Co-operative!
The idea!
Go! Co-operative aims to improve access to public transport by providing open access rail services linking main lines to smaller market towns. Where feasible, we will also provide light rail or bus links or develop car pools to enable outlying communities to access these services.
Other benefits :
- reduced greenhouse gas emissions
- reduced road traffic congestion
- improved access to mainline railway services
- improve sustainability of outlying communities
- more evenly distributed economic opportunities
- greater mobility for non-car owners
Rail Facts (source: Transport 2000)
- passenger journeys on Britain’s railways has exceeded one billion – the highest since 1959
- Public transport is often the only way to travel for many groups of people such as the elderly or people on low incomes
- Rail links in rural areas and smaller towns will not only ease social exclusion but also sustain and boost local economies
- Train operators estimate that demand for rail travel will grow by 66% over the next 20 years
Open Access is seen as a positive solution by others too. Connecting Communities a report recently published by the Association of Train Operating Companies (ATOC) argues that the demand for rail services has soared in the last decade. "Record passenger numbers and rising demand require us to plan for the long term, while climate change and population growth make it vital that in doing so, we adapt the rail network to meet tomorrow's needs. Providing attractive new services and easier access to the rail network will encourage passengers to switch to rail from other, less green, modes of transport.” (ATOC chief executive, Michael Roberts).
