Policy / Research

A Better Future for Transport: National Challenges, Community Solutions

We believe everyone should have access to local transport which meets their needs. Do you?

Our Manifesto for the UK General Election – A Better Future for Transport: National Challenges, Community Solutions – calls for a new and dynamic partnership between the UK Government, CTA and the Community Transport sector.

It’s time for #CommunitySolutions to our national challenges:

  • A shrinking bus network;
  • An ageing population;
  • The future of the NHS and social care;
  • Climate change;
  • Poverty, inequality and the cost-of-living crisis; and,
  • Levelling up the nations and regions of the UK.
blue rectangle showing a small town illustration with black and white lettering

Our Manifesto

Our Manifesto therefore focuses on 5 priorities:

  1. Modernising for Growth 
  2. Improving Access to Health and Social Care 
  3. Investing in Community Solutions 
  4. Accelerating Community-Led Climate Action 
  5. Delivering a Fair Deal for Volunteers 

For each of our 5 priority areas you’ll hear about the real-life challenges facing our members, their passengers and their communities, as well as the 18 #CommunitySolutions we’re putting forward to deliver a better future for transport.

We urged every candidate and every party standing in the 2024 UK General Election to listen to the Community Transport sector and work with us in the months and years ahead – the cost of not doing so will be detrimental both for a thriving economy and an inclusive society.

Join our Campaign

We’d like to invite all of our members, partners and supporters to be part of our campaign for change and join our call for #CommunitySolutions! We want to influence the UK Government, but we can’t do this without your help in constituencies across England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.

There’s so many ways to get involved. Here’s a few ideas to get you started:

  • Post on social media about the Manifesto, why it matters to you and use the hashtag #CommunitySolutions;
  • Organise or attend a local event and ask all of your local candidates about Community Transport;
  • Invite your local councillors and MPs to visit and see your services in action with a chance to talk to staff, volunteers and passengers;
  • Talk to local press and journalists about the Manifesto, what you do and why it’s so important;
  • Meet your local MP at one of their regular surgeries to discuss the Manifesto; or
  • Spread the word in your communities by sharing the Manifesto with your staff, volunteers, passengers and supporters.

Resources 

Here you will find our downloadable resources.

Discussion Papers

Our Manifesto is informed by contributions from across the CTA team, extensive research and online and in-person engagement with our members, partners and supporters over many months. But there’s only so much that can fit in one accessible, digestible document…

So, we’ve prepared 5 discussion papers to let you dig into the detail and explore the data and evidence behind our priorities and asks.

Discussion Paper #1 – MODERNISING FOR GROWTH

Discussion Paper #2 – IMPROVING ACCESS TO HEALTH & SOCIAL CARE

Discussion Paper #3 – INVESTING IN COMMUNITY SOLUTIONS

Discussion Paper #4 – ACCELERATING COMMUNITY-LED CLIMATE ACTION

Discussion Paper #5 – DELIVERING A FAIR DEAL FOR VOLUNTEERS

Get in Touch

Email us at [email protected] to arrange a conversation with one of our team about the manifesto or how we can collaborate or campaign together.

N.B. As a registered charity, CTA is always politically neutral. We do not endorse or support any political party or candidate, nor do we seek to influence voters to vote in a particular way.

Our manifesto and campaign are only intended to inform and influence the positions and policies of the UK Government by engaging with political parties and candidates. It is not intended to promote or procure the electoral success of:

  • one or more political parties;
  • political parties or candidates who support or do not support particular policies; or,
  • another particular category of candidates.

For more information on electoral law in relation to non-party campaigners and regulated campaign activities, please visit the Electoral Commission’s website here.