National news Transport Committee response to revamp plan for road and rail projects The Transport Committee has published its analysis of the governments proposals to revamp planning policies for nationally significant road and rail infrastructure projects. The policies are contained in a draft revised National Networks National Policy Statement (NNNPS), published by the Department for Transport (DfT) earlier this year. The cross-party committee urges ministers to redraft sections that would be used to determine whether major new projects are compatible with net zero legislation, based on the carbon emissions that would be produced during and after their construction. For particular interest to parking managers is the call for the DfT to publish its National Transport Model used for forecasting how development options impact congestion so it can be independently tested and verified. See bit.ly/PNDec23NN London-wide ULEZ: first month results The London Assembly has published a report looking at the impact of the London-wide ULEZ during its first month of operation from 29 August. Key findings include that a larger proportion of vehicles driving in London are cleaner; there has been an overall reduction in vehicles driving in the zone, and the London-wide ULEZ has increased the compliance gap between outer and inner/central London. See bit.ly/PNDec23UR New faces at DfT Guy Opperman is the new Minister for Roads and Local Transport at the Department for Transport (DfT), taking over Richard Holdens brief. Lord Davies of Gower is Parliamentary Under Secretary of State at the DfT, replacing Baroness Vere of Norbiton. New laws for EV charging providers and local authorities New laws were approved by MPs at the end of October to help ensure that prices across EV chargepoints are transparent and easy to compare and that a large proportion of new public chargepoints have contactless payment options. Providers will also be required to open up their data, so drivers can easily find an available chargepoint that meets their needs. It will open up data for apps, online maps and in-vehicle software, helping drivers to locate chargepoints, check their charging speeds and determine whether they are working. The BPA has previously expressed particular interest in the consulted powers for minimum requirements for installation of chargepoints in nonresidential car parks, but this is not covered by the legislation. These regulations follow the recent announcement of a range of measures to speed up the installation of chargepoints (see gov.uk/government/ publications/plan-for-drivers). The Autumn Statement then promised 2bn of investment for the EV market and pledged to reform the planning system to prioritise the roll-out of chargepoints. The Treasury confirmed plans to amend the National Planning Policy Framework to ensure the planning system prioritises the roll-out of EV chargepoints, including EV charging hubs. Applications are currently open to local authorities in the first round of the 381m Local EV Infrastructure (LEVI) funding. In addition, the On-Street Residential Chargepoint Scheme (ORCS) is open to all UK local authorities. The government has also published its response to the Future of transport regulator review: zero emission vehicles consultation, confirming its intention to introduce laws to require local transport authorities to produce local charging strategies if they have not done so as part of local transport plans. See bit.ly/PNDec23PCR and also bit.ly/PNDec23TRR 6 PN Dec 2023 pp06-07 National News.indd 6 01/12/2023 10:45