IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/ids/ijatma/v12y2012i2p137-152.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Phoenix from the ashes: can low carbon vehicles ensure the long-term viability of the West Midlands automotive cluster?

Author

Listed:
  • Nigel Berkeley
  • David Jarvis
  • Jason Begley

Abstract

Whilst traditional automotive manufacturing regions continue to face tremendous competitive pressures new opportunities are emerging with strong governmental support to encourage the manufacture and adoption of low carbon vehicles (LCVs). This paper examines such opportunities in the West Midlands region of the UK, where the automotive 'cluster' remains one of the largest in the country and where failure to adapt to changing markets could prove economically and socially damaging. It suggests that the region should build on its strengths at the upper end of the technology spectrum and establish itself as a leader in the area of LCV technologies. In doing so, it is recognised that a coordinated and holistic approach is required, involving multiple layers of government, backed up by a strong and supportive policy framework. As such, the abolition of regional government in England presents a serious challenge. Whether new local delivery structures can fill the void given the centralisation of power, policy and funding for economic development remains to be seen and casts doubt on the extent to which potential opportunities and benefits presented by low carbon vehicles are fully realised.

Suggested Citation

  • Nigel Berkeley & David Jarvis & Jason Begley, 2012. "Phoenix from the ashes: can low carbon vehicles ensure the long-term viability of the West Midlands automotive cluster?," International Journal of Automotive Technology and Management, Inderscience Enterprises Ltd, vol. 12(2), pages 137-152.
  • Handle: RePEc:ids:ijatma:v:12:y:2012:i:2:p:137-152
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.inderscience.com/link.php?id=46859
    Download Restriction: Access to full text is restricted to subscribers.
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:ids:ijatma:v:12:y:2012:i:2:p:137-152. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    We have no bibliographic references for this item. You can help adding them by using this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Sarah Parker (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.inderscience.com/browse/index.php?journalID=2 .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.