Budget: Go-Ahead urges more to support green transport
Go-Ahead Group has welcomed support for high streets announced in the Spring Budget. It will also be assessing whether the Chancellor’s super-deduction scheme can be used by transport companies to invest in green buses.
Katy Taylor, Chief Strategy and Customer Officer at the Go-Ahead Group, said: “We will be looking carefully at the Chancellor’s super-deduction scheme to understand if it will make it easier for the transport industry to invest in green technology – including electric buses, which are expensive upfront but deliver long-term returns in cleaner air and improved public health.
“We welcome the steps being taken to support struggling shops, pubs and restaurants on the high street. Policies to reduce emissions by encouraging people to leave their cars at home in favour of walking, cycling or public transport would have been welcome – including levies on workplace parking, a scrappage scheme for second cars or mobility credits.”
Katy also commented on fuel duty being frozen for the 11th year in a row: “In the long term, rather than adjusting rates of fuel duty, it is surely time to consider a broader road pricing scheme which will encourage people to think harder about the social and environmental cost of private car usage.”
The Go-Ahead Group plans to take on 1,100 apprentices this year across its bus and rail businesses.
Katy Taylor said: “The Treasury’s enhanced support for older apprenticeships will be a boost to all those who are changing career, either through choice or as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic over the past year. We welcome people of all ages and background who want to learn how to drive, or maintain, buses and trains.”
- For more industry reactions to the Spring Budget, visit here.