2025 transport review

One step forward, two steps back

What has gone well in 2025

Like any year, assessing whether there has been any progress is difficult when things are so complex. However, we’ve seen several significant milestones in 2025 which should bring lasting benefits: The Bus Services Act in England became law, making it easier for councils to franchise bus services; Legislation to establish Great British Railways has been introduced to Parliament, and; a number of rail operators have been brought back under public ownership. Meanwhile in Wales, they’ve just adopted new bus legislation to provide a joined up public transport network that is safe, integrated, environmentally sustainable, and meets the transport needs of the public..

Encouragingly, it’s not all been about structures, important as they are. For the first time in over thirty years rail fares in England will be frozen, while fuel duty will rise next year, reversing the ‘temporary’ 5p cut introduced by Rishi Sunak in 2022. The UK government has also started the thorny conversation around reforming vehicle taxation, proposing to tax electric vehicles for every mile driven. All policy measures we called for in a letter to the Chancellor.

The year started positively after many road schemes were cancelled in 2024 but we knew it was important to keep the pressure up. We worked with the Stonehenge Alliance to commission Greengauge 21 to write a report showing how the government could spend some of the money saved by cancelling schemes on the A303 and A358 to improve rail and bus and active travel connectivity to the South West.

We also commissioned Jonathan Roberts to research the options for a new heavy rail link across the Thames to relieve the Dartford road crossings (instead of building the Lower Thames Crossing ‘smart’ motorway). This, and our summary report, which were launched in partnership with ASLEF, the train drivers union, highlight the benefits of investing in smarter, cheaper alternatives.

In Wales the stand out success of 2025 is that the roll out of 20mph as the default speed limit for urban areas has resulted in a significant drop in casualties, saving lives and reducing pressure on the NHS. Meanwhile Cardiff has led the way by introducing a weight based parking policy with higher charges for heavier vehicles

Our landmark victory for active travel

2025 saw our historic win in the Court of Appeal when the cuts to cycling and walking funding imposed by Rishi Sunak were found to be unlawful. This was the most significant case for active travel in English legal history, and it was only possible thanks to those 1,500+ people who supported us.

While the challenge took a lot of time and effort, this victory shows what is possible when people come together to pursue a common cause. Unfortunately the judgment came too late to make the government repay the cut (and Labour has not covered itself in glory by ignoring calls to make up the shortfall), but it did have some significant benefits. Firstly, it deterred the government from further cutting active travel funding. It also enabled the publication of documents showing how much funding was really needed to deliver significant change in active travel that previous governments had kept hidden.

New Government, Same Old Story?

However, in stark contrast to the messages Labour was giving out before the election, in government it has doubled down on large, damaging road schemes, particularly the Lower Thames Crossing ‘smart’ motorway. It is also going full throttle on airport expansion and slashing environmental regulations, whilst labelling nature and people as ‘blockers’ to growth even though there is little evidence to support this rhetoric. Meanwhile, it says that it supports active travel but has failed to adequately fund it, and claims to support freight on rail but then approves road schemes that make it easier to transport goods by road.

It has also refused to fund rail schemes that would drive up rail freight and passenger numbers and income, lowering rail subsidies, and offer far better value than the roads it has approved. One of the best examples of this is the Ely junction rail scheme with a cost benefit ratio of 5:1, far better than any road the government has approved.

After the lies and disinformation spread by previous Conservative governments, it was hoped when Labour came to power that would change. Unfortunately that hasn’t been the case. In some instances it seems worse now, especially on environmental legislation and judicial review, or funding low value road schemes. The Labour leadership seems to have no qualms about getting into bed with right-wing lobbyists and spouting their divisive rhetoric about “blockers” and nature.

On its reasons for not investing in active travel infrastructure, such as Queensbury Tunnel, it has seriously misled the public and is itself the ‘blocker’ to progress. It is claiming that there is ‘no money’ to make the tunnel a greenway yet is prepared to authorise £7.5m to block the tunnel up. Part of the problem is that Ministers are reliant on National Highways for much of their information, and as we’ve learnt, National Highways is not to be trusted.

But it gets worse. This Labour government is also complicit with covering up the Conservatives’ failed ‘smart’ motorway programme. The DfT has sat on studies showing the effectiveness of these schemes for years and the question has to be why? If they were so successful surely the government would want to champion them? Now the government has said the studies will be released before Christmas. But don’t hold your breath!

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Labour was elected on the back of a number of missions to increase opportunities, grow the economy, create safer streets, reduce carbon, and safeguard the NHS. Yet its actions in transport are hindering progress on all of these missions. The clear and obvious way forward would be to flip investment away from roads (other than maintenance) into active travel and public transport, which are cheaper, more inclusive, increase productivity, and better for the NHS and the environment. Is it any wonder that Labour finds itself in the wilderness when it comes to public support when it has promised all these changes but then failed to deliver? Even the £3 bus fare cap, which it likes to crow about, is unaffordable for many. Yet it remains deaf to concerns. Despite welcome multi-year funding for buses, they are still under-resourced and regarded as the poor persons’ transport in every regard by politicians.

