Saqib Bhatti, Member of Parliament for Meriden convened local decision-makers at Birmingham Airport to discuss the growing need for transport links in North Solihull. The roundtable was held jointly with Ian Courts, Leader of the Solihull Metropolitan Borough Council (SMBC), in conjunction with Eileen Schofield, President of the Solihull Chamber of Commerce. It brought together representatives from SMBC, Transport for West Midlands, Birmingham Airport, Pertemps, Plum exec, National Express, Resorts World and the NEC. The aim of the roundtable was to discuss how to create transport links that connect the North of Solihull borough to the town centre as well as improving connectivity for underserved rural communities.
The event covered many different topics including Solihull Council’s transport strategy, the role of Transport for West Midlands in facilitating plans to improve transport links, bus corridors, network development plans, employability issues due to lack of accessible transport and issues in accessing transport after evening entertainment.
Commenting on the event, Saqib said:
“It is imperative that we improve transport links to North Solihull, this will make travel for residents more convenient allowing them to access new opportunities for work, leisure, and education within the Solihull borough. Upgrading the transport system is a massive undertaking requiring the collaboration of many different stakeholders, and I am glad that the transport roundtable has provided the forum to start these conversations.”
“Thank you to all attendees for your insights, to Ian Courts and Eileen Schofield for helping me to convene the roundtable and to Simon Evans for hosting us at Birmingham Airport.”
Ian Courts, Leader of the Solihull Council, said:
“A good transport system is key to a thriving and inclusive economy. Whilst Solihull Borough is already quite well connected and has an extremely popular and vibrant town centre, I want to work to help our residents get better connections to jobs, to housing and leisure facilities. This is not an easy or quick task, but this Round Table is a step towards hearing the problems from our stakeholders and identifying the needs of our communities and look at what the longer-term planning needs to be.”
Eileen Schofield, President of the Solihull Chamber of Commerce, said:
“Our members raised the issue of challenges facing potential candidates looking for employment opportunities around Solihull from the north of the borough. We worked closely with Solihull Council and agreed that the issue required a strategic discussion in association with key stakeholders. Our vision is to ensure that no part of the borough is isolated from opportunity for work or any aspect of their life through lack of transport, linking the north of the borough to all parts of borough for work, education or leisure activities. We have every hope that we will achieve our objective.”
