For cities to thrive we need better transport systems

IN the summer most of us have the chance to travel and see different things.

- David Taylor-Gooby

As you know I was in Ireland and one of the things which impressed me in Dublin was their very efficient trams.

I have always been an enthusiast for trams and often wish we had more of them here.

Even modestly sized cities and towns on the continent have trams. Because they run on their own tracks they do not get stuck in congestion.

When I have been to London, for example, it is often a waste of time boarding a bus in Oxford Street because it will simply get stuck. It is quicker to walk.

Trams, however, only have to stop for boarding points and crossings.

A modern tram, which will have several units, can carry up to 500 people, compared with 50 to 60 on a bus. (We are not talking here about the small streetcars immortalised in the "Trolley Song").

They do need infrastructure, but building it on the surface is much easier than building an underground system.

Building dedicated tramways also gives an opportunity to build separate cycle and pedestrian ways.

Urban light railway systems such as our Metro or the London Underground can carry more people faster. They can also bring in people from the outskirts into a big city.

The London Underground is a very large network by international standards, and building it out north and east of London was an important tool for development both before and after the Second World War.