Transport infrastructure key for urban investment

Public transport: vital for investment

A new study carried out by Invest Thames Gateway has revealed that the quality of a city's transport infrastructure is often the often deciding factor for potential investors when considering development locations.

The report - entitled Smart connections: The essential role of transport for border-less business - written by Professor Austin Smith, head of Department for Transport studies at Westminster University, claims that up to 80 percent of business location decision-makers believe that quality transport connections are important for organisations to survive, especially during the recession.

'Essential'

The report also stated that almost two-thirds of those asked (63 percent) said that transport was 'essential' in attracting an increasingly mobile and demanding workforces. 52 percent meanwhile, cited the globalisation of business as increasing the demand for efficient and integrated transport networks.

Professor Smith believes that cities' ability to provide efficient transport networks will be reflected in their economic success.

"Transport infrastructure represents the future for both business locations and business. Sophisticated and effective transport networks translate as accessibility and connectivity, making border-less business possible," he said.

"In the future, access to integrated transport networks and proximity to international markets, will, undoubtedly, be among the most influential factors for investors."

Despite initiatives to persuade businessmen to cut down on their 'carbon footprint' by travelling less and engaging in 'virtual business' by teleconferencing or other such technological means, 46 percent of those polled said that it was simply no substitute for face-to-face contact. As such, the report would seem to indicate that traditional transport systems are essential to bringing businesses together.

In recent years, many cities have attempted to rejuvenate their public transport systems in order to cut down on the number of drivers, preventing traffic congestion and in turn, carbon emissions.

Despite this, many public transport networks are often criticised for being unreliable and over-expensive, something that is going to have to be remedied if the idea of a "sophisticated and effective transport infrastructure" is to be realised.

For more information on the report - click here

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