Is congestion charging – as a major driver of transport improvement in provincial England – dead? Durham CC's decision to pull out of the Transport Innovation Fund comes in the wake of the massive rejection of congestion charging in Greater Manchester. All 10 districts of the city region voted, by substantial majorities, to reject the levy. In this vicious recession, the result was predictable. Its scale was not. The conclusion must be that getting public assent for congestion charging in return for public transport investment is going to be almost impossible anywhere in the country. Many people in Greater Manchester told me they felt they were being blackmailed, and transport wouldn't be improved before the charge came in. Tory leader, David Cameron, has called for the TIF money to be given to Greater Manchester anyway. There is also a view that a government seeking to keep unemployment down has a ready-to-go scheme employing 10,000 people in upgrading the transport system of a major conurbation. Should an addiction to congestion charging stand in its way? Meanwhile, what are the consequences of the emphatic no vote on the Greater Manchester city region? The area has been held up as a model of local government co-operation. The referendum campaign saw Tory ‘no' councils pitted against Labour ‘yes' ones, with Lib Dem authorities split. Dave Goddard, leader of Stockport MBC, acknowledged there had been damage to the city region's reputation. But when the partners gathered for their first meeting after the vote, they confirmed their bid for the city region's multi-area agreement to be put on a legal basis. With potential rival Merseyside, and Pennine Lancashire MAAs getting started last week, it seems it will take more than a knock-down, drag-out fight over congestion charging to stop Greater Manchester seeing the bigger picture. Jim Hancock is former political correspondent for the BBC in the Northwest
