Our roads need improving, but progress is slow and frustrating
(Sparkpics)

Transport may not rank up there among the big headline campaign issues. However, 51% of us think travel will be important in deciding who to vote for in the next election.

From the government’s point of view, it’s a very difficult area to get right. Nobody likes paying over the odds for transport. But that’s precisely what we think we’re doing – there’s too much tax on our driving and public transport is far too expensive.

But we all recognise that our roads and our trains need a lot of investment if they’re ever to improve. Trains are always late. There aren’t enough buses. Traffic is terrible.

And it isn’t just us who are unhappy with current services. Last year, the Confederation of British Industry – a group representing employers – demanded better investment in transport. They estimated that delays cost the UK economy £20 billion a year.

On average, each of us spends one hour every day on transport. That’s more than two full weeks a year. So we should all care about what happens in the future.