CITY REGION COMBINED AUTHORITY

To: The Metro Mayor and Members of the Combined Authority

Meeting: 28 June 2019

Authority/Authorities Affected: All

EXEMPT/CONFIDENTIAL ITEM: No

Key Decision

REPORT OF THE PORTFOLIO HOLDER: TRANSPORT AND AIR QUALITY AND THE DIRECTOR OF COMMERCIAL DEVELOPMENT AND INVESTMENT

ACCESS FOR ALL FUNDING FOR STATION IMPROVEMENTS IN THE LIVERPOOL CITY REGION

1. PURPOSE OF REPORT

The purpose of this report is to:-

(a) Inform the Liverpool City Region Combined Authority (LCRCA) of the successful bid submission to the Department for Transport (DfT) in obtaining part-funding for passenger accessibility improvements at five rail stations located with the LCRCA region under the national DfT Access for All programme. This DfT funding is awarded subject to match funding being provided by the LCRCA;

(b) Inform LCRCA of the stations selected by the DfT to receive funding; and

(c) Seek authority from LCRCA to accept the Access for All funding and to make available funding from reserves to progress the initial design work in respect of the stations.

2. RECOMMENDATIONS

2.1 It is recommended that the Liverpool City Region Combined Authority:

(a) Accept the award of grant funding from DfT of 50% of the cost of delivering access improvements at the relevant stations;

(b) Note the intention to seek approval from the LCRCA, to match the DfT funding from the Transforming Cities Fund (TCF) element of the Strategic Investment Fund (SIF), subject to development of a business case and endorsement of the Investment Panel in accordance with the LCRCA’s Assurance Framework; and

(c) Approves the allocation of £1m from reserves to enable progress of design work which will be required to complete the business case.

3. BACKGROUND

3.1 The Access for All programme (AfA) was originally launched by the DfT in 2006 in order to address the practical issues faced by disability impaired passengers and general passengers facing mobility constraints or barriers (e.g. heavy baggage, shopping bags, pushchairs & wheelchairs) when using the UK rail network.

3.2 The objective of the AfA initiative is to provide a centralised funding stream that can be drawn by key public transport stakeholders and service providers (i.e. , Train Operating Companies, Passenger Transport Authorities and Combined Authorities) to implement fully obstacle free, accessible routes to and from station facilities such as booking offices, toilets, waiting shelters and platforms.

3.3 The LCRCA has been a major beneficiary of this fund, having successfully received financial contributions for key access improvements at North, Fazakerley, Formby, Hooton, Orrell Park, Sandhills and Waterloo rail stations. Furthermore, Meols and Liverpool Central have also had funding allocated to them through the AfA initiative, with completion of both projects expected in the early part of Control Period 6 (1 April 2019 to 31 March 2024).

3.4 Following confirmation in 2018 that the DfT had secured an additional £300m from central government to extend the AfA programme across Control Period 6, work took place internally to identify, assess and objectively select a portfolio of stations with access issues at key locations across the LCRCA network by the submission deadline of 16 November 2018.

3.5 The selection parameters and criteria required to be employed by bidding organisations, as specified by the DfT included:-

(a) Overall station footfall;

(b) Stations where there is a particularly high incidence of disability in the area (based on Census data);

(c) A particular local circumstance such as: the proximity of hospitals, a school for disabled children or a military rehabilitation centre, for example;

(d) The availability of third party funding or contributions; and

(e) Locations that would help to bridge existing accessibility ‘gaps’ on the network.

3.6 It should be noted that for this latest round of submissions, the DfT has modified the requirements of submissions and much greater emphasis has been placed on matched funding provided by the bidder.

3.7 Following this exercise, 11 stations were identified as meeting the criteria as defined by the DfT as candidates for AfA funding:

Northern Line: St Michaels, Hunts Cross, Rice Lane, Hillside. Wirral Line: Spital, Birkenhead Park, . : Broad Green, St Helens Junction, Widnes.

3.8 Given the volume of submissions that will have been received by the DfT from across the country, it is unsurprising that not all of the proposed 11 LCR stations submitted were approved. However, after assessing their individual merits, the DfT formally notified the LCRCA in April 2019 that 5 of the 11 bids had been successful. The successful stations are:

Northern Line: St Michaels, Hunts Cross & Hillside. Wirral Line: Birkenhead Park City Line: Broad Green

3.9 This award is subject to match funding of 50% of the cost of enhancements being provided by the LCRCA.

3.10 This is a very positive result for the LCR, given that previous rounds of stations approved for AfA funding tended to be dominated by London and the South East.

4. STRATEGIC RATIONALE FOR INVESTMENT

4.1 The LCRCA is currently investing £460m into the delivery of fully accessible rolling stock and £28m in associated platform enhancements. Following delivery of these trains, significant accessibility enhancement will be provided between train and platform: as soon as the train comes to a stop at a station an automatic step is deployed that completely bridges the gap between the carriage and the platform. This enables unassisted access onto the train and completely removes the need for staff to use ramps to provide access onto the trains.

4.2 However, nearly half of the local network’s stations are not fully accessible. The availability of external investment to address this situation therefore provides an opportunity to progress the pursuit of a fully accessible point-to-point rail network.

4.3 Historically, one of the issues restraining investment in accessibility schemes in the region is the low Benefit Cost Ratio (BCR) they often yield. BCR is often used as a benchmark for the value for money of project investment, particularly in transport related schemes. It principally takes account of the level of increased usage which is generated from the investment.

