Department for Transport
The overseer of the UK’s transport network is the government’s Department for Transport (DfT), with Transport Scotland having major devolved obligations in its region. Transport for Wales and Northern Ireland’s Department for Infrastructure each have some devolved responsibilities. The DfT advises, sets policies and provides funding to 24 agencies and public bodies, including:
- Driver & Vehicle Licensing Agency
- National Highways
- Northern Lighthouse Board
- British Transport Police Authority
- Maritime & Coastguard Agency
- Civil Aviation Authority
- Canal & River Trust
- Network Rail
The DfT’s ministerial head is the Secretary of State for Transport, assisted by one or more Ministers of State and Parliamentary Under-Secretaries. The DfT and all its partners have around 18,600 employees in total. It covers all forms of transport, from walking to flying and everything in between, including self-driving vehicles.
Issues of transport safety and security come under its remit, as does the implementation of new technology and encouraging more use of bus services. For seafarers it regulates ports and the UK’s territorial waters and facilitates the movement of freight by road and rail around the country. Some 4,300 miles of motorways and trunk roads are maintained through the DfT. In short, its planning and investment strategies aim “to keep the UK on the move.”
(Images LtoR: Lewis Smith Photography at Flickr.com / CC BY-NC 2.0), David Dixon at geograph.org.uk / CC BY-SA 2.0,)