The future of York’s and North Yorkshire’s bus system and transport network is among the issues at the top of the region’s agenda, its mayor has said.
Mayor David Skaith said he could not say yet what the future of buses would be as work continues to find a model that would suit the region.
The Labour mayor told the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS) he was also pushing for more regular York to Scarborough trains as part of efforts to address poor transport links.
Mr Skaith spoke to LDRS to mark 100 days since he was elected as the first head of the York and North Yorkshire Combined Authority in May.
The Winston’s of York shop owner turned Labour politician cited his £10m High Street Fund and backing plans for 440 affordable homes as among his and the Authority’s early successes.
Mr Skaith said attention was now turning to transport which was one of the biggest issues for people in the region.
He added options including the Combined Authority setting and franchising routes as is done in Manchester or a partnership with private operators were among those being looked at.
The mayor said: “I was in Selby recently and people spoke about connections from there to South Yorkshire in particular.
“Transport connections are poor across the region, especially east to west, and there’s issues for people who want to get to and from West and South Yorkshire.
“We know where we want to go with transport but how we do that in a sustainable way here is very different to how it’s done in Manchester and London.
“In an urban area like Manchester it’s a lot easier to create a transport system with buses and trams than it is in North Yorkshire.
“I can’t say yet if we’re going to go down the full franchising route or if it’ll be an Enhanced Partnership that goes more towards a franchising model.
“It’s not just about buses, we’re looking at rail and active travel as well so we can have an integrated transport system.
“We’re bringing in a transport team at the moment and we’re going to be working with the mayors in West Yorkshire, Tracy Brabin, and South Yorkshire, Oliver Coppard.”
Mr Skaith said the Combined Authority was also now working to draw up a Growth Plan in an effort to draw investment into the region.
He added he was confident that they could play to the region’s economic strengths and attract investment despite the incoming Labour Government’s intention to tighten public spending.
“During the first 100 days we want to set out our stall and build the team, to get to the point where we can do what other Combined Authorities have been doing we need to have that support in place.
“I went down to Number 10 along with all the mayors to meet with Keir Starmer, Rachel Reeves and Angela Rayner and they asked us to put together our Growth Plans, ours will be done in October.
“We’re looking at agrotech, biotech and rail tech, other regions don’t have that.
“That’s what makes us stand out, we’re a very large rural area with farming producing great quality food but we’re also urban where we’ve got fantastic research and development and coastal too.
“So as we look for investment from the public sector and particularly the private sector, we can say that if you’re a company that’s connected to one of those industries then we’re the region that can support you.
“At the same time we’re working with training providers to make sure the next generation have the skills that businesses need so we can take advantage of these opportunities over the next decade.”
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