Practical and popular ways to sort out Britain’s overcrowded and polluting roads are being sought in a new £250,000 prize. The 2017 Wolfson Economics Prize is calling for ideas to bring more investment and a better deal for road users as part of the big shift to digital technology, new forms of power and self-driving vehicles.
The competition is expected to see entries from policy makers, businesses and universities around the world and will be judged by a team of experts with hands-on experience including the former Chancellor of the Exchequer Alistair Darling.
They will test entries against the prize question:
“How can we pay for better, safer, more reliable roads in a way that is fair to road users and good for the economy and the environment?"
Prize guidelines state that answers should make a strong case for attracting support from road users by improving the network and addressing concerns about data privacy.
The contest is free to enter and open to anyone. It is sponsored by the Charles Wolfson Charitable Trust and managed by the Policy Exchange think tank. Lord Wolfson of Aspley Guise founded the Prize to address public policy challenges. Previous Wolfson Economics Prize competitions called for proposals to safely dismantle the Eurozone and ways to deliver a successful new garden city.
Lord Wolfson said:
“The new prize is an opportunity for fresh thinking about how to tackle congestion and secure investment in a modern road network. Keeping the flow of goods moving is vital to the competitiveness of the UK economy. Motorists deserve a better deal and less time wasted in jams. If we can learn from the rest of the world, or pioneer new thinking here in Britain, then we can do something about delays. The judging panel will be looking for the most innovative and practical ideas to help break the logjam.”
The deadline for submissions to the prize is Thursday 2 March 2017. A shortlist will be announced in April 2017, with the Prize being awarded at a ceremony in July 2017.
Entrants will be judged by a panel of experts including Lord Darling (former Chancellor of the Exchequer), Sir John Kingman (Chairman-elect, Legal & General and former Permanent Secretary at the Treasury), Isabel Dedring (Global Transport Leader, Arup, and previously London Deputy Mayor for Transport), Lord Finkelstein (Associate Editor at The Times) and Bridget Rosewell (leading transport economist and founder of Volterra Partners).
Sir John Kingman Chairman of the judges, said:
“Britain’s roads are not as good as they could be. They need more investment and better maintenance to cut delays and pollution. As a senior official at the Treasury I saw how the system we have now needs to change so that road users get a better deal. New technology means that this is the moment to do it. I’m delighted to Chair a panel of judges for the 2017 Wolfson Economics Prize with experience at the top level of politics and government. The road system of the future may have as little in common with the one of today as the first motorways did with the early turnpikes. I hope this prize can be a catalyst for that change."
The prize director is Julian Glover, formerly of 10 Downing Street and the Department for Transport. He said:
“Britain’s roads are busier than ever but the way we fund them and design them is stuck in the past. The result is traffic jams we don’t need to have and potholes on our local roads which as a rich country we could afford to fix. This £250,000 prize will ask people to come up with smart and popular ways to sort the problem out to make road use easier by car, bus, bike or lorry.”