Last week, Edward Morello, MP for West Dorset gave a rousing speech at a Westminster Hall debate on local transport and planning developments.
He said that if we are going to build new homes they must come with appropriate transport infrastructure especially more buses. He reiterated a plea to build “the right Houses in the right places at the right place” and the need for more affordable homes and accessible homes which are not built on flood plains or blighting natural landscapes and with appropriate infrastructure including GP surgeries, schools, shops and, most importantly, transport infrastructure.
He was particularly critical of the decline in bus services in the county which have fallen by 62% since 2010 and have had left people disconnected and isolated. He also highlighted the unfair allocation of funds from central government which has seen three times as much going to Devon than Dorset.
Edward called on the government to ensure that new developments come with strong plans for public transport so that commuting its possible with a realistic alternative to driving cars; and for more government support since the burden of infrastructure cannot be shouldered purely by local people. He also asked specifically for more money for rural services to reverse the years of underfunding. Otherwise we “risk normalising failure”.
Edward Morello is quite right to have highlighted how essential it is to provide public transport services when planning new housing developments. Milton Keynes was an extremely challenging and lonely place for marooned young families when the integral transport connections did not materialise. Cycling is not easy when taking a sick baby and toddler in the rain to appointments in town and Dorchester is very far from being Amsterdam. Teenagers especially need to have opportunities to connect with each other in person too – no village or housing development can provide all the sporting, musical and recreational facilities that young people deserve. Subsidised bus services are necessary for those beyond walking distance to town.