The Independent Transport Commission, abbreviated to ITC, is a research
charity
Charity may refer to:
Giving
* Charitable organization or charity, a non-profit organization whose primary objectives are philanthropy and social well-being of persons
* Charity (practice), the practice of being benevolent, giving and sharing
* C ...
and
think tank
A think tank, or policy institute, is a research institute that performs research and advocacy concerning topics such as social policy, political strategy, economics, military, technology, and culture. Most think tanks are non-governmenta ...
based in the
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the European mainland, continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...
, devoted to exploring issues in the fields of transport, planning and land use. It is politically neutral, and has established a reputation as a nationally respected independent voice on transport and planning policy.
It played a key role shaping policy in the 2000s (decade) with the publication of a series of authoritative and groundbreaking reports on road pricing, suburban planning, long-distance travel, and the future of transport.
The ITC increased its influence to policymakers since 2010 with a series of reports on UK aviation, freight and logistics, paying for roads, and the spatial effects of
High-Speed Rail.
The commission delivers its work by publishing reports and policy papers, hosting special lectures and discussion evenings, and meeting with senior officials. The current director is Dr Matthew Niblett, and the chairman of trustees is Terry Hill CBE, also chairman of the Ove Arup Foundation.
History
Foundation
Following the publication in 1998 of the
Labour government's transport white paper entitled '
A New Deal for Transport: Better for everyone', a suggestion was made to
Bernard Jenkin MP, the then
Conservative
Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization in ...
Shadow Transport Secretary, that he would benefit from the services of a 'think tank'.
In the event, putting together a think tank to serve the Shadow Secretary of State proved impractical. Many of those approached liked the idea but did not want to serve a political party. This impasse was resolved when, thanks to Professor Mike McDonald, the infant ITC was offered a home by Professor
Sir Howard Newby, vice-chancellor of the
University of Southampton
, mottoeng = The Heights Yield to Endeavour
, type = Public research university
, established = 1862 – Hartley Institution1902 – Hartley University College1913 – Southampton University Coll ...
. The 'Independent Transport Commission', as it was then christened, was formally launched at the
Royal Society of Arts in October 1999 with a commitment to be politically independent and to focus on evidence-based research.
The New Labour era
In 2000 the commission invited Sir Patrick Brown, former
permanent secretary to the
Department for Transport, to be its chairman. Sir Patrick led the commission through several major projects, encouraging greater boldness in Labour's transport policy, and leading debate on a number of issues. He was succeeded by Dr David Quarmby CBE, who steered the commission through the development of a new Long Distance Travel forecasting model, the first of its kind. In 2009 Quarmby left to lead the
RAC Foundation
The RAC Foundation (The Royal Automobile Club Foundation for Motoring) is a registered charity.
It is a transport policy and research organisation that explores the economic, mobility, safety and environmental issues relating to roads and their ...
and was succeeded by Simon Linnett, executive vice chairman of Rothschild.
The Coalition and Conservative era
The election of the
Conservative
Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization in ...
led
coalition in 2010 led to fresh opportunities after the spending cuts saw the demise of the government's own transport
quango
A quango or QUANGO (less often QuANGO or QANGO) is an organisation to which a government has devolved power, but which is still partly controlled and/or financed by government bodies. The term was originally a shortening of "quasi-NGO", where N ...
, the Commission for Integrated Transport, leaving the ITC as the main think tank in the field. The ITC's own work on Transport Appraisal and Spending was later submitted to the Transport
Select Committee for discussion. With the increased prominence and research output of the ITC Dr Matthew Niblett was appointed as its first director. In 2016 Simon Linnett retired as chairman and was succeeded by Terry Hill CBE.
Patrons and commissioners
Patrons
*
Andrew Adonis, Baron Adonis
Andrew Adonis, Baron Adonis, (born Andreas Adonis; 22 February 1963) is a British Labour Party politician and journalist who served in HM Government for five years in the Blair ministry and the Brown ministry. He served as Secretary of State ...
*
Roger Freeman, Baron Freeman
Roger Norman Freeman, Baron Freeman, PC (born 27 May 1942), is a British politician. A member of the Conservative Party, he served as Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster in the Cabinet of Prime Minister John Major from 1995 to 1997. He was a M ...
* Sir Patrick Brown
*
Sir Terry Farrell
Sir Terence Farrell (born 12 May 1938), known as Terry Farrell, is a British architect and urban designer. In 1980, after working for 15 years in partnership with Sir Nicholas Grimshaw, Farrell founded his own firm, Farrells. He garne ...
*
Sir Peter Hendy
Commission members
Terry Hill (chairman), chairman, Ove Arup Foundation;
Bridget Rosewell
Bridget Clare Rosewell, (born 18 September 1951) is a British economist. Her expertise includes economic development, transport and agglomeration economics, development evaluation, infrastructure, forecasting, industry dynamics and competiti ...
, commissioner, National Infrastructure Commission;
Deborah Saunt, director,
DSDHA; Kristine Beuret , director, Social Research Associates; Mary Bonar, partner, First Class Partnerships; John Dawson, chairman, International Road Assessment Programme; Nicholas Finney , consultant, UK Port Advisors; Dr Peter Headicar, reader in transport planning,
Oxford Brookes University; Dr Stephen Hickey, chairman, Community Transport Association; Professor Peter Jones, Centre for Transport Studies,
University College London
, mottoeng = Let all come who by merit deserve the most reward
, established =
, type = Public research university
, endowment = £143 million (2020)
, budget = ...
