Employment and Education 

The industries which were attracted to the ConnectedCities varied widely; however, much growth tended to be of the kind generally known as medium tech manufacturing and production, e.g, 3D printing, hydroponics, micro breweries, train maintenance, etc.

There was also great growth in rail distribution centres, as freight shifted to rail and smaller freight units became available.

For the first ten to fifteen years of many new green towns’ life construction was a major employer, and the skill base built duing these years remained and thrived.

Many ConnectedCities took the opportunity to produce their own power/heating and process their waste, which provided significant employment.

Since the early days of this century the government has supported the creation of strategic rail freight interchanges (SRFIs) at key locations, particularly in the South East. Initially, sites for these SRFIs proved difficult to find, as they needed large sites fairly close to London and required both road and rail access. With the advent of ConnectedCities, several of the new green quarters and new green towns in the South East provided sites for SRFIs.

SRFIs in new green towns tend to have around 2000 employees. This makes the SRFI the major employer, but without dominating the town. In size, SRFIs tend to be around 200 hectares, but only about 35 hectares is generally within the pedshed, so there is plenty of room for other development.