MediaResponding to the news that Leeds Mass Transit scheme has been delayed by several years, Sam Richards, CEO of pro-growth campaign group Britain Remade, said:
“Sadly the news of a major delay to Leeds Mass Transit plans is not surprising.
“Leeds is the largest city in Western Europe without a mass transit system. Across Europe, cities deliver tram networks in five to ten years. In Britain, projects are buried and delayed by process and a planning system that treats building as a problem to be managed, not a goal to be achieved.
“The contrast between Europe and Britain is staggering. Dijon in France was able to build a 12-mile tram network in just two years, after two years of planning, and it was built for just £37m a mile. One of the reasons Dijon was able to achieve this was because, unlike in Britain, local leaders have the powers to get on and deliver transport infrastructure without having to go cap in hand to central government.
“Yet again the government has failed to live up to its rhetoric when it comes to getting Britain building, until it does it will be cities like Leeds that miss out.”