Local rail travel, thanks to efforts of Metro and SYPTE, is good value for money in West (and South) Yorkshire but it is expensive to travel across boundaries and in other parts of the region. The current anomalies need sorting out with attractive local and longer distance fares across Yorkshire and the North.
Many stations in Yorkshire remain out of bounds for disabled people and parents with prams. We would set a target to make all stations fully accessible by 2025 (in many cases, sooner).
Achieving full integration
Rail is just one part of the transport mix. We want to ensure much better integration between bus and rail, with interchangeable tickets, good connectivity between bus and train at stations, and avoidance of duplication. Many people need to use their car to get to the station and ensuring there is enough car parking space is essential. We would encourage more walking and cycling to and from stations, with safe, well-signed and well-lit routes.
Sensible and sustaianable development
The link between rail and planning is of huge importance, but the links have become weaker instead of stronger over the last few years. There should be encouragement of development in station areas, for both housing and office development. Major developments not served by rail should pay for new facilities to be put in, based on developer contributions. The same goes for major industrial development – there should be a presumption that they would be rail-served.