_Suffolk and Norfolk LVEP supports new Transport East tourism report

Visit East of England and the Suffolk and Norfolk LVEP are supporting the launch of a new Transport East report on the impact of transport on the East's visitor economy.

In 2024, Norfolk and Suffolk attracted 89 million tourism trips, generating almost £6bn of value and supporting 120,000 jobs. Despite this incredible scale, the study highlighted that transport gaps are restricting growth of the region’s visitor sector and limiting the communities that feel the benefit of visitor income - particularly in rural and coastal areas, which account for nearly half of all visits.

Visit East of England Executive Director Pete Waters said: 'Many of our best tourist assets are rural and coastal, visitor activity is highly seasonal and heavily reliant on private cars, so this often puts strain on areas with limited transport options.'

'We'd love to have less travel by car and encourage sustainable tourism, but to do that we need better and more convenient public transport.'

The Suffolk and Norfolk LVEP has a Destination Management Plan that aims to grow the visitor economy by driving higher-value, year-round tourism and creating experiences that encourage longer stays.

Key challenges and barriers identified

•    Limited rural and coastal options: Gaps in bus and rail transport, especially for "first and last mile" journeys.
•    Misaligned timetables: Services that don't match early morning, evening, or weekend operating hours, impacting both staff and visitors.
•    Fragmented journeys: Poor integration between different modes of transport.
•    Car dependency: High reliance on private vehicles, worsening congestion and environmental pressure.
•    Accessibility gaps: Physical and systemic barriers for disabled people and those with additional needs.

Looking ahead

The report outlines recommendations in the short, medium and long term to drive change. In the short and medium term this includes:

•    Better timing of public transport services to align with visitor peaks and early/late shifts.
•    Expand Demand Responsive Transport options and shuttles to connect stations, towns and destinations.
•    Expanding lift-sharing and guaranteed-ride-home services.
Longer term recommendations include:
•    Strengthening east–west connections across the region
•    Closer alignment of transport and tourism policy, particularly to support year-round demand
•    Development of a regional integrated fares system across multiple modes of transport to make is easier and cheaper to travel by public transport

Pete Waters added: 'We warmly welcome this joint work with Transport East and WSP; having a cohesive strategy that directly connects transport solutions to our visitor economy is a massive step forward for employees in the sector and visitors.'

'We fully endorse these recommendations and look forward to working alongside Transport East and the tourism sector to deliver the connectivity and low-carbon travel changes our region needs.'

Full report

Summary report