"Transport system not fit for purpose"

Britain's transport insfrastructure is "unable to meet the needs of a modern country", according to a report published by leading think-tank Policy Exchange.The "Towards Better Transport" report, suggests that charging 5p/km for cars and 10p/km for goods vehicles, at peak times in congestion hot spots could raise £1.5m per km in a year. In turn, this would pay to widen a motorway to eight lanes, or even to construct a brand new six-lane motorway. This means that the cost of doubling the road network could be paid for in two years. With congestion currently costs the UK economy around £20bn, it's suggested the effects of the improved infrastructure would facilitate a cut in fuel and vehicle taxes. Public transport wasn't without criticism, either. Policy Exchange also claims that the UK has "some of the worst public transport among leading industrialized countries." The report maintains that road users paid £32bn in transport-related taxes over 2006, just £8bn of which was spent on the road network. By comparison, £6.5bn was spent on railways, which carry just six per cent of passenger travel.Policy Exchange Chief Economist, Dr Oliver Hartwich, said that "The greatest barrier to pricing is public opinion. Having endured decades of special taxation for the benefit of general spending, motorists do not trust governments to introduce pricing from which they will benefit."Hartwich also addresses the environmental issues: "Even high estimates of the carbon cost of motoring are covered more than four times over by fuel tax. Until an efficient economy-wide carbon tax is imposed, environmental justifications will remain nothing more than a smokescreen."