TO BE PUBLISHED November 2024
Price: £150 PLUS VAT
Format: DOWNLOADABLE PDF
This conference will discuss the future of the UK freight sector, and priorities for policy as significant planned legislation from the new Government is announced in the King’s Speech.
Key stakeholders and policymakers will examine proposals in:
- the Railways Bill, which will establish Great British Railways (GBR), with:
- a statutory duty to promote the use of rail freight, alongside an overall growth target set by the Secretary of State
- safeguards to ensure that freight operators continue to receive fair access to the network
- the Planning and Infrastructure Bill, with reforms aimed at helping to increase capacity and efficiency for the freight industry by aligning major project development with transport strategy
The conference will also examine the new Government’s priorities for achieving modal shift to decarbonise the freight sector, and implications for stakeholders across the industry including rail, road haulage, aviation and maritime. Sessions will bring out latest thinking on strategies for improving inter-modal coordination, and assess progress and the way forward for developing a National Freight Network.
Further sessions discuss the regulatory framework and incentives required to support freight operators in navigating a fair and realistic transition to net zero. Infrastructure requirements will be considered to ensure the transition is achievable, as well as priorities for identifying the different energy needs of stakeholders across the freight industry.
Delegates will discuss priorities for GBR and what will be needed from policy and regulation to support growth in the rail freight sector - alongside the decision to keep rail freight within the private sector in the future mix.
Those attending will discuss how policy including the Planning and Infrastructure Bill can be configured to help achieve the aim of accelerated infrastructure delivery that can increase capacity within the freight industry, and strategic frameworks for alignment with other transport strategies.
Approaches to overcoming capacity constraints beyond infrastructure will also be explored, looking into issues such as timetabling and how freight can collaborate with the wider rail sector to drive growth and improve efficiency.
We are pleased to be able to include a keynote session with Will Godfrey, Director, Economics, Finance and Markets, Office of Rail and Road. Further senior speakers are being approached.
