HC Deb 16 June 2003 vol 407 c24W
Mr. Stevenson

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what recent discussions he has had with(a) Advantage West Midland and (b) the Government Office for the West Midlands on transport provision in North Staffordshire. [119154]

Mr. Jamieson

In response to the MidMan multi-modal study (MMS) and the draft Regional Planning Guidance (RPG) for the West Midlands, Staffordshire county council and Stoke-on-Trent city council are initiating a comprehensive transport study for North Staffordshire. This study will develop the specific transport measures, which will be required to respond to the challenges raised by the local regeneration strategy, the low demand housing pathfinder, and the urban renaissance which is at the heart of RPG.

Advantage West Midlands (AWM), Government Office for the West Midlands (GOWM), and the Highways Agency (HA) are working with the local authorities and will be supporting the study financially and with specialist expertise. It is expected that the results of the study will feed into the next round of Local Transport Plans, due to be submitted in July 2005.