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Edinburgh support for congestion charging welcomed: Time for the Scottish Executive to support Edinburgh's plans Commenting on press reports today that the results of the public consultation in Edinburgh on the city's New Transport Initiative have supported plans for implementing congestion charging, Colin Howden, TRANSform Scotland Campaign Manager, said: "Despite the campaign of whingeing from Tory and Lib Dem Councillors and from motoring organisations, the results indicate that the people of Edinburgh realise that something must be done to cut pollution and congestion from road traffic. It is not possible to solve traffic problems unless you implement traffic demand management measures such as congestion charging. Edinburgh's citizens have now voted twice in favour of congestion charging and more public transport investment, first in 1999 and now this year. The City Council must now move swiftly to implement congestion charging in Edinburgh and stop the rise in traffic pollution and congestion." "The Scottish Executive needs to stop sitting on the fence over road charging. UK Transport Secretary Alastair Darling has publicly advocated the need for road charging, it is now time for Scottish Transport Minister Iain Gray to publicly support Edinburgh's plans for road charging, and buttress the proposals by making commitment to further sustainable transport investment for the city."[1] ENDS Notes to Editors: [1] The balance of committed transport spending in Scotland massively favours road-building in the West of Scotland over public transport investment in South-East Scotland. Committed expenditure on new trunk roads in the Glasgow area alone (£214m towards M74 Northern Extension & £40m+ towards a Glasgow Southern Orbital road) is more than double the expenditure on public transport, walking and cycling in the whole SESTRAN area through the Public Transport Fund (and latterly, the Integrated Transport Fund) between 1998 and 2001 - £113.4m (SE Transport Delivery Report, pp. 39). END OF NEWS RELEASE |