John Challen was in conversation with Darran Kitchener FCIHT, Managing Director, Milestone Transport Planning, and one of the organisers of the Future Transport Conference 2026

The CIHT Future Transport Conference arrives back in Newcastle in 2026, where speakers will introduce a number of topics. These sessions will explore how good planning can provide a more cohesive solution in offering access to low-cost, safe, inclusive and low carbon transport modes.

Starting from the most basic forms of transportation, discussions will consider how active travel - walking, wheeling, or cycling everyday journeys - should form the bedrock from which all other transport options are compared against. It is, after all, the cheapest, most readily accessible and inclusive of all travel modes.

Active Travel England will reveal the latest iteration of its guidance and demonstrate the positive impact it has had on people’s lives since its inception in 2022. Meanwhile, Sunderland City Council and VolkerStevin will talk about the success of the Keel Crossing – a £31million, 260m-long, 30m-high pedestrian and cycle bridge, which opened in October 2025.

Speakers from WSP and Royal Town Planning Institute (RTPI) will discuss how to better design both our public realm and transport systems to ensure the safety and security of women and disabled people, and how this can be applied to the developments underway throughout the north of England.

In the North East specifically, the Tyne & Wear Metro system has benefited from new, more inclusive and reliable rolling stock. As a result, the North East mayor committed a £900million extension of the existing system, the first extension in over 30 years. Both the North East Combined Authority and Nexus – the operator of the Metro system – will explain the work they are undertaking on these schemes.

Changing private car use

The role of the private car in providing accessible transport, particularly in rural areas where active travel and public transport opportunities are not as prevalent, is often disparaged when considering our transport options. Yet, with 59% of all trips and 76% of all miles travelled in 2024 being by private car, improving the way we use that mode of transport in the short-to-medium term is vitally important, as we work to begin to offer safer, lower carbon options to the general public.

Speakers, including the Tees Valley Combined Authority, will talk about how digital technologies such as artificial intelligence can monitor and improve people’s journeys on all modes of transport, while other presentations will look at how our road networks are being improved to cater for both the demands of today and those of the autonomous future.

It's true that there is no ‘magic bullet’ to solve all our transportation problems. However, by considering the network as a whole, from the perspective of all users from all walks of life, will we begin to create fairer, more accessible and truly inclusive transportation systems.

The Future Transport Conference and Exhibition, sponsored by Cundall, Streets Systems and WSP, will be held at St James Park, Newcastle, on 5th February 2026.

Image: Keel Crossing over River Wear, Sunderland. Credit: Shutterstock