Department for Transport

The Spending Review statement and the Infrastructure Strategy recognises Wales’ long-term infrastructure needs and will deliver at least £445 million of rail enhancements to realise them.

The attached table shows the UK Government funded expenditure on enhancements of the railway in Wales for previous financial years.

£1.9 billion OMR funding has been allocated to the Wales and Borders route for the five years between 2024 and 2029. The remaining funding is expected to be spent on other costs associated with the route as well as infrastructure enhancements to invest in the areas that matter most to passengers and freight users.

The government takes the security and resilience of critical transport infrastructure extremely seriously and has a robust security regime to tackle the range of threats the UK faces.

We work with the National Protective Security Authority, National Cyber Security Centre and across government to advise owners and operators of transport infrastructure on how they can protect themselves against sabotage. The Department will continue to monitor and mitigate existing and emerging threats across the whole transport sector, working with partners across government, internationally and with industry.

The majority of land and property that is acquired by compulsory purchase is not held in management or let but is utilised for the construction of the railway.

Within HS2 Ltd’s managed portfolio, there are 73 properties (inclusive of residential, commercial and agricultural and forestry land) that were acquired via compulsory purchase.

Further to this, there are 732 properties that were acquired via Statutory Blight, which can be considered to be under the umbrella of compulsory purchase, as this is a statutory provision whereby the issuing of a blight notice by the property owner compels the Secretary of State to acquire the property under the same terms as if a Notice to Treat had been served.

The Department for Transport has not made an estimate on the number of uninsured motorcycles on our roads. However, we take uninsured driving very seriously and work with motor insurance stakeholders and law enforcement to crack down on those who choose not to insure their vehicles.

As part of the Government’s new Road Safety Strategy, published on 7 January 2026, the Department has launched a consultation on motoring offences, including a review of existing penalties for unlicensed driving or for driving not in accordance with a licence.

The Government considers having fines and penalty receipts such as speeding fines being paid into the Consolidated Fund to be preferable to ring-fencing or hypothecating funds for specific spending. This avoids creating incentives to collect fines and penalty receipts for the sake of generating revenues, rather than for the purpose of enforcement and road safety. Additionally, calculating funding based on need provides more certainty than funding based on fluctuating fine and penalty receipts.

On 7 January 2026, we published our new Road Safety Strategy, setting out our vision for a safer future on our roads for all road users including older drivers. Alongside the strategy, we launched a consultation on introducing mandatory eyesight testing for older drivers.

We will also develop options for cognitive testing for older drivers, recognising that people’s fitness to drive can deteriorate as they get older. These measures aim to reduce deaths and injuries involving older drivers, without unnecessarily restricting their mobility and personal freedom.

The Wales Rail Board meets on a quarterly basis and includes representation from the Department for Transport, Network Rail, the Welsh Government and Transport for Wales. The Board provides strategic direction for enhancement schemes in Wales and ensures that long-term infrastructure needs are identified and developed. The Board played a key role in prioritising schemes for the recent Spending Review and will drive delivery of the record investment that has been made.

The Department for Transport expects to save approximately £1.8m per year upon completion of the Whitehall Rationalisation programme, once relocation and dual running costs are considered and the Departments moving into Great Minster House start contributing to building lease costs.

The Department for Transport has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

The Department for Transport has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

The Department for Transport has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

The Department for Transport has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

The Department for Transport has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

The Department for Transport has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

The Secretary of State for Transport announced on 12 November 2025 significant changes to the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency’s (DVSA) driving test booking system following a public consultation. These changes are being introduced incrementally during the Spring.

DVSA announced on 3 February that the first change, which will limit the number of times a test can be moved or swapped, will be introduced on 31 March.

A leaner who wishes to make further changes, can cancel their booking and receive a full refund and book a new test. Further changes will be brought in later in the Spring. This will include allowing only the learner driver to book a test, at which point approved driving instructors and businesses will no longer have access to the booking system. These changes are designed to prevent learner drivers being exploited by people who book up tests and sell them at inflated prices.

An Options Assessment of the proposed measures has been carried out and reviewed by the Better Regulation Unit. This options assessment will be published once the statutory instrument amending the legislation has been laid before Parliament.

