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London and West Midlands sign first-of-its-kind knowledge-sharing agreement

Posted: 18 July 2018 | | No comments yet

The collaboration will help the UK’s two biggest cities deal with major incidents and manage world-class sporting events…

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Sadiq Khan and Andy Street at the Surface Transport and Traffic Operations Centre (STTOC)

Sadiq Khan, the Mayor of London, and Andy Street CBE, the Mayor of the West Midlands Combined Authority, have welcomed a new knowledge-sharing agreement between London and the West Midlands.

The agreement will include a wide array of business issues, from dealing with major incidents to limiting the disruption of large-scale transport projects and reducing congestion; enabling West Midlands and London to learn from each other.

This is expected to help the regions improve individually, but also benefit the rest of the UK. 

The Memorandum of Understanding, which was signed by Transport for London (TfL) and Transport for West Midlands (TfWM), represents the first time two devolved local authorities have made a commitment to share best practice and work towards common goals.

With Coventry already planning a range of events, like the UK City of Culture 2021, and Birmingham hosting the Commonwealth Games in 2022, it is hoped that working together to share knowledge and experience on developing customer information will ensure these events are as successful as the London Olympic Games.

Sadiq Khan, Mayor of London, said: “London and Birmingham face many of the same challenges so I am delighted that the signing of this agreement further strengthens our commitment to work together. Among other things, sharing information will help us better deal with major incidents, manage world-class sporting events and reduce congestion; improving our cities for everyone.”

The agreement covers a range of areas in which both organisations believe they could benefit from working together. These include sharing information on how to address and manage potential impacts around the delivery of major transport projects and working with local businesses and freight organisations to help consolidate and retime freight deliveries. This could reduce congestion and improve air quality.

Analysis of road and public transport flows between West Midlands and London could improve connectivity and allow for better traffic and congestion modelling between the cities. Together improving open-data for developers through online portals will identify new ways to collect key transport data.  

Gareth Powell, Managing Director for Surface Transport at TfL, said: “This agreement will see us share our experience from the last two decades as an integrated transport authority, while learning a range of new skills and ideas from the West Midlands. We can also work together on developing and delivering common policies, like improving air quality and reducing the impact of major transport projects on local residents and businesses, which will benefit the UK more widely by boosting connectivity in every region.”