Report warns poor transport links are hindering UK research collaboration

A new analysis from the Higher Education Policy Institute (HEPI) argues that physical connectivity is an overlooked factor in UK research and innovation policy, with inadequate transport links limiting collaboration between universities, industry and regional innovation hubs.

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The report, Interconnected Innovation: Physical Connectivity as the Missing Ingredient in UK Research and Innovation Policy, highlights what it describes as a persistent gap between the UK’s ambitions for a world-leading research system and the infrastructure needed to support day-to-day collaboration between institutions. It suggests that while digital connectivity and funding frameworks have been prioritised, the importance of physical access between research centres, campuses and innovation clusters has been underemphasised in national policy.

The findings point to difficulties faced by researchers and institutions in maintaining regular in-person collaboration across geographically dispersed networks. It argues that travel time, rail capacity constraints and limited regional connectivity can act as frictional barriers to joint research projects, particularly in cases where innovation ecosystems span multiple cities or regions.

The HEPI report says UK innovation policy has increasingly emphasised place-based growth strategies, university-industry collaboration and regional research networks. It argues that without improved physical connectivity, efforts to strengthen regional innovation ecosystems may be less effective than intended.

The report also argues that research collaboration often depends on repeated face-to-face interaction, shared facilities and access to specialist equipment. In this context, poor transport links are presented not only as an inconvenience but as a structural constraint on knowledge exchange.

Academic literature on innovation systems similarly highlights the role of proximity and network structures in enabling effective collaboration between universities, firms and public bodies, with universities often acting as anchor institutions of regional innovation clusters. However, the HEPI analysis argues that policy discussions have tended to focus more on institutional partnerships and funding mechanisms than on the physical infrastructure that enables them to function effectively.

The report calls for greater integration between transport planning and research and innovation strategy, suggesting that improvements to rail, regional transport and inter-city connectivity could enhance the performance of innovation clusters, support more effective collaboration across the UK research system and help unlock additional value from research investments.