Several governmental transport bodies will be abolished as part of the coalition government's review on QUANGOs.
Chief among the public bodies to be broken up will be the Renewable Fuels Agency (RFA) and Commission for Integrated Transport (CfIT).
Cycling England; the Disabled Persons Transport Advisory Committee (DPTAC); The Railway Heritage Committee; and BRB will also be abolished, while Passenger Focus will be significantly restructured.
Renewable Fuels Agency
The RFA, which administers the Renewable Transport Fuel Obligation (RTFO), will be brought into the Department for Transport (DfT).
The RTFO requires fossil fuels suppliers to make up a proportion of their fuels with biofuels.
However, doubt over the CO2 benefits and sustainability of such fuels have cast doubt on the viability of the RTFO, and the future of the scheme may in doubt following the axing of the RFA.
The RFA also advises the government over biofuel sustainability, an area that has been under the spotlight following revelations about the ecological impact of biofuel plantations.
The government says that savings will be achieved by merging the RFA into the DfT.
Commission for Integrated Transport
The Commission for Integrated Transport advises the government on developing an integrated transport policy.
The CfIT makes recommendations based on empirical research, but the government now says that 'high-end strategic' advice' rather than detailed research should inform transport policy.
The body made frequent recommendations on introducing on road sharing, increasing access and subsidies to public transport, taxing pollutants and cutting CO2 emissions from the transport sector.
The government says the DfT will engage directly with an informal strategic transport advisory group rather than a government public body.
Other DfT QUANGOs to be abolished
Other bodies to be abolished include the Railway Heritage Committee, which looks after significant railway artefacts and records. The Government says that because no other transport sectors are protected by an alternative body, the RHC should be abolished and not replaced.
Cycling England, which advises o the promotion of cycling, will be brought under the DfT within the Local Sustainable Transport Fund. Bikeability, which constitutes a new cycling proficiency test, will be funded for the remainder of the current parliament.
The Disabled Persons Transport Advisory Committee will be abolished, while the DfT will consult on a successor.
The BRB, set up following the end of the British Railways Board in 1997 will be wound up following the disposal of any remaining British Rail assets.
“We are ensuring that only those bodies that absolutely need to continue as independent bodies are retained either in their current form or significantly slimmed down," said Transport Secretary Philip Hammond.