00:00For many people living in Bristol, South Gloucestershire, Bath and North East Somerset, getting into
00:06the city centre quickly by bus or train is not easy.
00:09Currently, fewer than 50% of residents can make the journey in 30 minutes.
00:14By comparison in cities of a similar size in Europe, such as Toulouse in France and
00:19Malmö in Sweden, almost 70% can reach the centre in the same time.
00:24The West of England Combined Authority recently released a 48-page transport vision, outlining
00:29potential routes for trams, light rail or metrobus extensions.
00:34Construction could begin in 2030.
00:36The plan highlights the region's current transport shortfalls, a bus network of 1,000km compared
00:41with Toulouse's 2,000 and Malmö's 4,000 and less frequent or more expensive trains.
00:48I think our offer is really unique, our economy is super, super strong, we're a really productive
00:53region, we've got a really talented population, highly skilled workforce, people want to stay
00:59and live here, they want to bring up their kids here, but if we can't connect up the
01:04region, we will lose people because if we can't get people maybe living a little bit
01:08further out and then commuting into town for work, you know, we will start to lose people
01:13to other places.
01:14So we're making that point to government now and they really hear us.
01:17The Transport Secretary is from Swindon, that helps.
01:20So there is an understanding of our geography and our challenges.
01:24Transport experts say this difference is more than just an inconvenience.
01:28It's an economic issue.
01:30From 2002 to 2022, the West of England's economy grew by 40%, whereas Toulouse grew by 55% and
01:38Malmö by 57%.
01:40Those faster growing cities invested in mass transit over decades.
01:45Toulouse is a metro tram, more than 130 bus routes and a large urban cable car.
01:51While Malmö is linked to Copenhagen by a 16km bridge with railway, these networks make commuting
01:57easier, encourage jobs and support higher wages.
02:00Half of journeys in the West of England are currently made by public transport or active travel,
02:06compared with 60% in Toulouse and 69% in Malmö, according to the combined authority.
02:11We are approaching this in a really pragmatic way. One of the reasons we've not talked about
02:16a specific mode of mass transit is because we want to be open-minded to get the right answer.
02:22Funding remains a key challenge. Last year, the region received £200 million to design
02:29the mass transit network, but the cost of building it will require more support from central government.
02:35The combined authority is also exploring private sector partnerships, whilst Bristol City Council
02:39considers a workplace parking levy to help raise money. Similar schemes elsewhere, such as
02:44Nottingham, have funded tram expansions. The vision aims to make public transport more reliable,
02:50frequent and attractive, helping residents get around faster, reducing congestion and supporting
02:56the region's long-term economic growth.
02:59The
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