4.4 Previous accessibility schemes have had a BCR of around 0.25 which is considered ‘poor’. Whilst a calculation for these stations cannot be undertaken until design work has been undertaken, there is no reason to assume the proposed enhancements will deliver a higher BCR.

4.5 However, it is acknowledged that using BCR as the sole performance indicator, does not reflect the wider social value and inclusivity, equality and diversity benefits delivered through some public transport investment projects. It is precisely for this reason that DfT have ringfenced resources to progress access improvements through the AfA programme.

4.6 Similarly, in regard to an application for funding from the Strategic Investment Fund, the LCRCA has not set a minimum level of BCR precisely so it can take a wider perspective on the overall project. In this instance, the strategic and social case for making rail accessible to all users are factors be taken into account, as is the link to new rolling stock.

5. COST AND DELIVERY

5.1 The projected total cost for the delivery of accessibility improvements at the five stations selected by the DfT is expected to be in the region of £15m. This is figure is derived from previous experience on the basis of lift installations on average costing £3m per station. The LCRCA contribution needed is therefore estimated at £7.5m.

5.2 However, there are a range of potential solutions to make stations fully accessible (e.g. ramps and overbridges) – these options are generally lower cost than installation of lifts and the £15m is considered at this stage to be a conservative estimate.

Transforming Cities Fund

5.3 As the LCRCA is aware, it has been awarded £172.5m of funding under the Transforming Cities Fund to support transport project under the three themes set out below.

(a) Theme 1: Enhancing and expanding the public transport network to meet new areas of demand (b) Theme 2: Improving the appeal of public transport, against private transport (c) Theme 3: Intervening for health and wellbeing

The project has clear links to Theme 2 (Improving appeal of public transport) for those residents where access is a barrier to public transport.

5.4 The LCRCA is required to manage the Transforming Cities Fund as part of the Strategic Investment Fund and the allocation of funding in accordance with the LCRCA’s Assurance Framework. This requires all projects to be reviewed by the LCRCA’s Investment Panel and recommendations considered by the LCRCA.

5.5 To date, the LCRCA Investment Panel has given first-stage endorsement to the match funding requirement. Final endorsement cannot be given until detailed costings have been developed and incorporated into a business case.

5.6 Detailed design solutions and costings will need to be undertaken to develop such a business case. It is therefore requested that the LCRCA approve the limited allocation of funding from reserves to allow such design work to be progressed.

5.7 It is proposed that the LCRCA match funding for implementation at all 5 stations be provided from the Transforming Cities Fund, subject to the outcome of its Assurance Framework procedures described above.

5.8 The proposed delivery strategy for the works would be via the Train Operating Companies operating the five stations. Therefore, would be commissioned to deliver four of the schemes, namely; Hillside, Hunts Cross, Birkenhead Park and St Michaels, with Rail Northern delivering the one scheme on the City Line at Broadgreen. This has proven to be a successful and effective method of delivery for past accessibility schemes and one that is encouraged and endorsed by Network Rail and DfT.

6. RESOURCE IMPLICATIONS

6.1 Financial

The financial implications are detailed above. The Combined Authority Treasurer has confirmed that the proposed funding request can be accommodated as part of the overall Strategic Investment Fund allocation and from reserves.

6.2 Human Resources

There are no human resource implications to this report.

6.3 Physical Assets

There are no physical asset implications of this project for the Combined Authority.

6.4 Information Technology

There are no Information Technology implications to this report.

7. RISKS AND MITIGATION

7.1 The largest identifiable risk at this stage relates to implementation costs which can only be projected once development work to ascertain the right engineering solution and scope for each location is determined. However, this has partially been mitigated by basing bids on lifts being installed and which are on the higher end, value wise, of potential engineering solutions.

7.2 Moreover, the £7.5m funding from the DfT is not finite, and representations can be made to the DfT for additional funding, should a particular station require a solution that exceeds the original estimates due to engineering complexity.

8. EQUALITY AND DIVERSITY IMPLICATIONS

The delivery of these access improvements will make 5 stations fully accessible and the benefits that come from them will be a major step forward in making the LCR rail network fully accessible.

9. COMMUNICATION ISSUES

A suitable communications strategy and plan will be developed to engage with stakeholders and with lineside neighbours who may be affected by the proposed works.

10. CONCLUSION

10.1 The success of these five AfA bids to the DfT is an ideal opportunity to obtain investment in the local rail network to address current practical barriers at stations preventing full accessibility. Moreover, given the LCRCA is funding the delivery of a new rolling stock fleet which will provide a fully accessible fleet, the importance of ensuring the whole network is fully accessible is also important.

10.2 The DfT has agreed to contribute £7.5m towards implementing the access upgrades.

10.3 If this funding is approved, works can commence immediately to progress these schemes with Arriva Rail Northern and Merseyrail electrics, with a view to completing the schemes in the early to mid-stages of Control Period 6 i.e July 2019 through March 2022.

10.4 It is therefore proposed to proceed with detailed design work, with the intent to seek LCRCA approval to allocate funds from the Transforming Cities Fund to progress the access improvements on completion of such work and the LCRCA Assurance Framework procedures.

COUNCILLOR LIAM ROBINSON Portfolio Holder: Transport and Air Quality

MARK BOUSFIELD Director of Commercial Development and Investment

Contact Officer(s): David Jones, Rail Development Manager (0151 330 1108) Darren Hazlewood, Senior Rail Project Manager (151 330 1813)

Background Documents: None.