THE Conservative party is today announcing a major multi-billion boost to trains, buses and trams to “transform” transport in the region.

The party says a new, devolved and long-term Local Public Transport Fund will give eight combined authority areas, including West Yorkshire “the control and certainty of funding they need to invest”.

Rail Minister Chris Heaton-Harris will be in the area today to talk about the plans. Local leaders will have the final say over how to spend the money, but the party says it is expected to help fund a new metro or light rail to the Spen Valley, Pudsey and Dewsbury.

More than £4 billion will be allocated to the new fund, the party has said, with more to come from the promise of £100 billion for infrastructure. Earlier this year, The West Yorkshire Combined Authority proposed a “City Region Transit Network” that would create new public transport links in towns and cities, including some areas that currently have no rail links.

It included a line that would link Dewsbury to the university area of Leeds, via Bradford city centre. The Leeds City Region, which includes Bradford, is the largest metropolitan area in Europe without an urban transit system.

Transport Secretary Grant Shapps said: “These plans will change the face of local transport in towns and cities across West Yorkshire.

“They will kickstart the transformation of services so they match those in London, ensuring more frequent and better services, more electrification, modern buses and trains and contactless smart ticketing.

“While Labour has confirmed it will raid the budget to build roads, the Conservatives believe in raising funding, improving quality and delivering value for commuters across the UK.”

Mr Shapps said a Conservative majority Government would “get Brexit done” and deliver transport investment, while a hung parliament led by Labour’s Jeremy Corbyn “would spend the next year consumed by the chaos of two referendums”.

Jake Berry, Minister for the Northern Powerhouse and Local Growth, added: “This new public transport fund will allow us to fund a new metro or light rail, including to Dewsbury, Pudsey and Spen Valley. It will also kickstart the transformation of services so they match those in London, ensuring more frequent and better services, more electrification, modern buses and trains and smart ticketing.”

The party says local leaders will also be given more control over existing rail services, including fares, service patterns, rolling stock and stations.

Meanwhile, Labour intends to bring the railways back into public ownership if the party wins the December 12 election and then cut regulated rail fares by 33 per cent from January 2020.

The party estimates the policy would save the average commuter more than £1,000 a year, in what it described as the biggest ever reduction in rail fares. Children aged 16 and under would receive free rail travel under Labour’s plans, while part-time workers would be guaranteed “fair” fares.

The party has also pledged to deliver a simple, London-style ticketing system across the nation – with “islands” within which zonal rail fares will apply across all modes of public transport. There would be a daily price cap so travellers can pay as they go using bank cards or mobile phones. Labour estimates that the policy will cost £1.5 billion per year and would come from existing Department for Transport budgets, drawn from Vehicle Excise Duty, commonly known as road tax.