Proposed improvements to the A120 between Braintree and Marks Tey, where the A120 meets the A12, were considered in detail by National Highways and the Department during the second Road Period (2020-2025) as part of the pipeline of potential future major enhancements to the strategic road network. The Department will provide an update on the pipeline of potential future enhancements as part of the publication of RIS3, due in March.

The Department does not collect or hold data on local authority response times for repairing Category 1 defects nor are there any statutory or recommended repair times.

Local highway authorities are responsible for maintaining their networks under Section 41 of the Highways Act 1980. The Act leaves maintenance standards, including when and how quickly to respond Category 1 repairs, to each authority’s judgement. The Code of Practice for Well Managed Highway Infrastructure advocates a risk-based approach and for authorities to take into account local conditions, traffic volumes and safety considerations when making decisions on maintenance programmes and repairs.

The Government has confirmed a record investment of £7.3 billion for local highways maintenance over the next four years, with a portion linked to demonstrating best practice.

The Department has also introduced a new rating system for local highway authorities. Under this system, all local highway authorities in England received a red, amber or green rating based on road condition, spending and use of best practice. The system encourages preventative maintenance and helps the Department target support, which is being offered to help councils improve their ratings and road conditions.

On the 12 November 2025, The Secretary of State for Transport appeared before the Transport Select Committee and announced next steps following the consultation on improving the rules for booking car driving tests.

The Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) considered all of the representations made by different parties before reaching a final decision. The agency published the full results of their consultation on improving the rules for booking a driving test.

An options assessment of the proposed measures has been carried out and reviewed by the Better Regulation Unit. This assessment will be published once the statutory instrument amending the legislation has been laid before Parliament.

Approved driving instructors (ADI) and driving schools will continue to play their important role in advising learners when they are ready to take their practical driving test. DVSA’s Ready to Pass? campaign encourages learner drivers to take a test only when fully prepared and to follow guidance from their driving instructor. ADIs will continue to be able to decline to take a learner to a test if they do not consider they are ready to pass. DVSA will support ADIs who use their professional judgement to make this decision.

The Department for Transport (DfT) is seeking views on introducing a minimum time period between passing a theory test and taking a practical driving test. The consultation covers driving tests taken for a category B licence, the standard licence used to operate a car, and closes at 11:59pm on 31 March 2026.

From 8 April 2025, the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) required learner drivers to give 10 full working days’ notice to change or cancel their car driving test without losing the test fee. Asking learner drivers to give more notice should give other people more chance to use the appointment. This will help to reduce driving test waiting times

The attached spreadsheet (WPQ-00061568) details how many car practical driving tests were cancelled by learners with fewer than (a) three working days’ notice and (b) ten working days’ notice in each month since January 2024.

Following the publication of the NAO report and the appointment of a new Chief Executive, DVSA is accelerating its efforts to increase the supply of tests in order to reduce waiting times. DVSA is driving a strengthened and faster recruitment pipeline and working to expand its training sites and reduce training timelines to get new DEs conducting tests almost 30% more quickly.

Following the publication of the NAO report and the appointment of a new Chief Executive, DVSA is accelerating its efforts to increase the supply of tests in order to reduce waiting times. DVSA is driving a strengthened and faster recruitment pipeline and working to expand its training sites and reduce training timelines to get new DEs conducting tests almost 30% more quickly.

The oral contribution on 9 December 2025 in the debate on the Railways Bill referred to savings from management and performance fees payable to private sector operators. These savings are factored into the Department's Spending Review settlement but are not included in the published Departmental Efficiency Plan.

The attached Excel spreadsheet shows failure-to-attends (FTA) as a percentage of the total number of bookings for each month since January 2024.

DVSA monitors failure to attend rates and consider potential causes of those rates changing, together with potential interventions to reduce such rates, on an ongoing basis.

In June 2025, the Office of Rail and Road published its independent review of revenue protection practices. The Department has accepted its five recommendations in full. We have been working with industry to address the recommendations and expect to publish a full response shortly.