; Sarah Kendall, independent consultant; Roger Madelin , head of Canada Water Development,
British Land
The British Land Company plc is one of the largest property development and investment companies in the United Kingdom. The firm became a real estate investment trust when REITs were introduced in the UK in January 2007. It is headquartered in ...
;
Steven Norris, chairman, National Infrastructure Planning Association;
John Worthington, co-founder, DEGW, and director of The Academy of Urbanism
Staff
* Dr Matthew Niblett, director
* Bright Pryde-Saha, deputy director
* Lucy Kilborn, events
Activities
'Forward Thinking' Discussion Evenings
The Independent Transport Commission hosts a regular series of Discussion Evenings at the Alan Baxter Gallery in
Farringdon. The commission uses these to develop new policy thinking, and guest speakers at previous events have included
Sir David King
Sir David Anthony King (born 12 August 1939) is a South African-born British chemist, academic, and head of the Climate Crisis Advisory Group.
King first taught at Imperial College, London, the University of East Anglia, and was then Brunne ...
, Professor
Stephen Glaister, Professor Tony Travers and Andrew Haines. Topics explored include: the sharing economy, technology in travel, devolution, education and skills, health and transport, and children and travel.
Annual Lecture
In 2013 the ITC held the first in a new series of Annual Lectures, exploring the future of transport and travel. These lectures are now a staple in the ITC calendar, and have previously explored the themes of
fusion
Fusion, or synthesis, is the process of combining two or more distinct entities into a new whole.
Fusion may also refer to:
Science and technology Physics
*Nuclear fusion, multiple atomic nuclei combining to form one or more different atomic nucl ...
and its feasibility for the future of transport (2013); the fundamental motivations that drive human movement (2014); cities and our transport infrastructure (2015); and how technological advancements will change the way we travel (2016).
Influence
Current Projects
Road and Rail Travel Trends – This study has been exploring the factors that have been underpinning shifting trends in our travel patterns. The research has involved an attitudinal study as well as mining data from the commercial sector for details of behavioural change, alongside the publication of a number of key reports (see reports list below). This project has been working closely with the
Department for Transport, advising them on updating their forecasting models.
Spatial Effects of High-Speed Rail – The ITC's study on the Spatial Effects of
High Speed Rail in Britain has had a major impact on the national debate, contributing to a more thorough understanding of the wider benefits that will be afforded by the delivery of
HS2
High Speed 2 (HS2) is a planned high-speed railway line in England, the first phase of which is under construction in stages and due for completion between 2029 and 2033, depending on approval for later stages. The new line will run from its m ...
. Since the project's inception in Autumn 2012, the ITC has worked closely with city-regions and government departments to move the discussion on
HS2
High Speed 2 (HS2) is a planned high-speed railway line in England, the first phase of which is under construction in stages and due for completion between 2029 and 2033, depending on approval for later stages. The new line will run from its m ...
from an engineering/railway project to that of a regeneration project. This was achieved through an ambitious programme of workshops, expert panels, symposia, European and UK study visits, and the publication of a series of detailed reports at high-profile launch events.
Aviation Strategy – The ITC's research on aviation strategy has been complementing that of the
Airports Commission
The Airports Commission was an independent commission established in September 2012 by the Government of the United Kingdom to consider how the UK can "maintain its status as an international hub for aviation and immediate actions to improve th ...
by investigating the UK's long-term aviation needs, and the economic and behavioural implications of following different options. The work has been featured heavily in national news outlets such as the
BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC
Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...
...
.
Freight and Logistics – This ITC work stream is exploring a number of important challenges, including whether improved intermodal freight operations can provide economic, environmental, and logistical benefits for the UK, as well as how to solve capacity problems and developing more efficient usage of freight networks. Stemming from issues about the collection and use of freight data and statistics raised in its inaugural project report, the ITC has been exploring this issue closely with policy makers and statisticians at the
with a view to helping improve the quality of freight data, thereby measuring more accurately the importance of the sector to the
10 Year Plan the ITC released in 2001 a report on 'Tomorrow's Transport' calling for bolder policy initiatives to tackle potential future problems. The report was widely reviewed, particularly the conclusion that traffic would eventually become increasingly unmanageable in suburban and rural areas, and helped shift policy in the direction of 'liveable streets'.
Road Pricing – The commission published a series of reports on Road Pricing in the mid-2000s (decade) led by Professor Stephen Glaister. The reports were welcomed by the government as evidence that road pricing could pay for new roads. At the same time the ITC noted that the government would have to be clear where the extra money would be spent, and warned that there was a risk of increasing congestion on rural roads.
Long Distance Travel – In 2010 the ITC published the results of a three-year project developing a model to forecast long-distance travel demand in Britain. The study indicated that economic growth remained the single biggest factor affecting long-distance travel demand in Britain, and noted that in the absence of major policy measures the demand for air travel would accelerate. The findings have recently been seized by the opposition to
to show that passenger growth arising from High Speed Rail could be limited.
Suburbs – The commission asked Professor Marcial Echenique of the
. Echenique's report warned that current policies would encourage suburban expansion, increasing both commuting times and carbon emissions, forcing a rethink of government policy.
Land Use Effects of the 10 Year Plan – Fearing that transport and land use policy had become increasingly disconnected, in 2002 the ITC commissioned
to investigate the land use effects of the Government's 10 Year Plan. Hall's conclusions that the Plan would encourage urban sprawl and threaten regeneration was credited with encouraging a re-orientation of policy towards more brownfield development.