Friday 23 January, 2009

Metro has welcomed today’s approval by the Regional Transport Board of a further £98.8m of funding for Phase 2 of the planned New Generation Transport (NGT) system in Leeds.

Chairman Councillor Chris Greaves said, “Today’s announcement means that in addition to a southern route into and around the city centre and one to St James’s Hospital in the east, we can now press ahead with plans for a northern route through Headingley along the A660.

“We have had some very positive meetings about NGT with the Department for Transport and aim to submit a business case for funding to them this summer with a view to getting approval from the DfT by the end of the year, “ he continued.

“With the money for NGT now in place, DfT approval would mean construction could start in 2012.”

NGT is a brand-new, high-quality transport system that would transport people into Leeds city centre. New, fully accessible vehicles, which could be electrically powered, would use dedicated lanes and have priority at junctions making journeys, from park-and-ride sites on the city’s edge, faster and more reliable. The Yorkshire and Humber Regional Transport Board approved £150m for the first phase of the scheme in June 2007.

Find out further information about NGT.