Key Route Network Development: An Opportunity to Embed Bus Safety and Reliability

The East Midlands Combined County Authority (EMCCA) is beginning work to define a regional Key Route Network (KRN). These networks are typically intended to identify the most important strategic corridors, supporting movement, reliability and economic activity.

They can play a significant role in shaping transport priorities.

However, a recent Freedom of Information response suggests the Key Route Network for the East Midlands is still at a very early stage of development. The response confirms that criteria for identifying routes, methodology for selection and supporting documentation have not yet been developed. Similarly, no timeline, governance paper or project plan is currently held.

This is not necessarily a problem. Early-stage development presents an opportunity.

It provides a chance to think carefully about what a Key Route Network should achieve and how it should be structured.

Traditionally, Key Route Networks focus on general traffic movement, congestion management and economic connectivity. However, as transport policy evolves, there is increasing emphasis on public transport reliability, bus priority and sustainable travel.

That raises an important question.

Should bus safety and reliability form part of the Key Route Network framework?

Buses operate on many of the same strategic corridors that would likely form part of a KRN. Service reliability, operating conditions and infrastructure design on these routes can directly influence safety, performance and passenger experience.

If a regional KRN is being developed, there may be value in considering:

• inclusion of bus reliability metrics
• corridor-level safety considerations
• operating environment for bus drivers
• interaction with vulnerable road users
• priority measures supporting consistent operation
• alignment with wider bus strategy and reform work

The FOI response also indicates that a regional monitoring and performance framework is still to be developed. This again presents an opportunity. If performance metrics are being defined, they could potentially include measures relating to public transport reliability, operational safety and corridor performance.

Key Route Networks often shape investment decisions and policy focus. The criteria used to define them therefore matter. If safety and public transport performance are included, the KRN can support wider policy objectives. If not, opportunities may be missed.

As regional transport governance evolves, there is increasing recognition that infrastructure, operations and safety are closely linked. Strategic corridors influence operating conditions, and operating conditions influence safety outcomes.

The development of a Key Route Network is therefore more than a mapping exercise. It is a chance to shape how the network functions.

Early-stage development means there is still time to consider how safety, reliability and public transport performance fit into the framework.

Embedding those considerations now could help ensure the Key Route Network supports not just movement, but safe and reliable transport across the region.

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Author
Lee Odams is Branch Secretary of the Nottinghamshire & Derbyshire Bus Branch and a bus driver. He writes about bus safety, workforce safety, governance and transparency across the UK bus industry.

Tags
Key Route Network, EMCCA, East Midlands, Bus Safety, Transport Governance, Bus Reliability, Public Transport, Transport Planning, UK Buses, Transport Policy, Bus Priority, Safety Governance, Regional Transport