Member Article

Transport funding discussed at Northumbria

A senior UK transport official will argue that railways can be built and maintained and fares kept to modest levels, without demanding contributions from income tax or VAT in a major public lecture to be delivered in the North East this month.

Dave Wetzel, Vice-Chair of Transport for London, will deliver the lecture at Northumbria University’s new City Campus East. In his lecture, entitled ‘An innovative way to finance transport’, he will argue that a major building programme can be sustained by introducing a modest reform based on the economic principles of Annual Land Value Taxation.

He said: “It has long been acknowledged internationally, that well-used railways not only benefit passengers but that landowners around the stations also see large increases in their land values. The Hong Kong Metro was funded by increasing land values, The Metropolitan Underground Railway in London was originally part-funded from increasing land values and UK taxpayers provided £3.5bn to build the more recent Jubilee Line Extension which increased land values around the eleven new stations by £13bn.”

Dave Wetzel is currently Vice-Chair of Transport for London and Chair of Transport for London’s Safety, Health and Environment Committee. He has had a long and varied career including roles as an apprentice engineer, a London bus conductor, a mini-cab driver and a Trades Union shop steward at Heathrow.

Professor Kel Fidler, Vice-Chancellor of Northumbria University said: “Transport provision is of ever increasing importance to us all and this lecture promises to provide a thought provoking look at the options for future provision.”

For more information about the talk, contact Nikki Simmons on 0191 227 3025 or email nikki.simmons@northumbria.ac.uk.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Ruth Mitchell .