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Tory Deputy Leader Speaks Out on Games Legacy
Monday, September 15, 2008
The 2014 Commowealth Games in Glasgow must deliver a lasting transport legacy for the city and beyond, according to the Scottish Conservative deputy leader.
Speaking to SPT Express, Murdo Fraser MSP said, “I think legacy planning is a hugely important part of the Games and we’ll be looking to see the Government make major commitments to improve transport infrastructure. What we have to do is use the opportunity of the Games to make sure we’re driving long term benefit for Glasgow and the wider Strathclyde area, and that means looking at projects that can be there in the public transport area, which will last and be for the benefit of local people long after 2014.”
He added: “Public transport is going to be absolutely essential to making sure we have a successful Commonwealth Games and I think SPT has a very important role to play in making sure we achieve that objective.”
Mr Fraser also agreed that modernisation of Glasgow’s ageing Subway network is essential.
Confirming he was a regular passenger on the network he said: “It’s been a hugely important part of transport in Glasgow for very many years. People expect to see a Subway system that is fit for purpose in the future of Glasgow. We have to work very hard to find the resources to make sure that the Subway is brought up to modern standards.”
Mr Fraser said he accepted that concerns about anti-social behaviour could deter some people from switching to public transport. However, he added that increased security measures alongside enforcement were fundamental to help reassure passengers. “People see anti-social behaviour and when nothing happens clearly they’ll lose confidence in the system,” he said. “So, to make people feel safe on public transport we have to make sure those causing problems are severely dealt with. I think looking at greater use of CCTV on public transport could be useful. I think it’s also about making sure there’s better policing and better enforcement.”
Another area Scottish Tories have been enthusiastically pursuing is high speed rail. Mr Fraser supports serious investigation of the possibility of Maglev links between Glasgow and Edinburgh and from there to London. Mr Fraser said: “Our objective is to see much better high-speed rail connectivity between Scotland and London. We think Maglev is a very exciting proposal, the opportunities it would create for Scotland - if you could reduce the journey times from Glasgow to Edinburgh to 17 minutes, it would be absolutely tremendous - getting people out of their cars and onto public transport and that’s going to require some pretty clever strategic thinking and some major investment in the years ahead.”