"I'm delighted to announce that Metro and Leeds City Council have been given approval for their job-creating, economy-boosting, environment-improving, time-saving, carbon-reducing, congestion-busting NGT trolleybus scheme," said Metro Chairman Cllr JamesLewis responding to the government's announcement of £173.5m funding to enable the Leeds New Generation Transport (NGT) trolleybus network, the first modern trolleybus network in the UK, to go ahead.

"This is great news for our region, by speeding up journeys into and around Leeds, improving local connectivity and preventing the growth of congestion, NGT will provide a £160m per annum boost to the local economy and the creation of 4,000 permanent jobs.

"Transport is a key driver of productivity and investment in local transport infrastructure is investment in the long-term economic future of the Leeds City Region," he continued. "NGT will speed up our recovery from recession, boost our economy and enhance our ability to compete on the national and international stage,"

Cllr Richard Lewis, Leeds City Council's Executive Member for Development & the Economy said, "This is a huge injection of cash to the City Region, which will finally enable us to deliver a high-quality rapid transit network that is essential for a city of Leeds' calibre. It will mean that Leeds becomes the first city in the UK to join the growing number of cities across Europe adopting this technology which is vital for our future economic growth and for the needs of our growing population."

Having now gained 'Programme Entry Approval' Metro and Leeds City Council can now begin the formal process of obtaining the legal powers needed to operate a modern trolleybus network. These powers will be sought through a 'Transport and Works Act Order' in Spring 21013, followed by a Public Inquiry later that year, and construction could then begin in 2016 with the UK's first new trolleybuses operating by 2018.