CURBING traffic congestion, battling crime and disorder and boosting jobs in the county will be top priorities for Kent County Council over the next four years.

The priorities were among 67 aims and objectives unveiled by County Hall’s ruling Tories that will shape council policy between now and 2010.

The targets across all county council services were hailed by KCC leaders as the "most radical ever set by a council".

Council leader Paul Carter said there were seven key goals the authority was aiming to achieve and that around £10million would be invested in delivering the ambitious programme.

"We want to build on the momentum that we have established in the last nine years to improve the quality of life for all Kent residents across the county," said Cllr Carter.

But the opposition Labour leader Cllr Mike Eddy said the document setting out the plans were "motherhood and apple pie" and a "political wish list".

The seven goals are: increasing prosperity through business growth and job creation; transforming education; reducing congestion; improving health and quality of life; building quality homes; making Kent safer and improving services while keeping the council tax down.

More specific objectives include introducing free public transport for 11-to-16-year-olds; an apprenticeship scheme for more than 1,000 young people; minimising the impact of new homes on the countryside; establishing "congestion-busting" teams to patrol in the busiest towns; removing unnecessary yellow lines and bus lanes and cutting journey times by ten per cent through new technology.

KCC has also set out plans to establish its own TV station - Kent TV - in an attempt to encourage more people to take an interest in what the authority does.

Click here to read Kent County Council's vision for 2010 in full, in PDF format.