Water ingress into existing cracks and joints in road surfaces can accelerate the formation of defects such as potholes. Somerset Council is responsible for managing the impacts of wet weather on the condition of roads in Yeovil and Somerset as part of their responsibility to manage their local highway network, based upon their local knowledge and circumstances.

Somerset Council received £44,966,790 in highways maintenance funding during the 2025/26 financial year. For the period of 2026/27 to 2029/30, Somerset Council is eligible for a further £225,319,000 in highways maintenance funding, as part of the Government’s record £7.3 billion settlement for highways maintenance over that period.

Where a driving licence holder has accumulated 12 or more penalty points, a court can exercise its discretion and decide not to disqualify them. Courts may allow drivers to retain their entitlement to drive where it is considered that disqualification would cause exceptional hardship.

These decisions are for the courts, not the Department for Transport or the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA), which update and maintain the driver record using information provided by His Majesty’s Courts and Tribunals Service.

On 13 February 2026, there were 10,822 drivers with 12 or more penalty points who retain current entitlement to drive and have not been disqualified by a court. Of these, 7,153 were awarded some or all of their points during 2025.

Through the HGV parking and driver welfare grant scheme the Department for Transport and industry partners are projected to deliver up to £35.7m of joint investment to enhance truck stops across England. This significant investment is in addition to joint investment by National Highways and industry of up to a further £30 million, aimed at improving lorry parking facilities along the strategic road network.

The scheme is supporting operators across 30 counties in England to improve driver facilities such as security measures, toilets, showers, refreshment facilities and increasing lorry parking spaces.

Improving road safety is one of my Department’s highest priorities. Injuries and fatalities from road collisions caused by driving are unacceptable, and this Government will work hard to prevent these tragedies for all road users.

That is why on 7 January 2026, we published our new Road Safety Strategy, setting out our vision for a safer future on our roads for all.

Following updates to the Highway Code in 2022, the department ran large-scale THINK! advertising campaigns to raise awareness of the changes.

Via the THINK! campaign, we are also running year-round radio filler adverts encouraging compliance with the guidance to improve safety for those walking, cycling and horse riding. We will also continue to promote the changes THINK! and Department for Transport social media channels, as well as through partner organisations.

However, as set out in the strategy, more work is needed to continue embedding these changes and overall awareness of the Highway Code. We are considering options in this area, and further details will be shared in due course.

As our road environment and technologies evolve, providing education for all road users throughout their lifetime is vital to improving road safety. As announced in the strategy to support a Lifelong Learning approach in the UK, the government will publish for the first time national guidance on the development and delivery of road safety education, training and publicity. Alongside this, the government will publish a manual to support the implementation of a Lifelong Learning approach for road safety.

The Government is committed to ensuring an electric vehicle (EV) transition that works for all. In October 2025, we announced that we will consult on improving renters and leaseholders' ability to charge. This consultation will consider how to make domestic EV charging for renters and leaseholders easier and more straightforward.

The UK Government constantly monitors UK waters to ensure the safety of mariners, protect the marine environment and uphold the UK’s national security, which includes monitoring sanctioned tankers.

The Department for Transport is continuing to increase scrutiny of these vessels as they transit through the Channel through our Voluntary Insurance Reporting Mechanism introduced in October 2024.

The Department’s existing statutory guidance recommends that licensing authorities should require taxi and private hire vehicle drivers to undertake safeguarding training.

The English Devolution and Community Empowerment Bill, currently being considered by the House of Lords, seeks to provide a power for the Secretary of State to set in regulations requirements that must be met for any taxi or private hire vehicle licence to be issued and held.

As part of the Government’s Spending Review in June last year, the following capital funding totals have been allocated for transport infrastructure to local transport authorities, including Mayoral Strategic Authorities and non–mayoral authorities in the North West:

Mayoral Strategic Authorities

Greater Manchester - £1.42 billion Integrated Settlement.

Liverpool City Region - £0.9 billion Integrated Settlement.

Non-Mayoral Strategic Authority

Lancashire - £571.5 million consolidated local transport funding.

Devolution Priority Programme areas

Cheshire and Warrington - £385.3 million consolidated local transport funding.

