Whitmore steps up as new public transport chief for Greater Manchester

Date published: 19 June 2009

Public transport in Greater Manchester has a new chief at the helm, after Greater Manchester Integrated Transport Authority (GMITA) elected its Chair for the coming year.
Manchester City Councillor Keith Whitmore was appointed Chair at the GMITA Annual General Meeting today.
Salford Councillor Ian Macdonald was appointed Vice Chair and Chair of the influential Policy and Resources Committee.
Councillor Whitmore, 55, has been an elected member of Manchester City Council for 30 years and is the first Manchester councillor to be elected as Chair of GMITA.
He is a Director of Greater Manchester Accessible Transport and the Manchester Museum of Transport – and also chairs the Board for the Heaton Park Tramway.
After serving on the transport authority for 18 years Councillor Whitmore was appointed Vice Chair of GMITA last year. Welcoming his new role, he said: “It is an honour to be appointed Chair at such a crucial and exciting time for transport in Greater Manchester.
“With the recent announcement of a £1.5 billion Greater Manchester Transport Fund we are in a position to deliver some major transport schemes over the coming years.
“And we will, of course, continue to invest in local transport projects to improve travel for local bus, train and tram users.
“By opening up further links to jobs, education and healthcare, we hope to persuade more people to try public transport and help ease congestion on our roads.
“I look forward to working with all my colleagues on the Authority to ensure transport continues to play a key role in supporting Greater Manchester’s long term economic growth.”
Welcoming his appointment as Vice Chair and Chair of the Policy and Resources Committee, Councillor Macdonald added: “I’m delighted to take up these positions to help ensure we get the best deal for passengers as we deliver on our transport policies for the coming year.
“In the short term we will carry on working with the rail industry and Department for Transport to tackle train overcrowding, looking to secure longer trains and longer platforms on our busiest routes.
“Looking beyond this, we are committed to working with Network Rail to press the case for a major step change in investment in the rail system in and around central Manchester. We need to have the capacity to secure the right future mix of local, regional and national rail services that our economy will demand.
“And, of course, 80% of public transport trips across Greater Manchester are made by bus. Developing a new way of working with bus operators – based on binding partnerships and a quality charter – is another key priority for the coming year, which we hope will deliver significantly improved services across the county.”
Councillor Whitmore represents the Levenshulme ward. He is one of the UK’s leading councillors involved in European issues, and is Leader of the UK delegation on the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of the Council of Europe. He also chairs the Institutional Affairs Committee of the Congress which is responsible for all election monitoring and is a leading member of the Local Government Association.
Other appointments to leading roles at the Annual General Meeting include Oldham Councillor Richard Knowles as Chair of the Capital Projects Committee; Stockport Councillor David White as Chair of the Bus Network and GMPTE Services Committee; and Tameside Councillor Doreen Dickinson as Chair of the Rail and Metrolink Networks Committee.