The Greater Manchester Momentum Group

The Association of Greater Manchester Authorities (AGMA) is about to launch the world's largest congestion charging scheme.  This scheme could cost commuters in excess of £100 per month just to get to and from work and businesses considerable transport and distribution costs.  AGMA claims to be consulting with business and will not go ahead with congestion charging without the approval of business. 

An alliance of businesses – The Greater Manchester Momentum Group (GMMG) – has been formed to ensure that the views of businesses employing tens of thousands of people across Greater Manchester are properly represented and heard on the important issue of congestion in the region.  

GMMG intends to lend its expertise to the issue of congestion and challenge AGMA’s plans for road user charging.   Its members have come together to help look at the issue of congestion across the region and alternatives to road user charging - currently on the table as part of the Transport Innovation Fund bid.

GMMG have nine main areas of concern around the current TIF bid:

• Scale: The proposed scheme goes overnight from zero to one significantly larger than any other scheme in the world. Therefore it is untested and a significant risk. 
• Imbalance: The scheme will capture thousands of ordinary businesses and employees within the M60 but the expenditure on infrastructure for promised transport improvements is almost exclusively aimed at improving commuter journeys into Manchester city centre. 
• Ignores movement of goods: Business will pay significant road user charges yet all of the expenditure on infrastructure is on public transport to move people.  None is directed at business distributing freight or moving goods.
• A cost of employment: Unlike London the charging zone covers many ordinary jobs with people on average wages who cannot afford up to £100 per month.  Inevitably employers will have to meet this cost or lose staff to firms outside the M60. 
• No way back: If the economic assumptions (which have been kept secret) are wrong, Greater Manchester will be saddled with c.£2bn of debt over 30 years which means there will be no way of reversing a damaging scheme. 
• One dimensional: The proposals assume that no measures other than charging can reduce congestion.  There has been no work on other ways to tackle the issues. 
• Isolated: All political parties have distanced themselves from a national road pricing scheme which means Greater Manchester will become uniquely a more expensive place to do business and for staff to work, thereby damaging future jobs and investment. 
• No guarantees: There are no guarantees on future pricing, the zone covered, the time the charge applies or the actual public transport delivered. It has recently been announced that the London congestion charge will be increased to £25-a-day for some vehicles. In addition there is no guarantee that if a national scheme (e.g. motorway scheme) is introduced we will not end up paying twice. 
• Technology: No detail has been provided on the technology which will support the scheme and abundant experience suggests that large scale IT projects carry huge risks of failure.

Because of these concerns GMMG is proposing to work with AGMA in a four-stage process:

• The group would first and foremost like to see AGMA providing the details of their assumptions and economic assertions and allowing GMMG and other employers the right to study, challenge and improve on their findings.
• Following this GMMG would then work with AGMA to look at alternative ways of tackling congestion and funding for an improved transport infrastructure.
• The group would also work with AGMA to assess best value for money for transport infrastructure improvements and use its expertise to help AGMA address the flaws in the bid.
• But if the flaws cannot be addressed GMMG as a group will lobby for its withdrawal.

Members of GMMG include AG Parfett amp; Sons, AK Worthington Distribution, Brabners Chaffe Street, Deloitte, Emerson Group, Federation of Small Businesses, Forum of Private Business, Harvey Nichols, Joseph Holt, Hydes Brewery, Kellogg’s, Lookers, Makro Cash amp; Carry (UK), Peel Holdings, Speedy Hire, Stax Trade Centres, Tyco Fire amp; Integrated Solutions, William Hare.

To register your support, you can do so by emailing: gmmg@bm.com

If you would like to receive more information about the GMMG you need to provide your preferred contact details.