The Lower Thames Crossing money pit

The Lower Thames Crossing is a ‘smart’ motorway in all but name and has been a major focus of our national campaigning, exposing this white elephant for the folly it is.

Our work on the Lower Thames Crossing has received good coverage, including in Private Eye and The Guardian. We have debunked the many myths about this scheme, and continued to oppose it at every opportunity.

To say we have been disappointed with the way the government has thrown money at the Lower Thames Crossing is an understatement. In the Budget, Rachel Reeves promised another £891 million for it up to 2029, bringing the total public funding pledged to £3bn. There is talk of preparatory work starting next year, but with costs spiralling to £11bn, more private finance now needed (up 19% to £7.5bn), and the opening date quietly pushed back by two years, there is still no guarantee it will be built. On top of all that, Dartford Crossing tolls went up 40% in September and will likely go up a lot more to pay for the increased funding now needed for the new road.

It seems like our predictions are coming true!

End of transport culture wars?

Lilian Greenwood recently stated what should be obvious: many people who drive also cycle, walk, and use public transport. So, is this the end of the divisive ‘war on motorists’ rhetoric? Hopefully so, at least from the government. Though perhaps we need to wait and see what actions come from the top, particularly as Keir Starmer started the year singling out roads campaigner Dr Andrew Boswell in a hit piece in the Daily Mail.

Our Director, Chris Todd, was also subject to media attacks this year when The Express called him ‘angry’, and The Telegraph dubbed him ‘Britain’s costliest Nimby’, although the two roads he had challenged were hundreds of miles away, somewhat stretching the definition of ‘Nimby’.

Road runoff campaign

Research by Stormwater Shepherds and Watershed Investigations found that National Highways is responsible for 25,000 road outfalls and soakaways. Every time it rains, a toxic brew of oil, particulate matter, and microplastics from tyre and brake wear is washed from our roads into our rivers and groundwater.

This year, we have worked with Stormwater Shepherds to campaign for National Highways to prioritise adequate funding in its next five-year budget (RIS3) to tackle all 25,000 outfalls and soakaways by 2031. Feedback so far is that National Highways has allocated funding to tackle 182 outfalls, less than 1% of the total. This is unacceptable and will leave our rivers and waterways polluted for decades to come.

Looking ahead to 2026

In 2026 we will see the extent of the government’s ambition for active travel when it publishes its next 5 year strategy (CWIS3). The draft strategy was full of warm words but failed to learn from the past, wasn’t integrated with wider government priorities, and was underfunded. In fact dedicated government funding has been cut by over a third in this next 5 year period.

There has been a lot of push back from individuals and organisations about the draft CWIS3, and we were part of a joint letter sent to the government expressing numerous concerns. Nearly four hundred people took our action criticising the draft strategy. The question is, will the government take any notice and does it really want to significantly improve walking and cycling conditions, or is it just talk?

The final Road Investment Strategy (RIS3) for 2026-2031 will be published in March 2026. It will show if the government is putting its money where its mouth is on prioritising road maintenance over building new roads. It is likely big schemes left over from RIS2 will swallow up a lot of the RIS3 funding, as we argued in our submission to the DfT. We will also be watching closely to see if more road schemes don’t sneak their way into the RIS4 pipeline up to 2036.

Also promised for 2026 is the long awaited Local Transport Plan guidance which is due to follow publication of the Integrated National Transport Strategy, itself delayed from the summer.

Even more overdue (5 years+) is the government’s response to the pavement parking consultation, which so many people are desperate to see action on. There were suggestions that it might be included in a new Road Safety Strategy. However, this was due out before Christmas but never appeared.

So next year could see a lot of good things, but sadly they will be meaningless if the government continues to undermine them by pouring investment into bigger roads. The constant delays are wasting time and resources as well as undermining confidence in the government.

It of course is running scared of the local elections and so anything that might be remotely contentious even if it is very popular (such as pavement parking) is being kicked into the long grass.The problem is that this is just reinforcing people’s belief that Labour has gone back on its promise to deliver change. One reason why the Green Party as well as Reform are doing so well at the moment. So it’s likely that the local elections could be quite pivotal, especially if they then lead to a Labour leadership challenge.

The one area Labour is delivering change, is change that many people don’t want which is ripping up environmental protections and planning laws. The government has just published a new National Planning Policy Framework that it is consulting on until 10 March. One of the proposals is to allow development at “well-connected” train stations, although its definition of “well-connected” is being questioned. We will be responding to the consultation, highlighting what is good and bad.

One thing that we know for sure is that our small team needs your support now more than ever to help us keep punching above our weight. Donate today – whether it is one-off or regular – your support means a great deal to us.