County on road to be a traffic super-power

Oldham is preparing to hand over many of its powers so that Greater Manchester can become as powerful as Boris Johnston’s Transport for London.

The executive board of the Association of Greater Manchester Authorities (AGMA) has voted to submit plans to the Government to become the Greater Manchester Combined Authority.

It will keep its highways authority powers, but will devolve duties of traffic reduction, maintaining traffic signals and traffic management, and road-safety.

When in force on April 1 next year, the new arrangements will mean Greater Manchester Integrated Transport Authority will be replaced by the Transport for Greater Manchester Committee, which will keep its membership arrangements but take on a host of new powers devolved from the districts and the Government.

It will take more responsibility for dealing directly with the DfT, and bodies such as the Highways Agency and Network Rail.

And it has been agreed with the DfT that Greater Manchester will lead a study on the issues currently being faced by bus-users in the City Region and the opportunities for enhancing economic, social and environmental effects of the bus network.

The work will address the extent to which local and national resources are being deployed to sustain bus transport and usage, what outcomes are delivered and whether there are greater efficiencies to be secured in the delivery of bus services in terms of improved outcomes through different alignment of services and different delivery structures. The DfT will fund half of any costs.

There were fears that AGMA may be forced to drop the plan after objections by two of its authorities — Stockport and Trafford — over voting arrangements and the complicated process for a council to quit the Combined Authority if it wants to leave.

But at a stormy meeting, a compromise was reached on voting — a 7-3 vote will be needed rather than a straight majority. And the move to set up the Combined Authority was passed by eight votes with Stockport and Trafford abstaining.

Oldham Council leader, Councillor Howard Sykes, told his fellow leaders: “I am eager and ambitious to have these responsibilities which are on offer with this package.”

Each council will now hold a meeting to ratify the decision and the new authority is expected to open for business on April 1.