Transforming Cities Fund (TCF) bid to the Department for Transport (DfT).

The bid, for up to £220 million in funding, focuses on three large areas which could most benefit from significant improvements across rail, public transport and active travel schemes. The aim is to reduce journey times, cut congestion, improve punctuality and reliability, and bring about a wide range of benefits associated with active travel, such as improved health and wellbeing.

Dan Jarvis, Mayor of the Sheffield City Region, said: “It is critical that we improve the transport system in our region, to create better access to major employment sites, reduce congestion, better integrate different modes of transport and make our transport network fit for the 21st century.”

“That’s why it’s so important that we get this Transforming Cities Fund bid right, and why we’ve been working closely with partners across South Yorkshire to ensure that our bid has real potential to drive transformational change for our communities.”

“Improving our transport links is crucial for growing our economy as we develop a Global Innovation Corridor, linking residents and businesses to our internationally-significant assets in areas such as advanced manufacturing, health and wellbeing, and engineering.”

“I now look forward to working with the Department for Transport as we develop our detailed plans.”

The three areas the bid focuses on are the River Don ‘corridor’ between Sheffield city centre and the Unity site north of Doncaster; the Advanced Manufacturing Innovation District (AMID) on the border of Sheffield and Rotherham, and the Dearne Valley Corridor, spanning Rotherham, Barnsley and Doncaster. This area also includes key employment sites such as the Barnsley Digital Campus and M1 Junction 36.

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