Cumbria - £383.3 million consolidated local transport funding.

The funding allocated covers the period up to 31^st March 2030 and has been allocated on a range of factors beyond population, including deprivation and road mileage.

The Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) is the United Kingdom’s independent aviation and aerospace regulator. CAP1616 is the CAA’s process for all airspace changes in the UK, including potential airspace changes at Gatwick Airport. The CAA has recently consulted on potential changes to CAP1616 to ensure that it fair, transparent, consistent, and proportionate.

The Department for Transport consulted on potential changes to the statutory guidance (The Air Navigation Guidance) it provides to the CAA and interested parties for creating, changing or assessing flightpaths. This guidance is used by the CAA to inform its airspace change process. The consultation closed on 26 January 2026 and responses are now being reviewed.

The majority of public charge points will be delivered by the private sector, which has committed to investing over £6 billion in public charging infrastructure by 2030. Many chargepoints are delivered through a combination of public and private sector funding. This includes the estimated 100,000 chargepoints expected to be delivered under the Government’s £400 million Local Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Scheme, which is leveraging significant private sector investment alongside public funding.

GA Trains Limited has been set, and is required, to meet targets for punctuality, reliability, service quality and customer satisfaction under the Services Agreement, and is required to publish its performance against these targets on a regular basis.

The Department monitors industry figures on this issue such as those provided by the RAC, who recently reported that UK drivers spent an average of £320 on repairs following pothole-related damages, with some spending more than £1,000.

The Government takes this issue extremely seriously. We recognise that historic under-investment has made it difficult for local authorities to maintain their roads in the way they would want to. That is why we have confirmed a record investment of £7.3 billion across England for the next four years, on top of the additional £500 million we delivered in this financial year.

The aviation industry is a private industry and, therefore it is for employers in this sector to ensure they offer the right training, recruitment and retention support for the skilled workforce that they need.

A training organisation has been approved to deliver a first officer apprenticeship, which would provide training completely cost-free to young people.

My officials are working with the Department for Work and Pensions, and airlines to encourage them to deliver this apprenticeship.

In addition, British Airways, Jet2.com, and TUI have periodically offered partly or fully funded training programmes.

(a) The enforcement of road traffic law and how available resources are deployed is the responsibility of individual Chief Officers and Police and Crime Commissioners, taking into account the specific local problems and demands with which they are faced.

The Police are operationally independent and they will investigate each case according to its individual merits.

(b) - The Department does not hold this data.

There are no plans to make it a requirement for cyclists to wear high visibility clothing when cycling. However, cyclists should ensure that they can be clearly seen by other road users, both for their own safety and for that of others.

This is in line with Rule 59 of The Highway Code which recommends that people who cycle should wear light-coloured or fluorescent clothing to help other road users to see them in daylight and poor light, with reflective clothing and/or accessories in the dark.

Through the HGV parking and driver welfare grant scheme the Department for Transport and industry partners are projected to deliver up to £35.7m of joint investment to enhance truck stops across England. This investment is in addition to joint investment by National Highways and industry of up to a further £30 million, aimed at improving lorry parking facilities along the strategic road network.

The scheme is supporting operators across 30 counties in England to improve driver facilities such as security measures, toilets, showers, refreshment facilities and increasing lorry parking spaces.

Ten of the 14 Department for Transport contracted operators now offer delay repay schemes that provide automated, one-click delay repay, and we are also developing plans to make it even easier and more convenient to claim Delay Repay, including through the upcoming Great British Railways website and app.

Network Rail is responsible for the safe operation of level crossings across the rail network. The safety measures it puts in place are informed by risk assessments which include, where relevant, available information on barrier down-time. Network Rail is overseen in this by the independent rail safety regulator, the Office of Rail and Road, which requires duty holders to ensure that the safety mitigations they put in place are reasonably practicable and do not expose passengers, the public or workforce to risk at level crossings.

The Department for Transport does not intend to publish supplementary guidance on the interpretation of this paragraph. The concepts of technical feasibility and economic reasonableness are generally well established, and encompass costs not being disproportionate to benefits. Technical guidance on flood risk assessment is published from time to time by the Environment Agency.