New analysis of Treasury public spending figures reveals that spending per head on transport in London is now triple the amount being spent in the West Midlands.
The figures show that spending in London has risen to £802 per head compared with just £257 in the West Midlands.
Other regions of the country are also lagging behind with the North West getting £333 per head, Yorkshire and Humberside £272 and the North East £248.
The gap has widened considerably since the previous years’ figures with spend in London rising from £634 to £802 per head compared to a modest increase from £262 to £286 in the West Midlands and North of England as a whole.
The disparity in public spending on transport between London and the regions is not matched for public spending as a whole, or for spending on education or health. It is also a relatively recent phenomenon rather than the historic norm, the research says.
Geoff Inskip, chief executive of Centro, the transport authority for the West Midlands region, said:
“London needs and deserves high quality public transport. However, it’s not just London’s transport system that needs a shot in the arm.
“Our cities are economic powerhouses but a greater level of transport investment in the West Midlands and Britain’s other major urban centres is needed to help bridge the North South divide and ensure that we can boost our economic performance and reach our potential.”
Mr Inskip, who is also chairman of the Passenger Transport Executive Group (Pteg) which represents the transport authorities serving England’s six biggest urban conurbations, said London’s transport system had ‘quite rightly been transformed in recent years’ by schemes such as the Oyster Card, London Overground, the rebuilding of St Pancras Station and the overhaul of the London Underground.
He said this transformation was vital given the importance of a modern and efficient transport network to underpin London’s economic vigour and sustainable development.
Plans for a high speed rail line between London and Birmingham, the rebuilding of New Street Station and the go-ahead to extend the Metro tram through Birmingham city centre showed that investment in public transport was not confined to the capital, Mr Inskip said.
“These funding gap figures validate what people can see with their own eyes – which is that in recent years transport spending in London has been in a different league when compared with the next tier of major cities.
“We need to keep up the pace on investment of that scale if the funding gap isn’t to continue to grow in a divisive and disproportionate way.”
