Department for Transport

The quickest and easiest way to apply for a driving licence is by using the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA)’s online service. There are no delays in successful online applications and customers should receive their licence within a few days.

However, many people still choose or have to make a paper application and the DVLA receives around 60,000 items of mail every day. The DVLA understands the impact of delays on those who make paper applications and is working hard to process them as quickly as possible. To help reduce waiting times for paper applications, the DVLA has introduced additional online services, recruited more staff, increased overtime working and has secured extra office space in Swansea and Birmingham. There may be additional delays in processing more complex transactions, for example if medical investigations are needed. The latest information on turnaround times for paper driving licence applications can be found here.

The large majority of applicants renewing an existing licence will be able to continue driving while their application is being processed, providing the driver can meet specific criteria. More information can be found online here.

Employers wishing to check an employee or potential employee’s driving licence status can do so using the DVLA’s online enquiry services. These services allow third parties to obtain relevant information relating to an individual’s driver record, with the consent of the driving licence holder.

The quickest and easiest way to apply for a driving licence is by using the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA)’s online service. There are no delays in successful online applications and customers should receive their licence within a few days.

However, many people still choose or have to make a paper application and the DVLA receives around 60,000 items of mail every day. The DVLA understands the impact of delays on those who make paper applications and is working hard to process them as quickly as possible. To help reduce waiting times for paper applications, the DVLA has introduced additional online services, recruited more staff, increased overtime working and has secured extra office space in Swansea and Birmingham. There may be additional delays in processing more complex transactions, for example if medical investigations are needed. The latest information on turnaround times for paper driving licence applications can be found here.

The large majority of applicants renewing an existing licence will be able to continue driving while their application is being processed, providing the driver can meet specific criteria. More information can be found online here.

Employers wishing to check an employee or potential employee’s driving licence status can do so using the DVLA’s online enquiry services. These services allow third parties to obtain relevant information relating to an individual’s driver record, with the consent of the driving licence holder.

The Airfield Advisory Team (AAT) are a team within the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) and were set up to provide independent non-regulatory advice and support to General Aviation airfields on a range of matters affecting their operations. The team is currently comprised of 2 personnel.

The annual budget for the AAT in Financial Year 21/22 is £375,000. This funding is made available by the DfT under sections 12 and 16 of the Civil Aviation Act 1982, which permits the department to provide the CAA funding for specific activities.

GA Airfields are the critical infrastructure which supports all aviation activity in the UK by developing a skilled workforce, the safety processes to support the entire industry, and can offer the potential as a test bed for new technology before its adoption by the commercial sector.

The GA sector including its airfields contributes around £4bn to the economy and supports around 40,000 jobs, most of which are STEM roles.

For 2020/21 and 2021/22, the total funding for highways maintenance allocated by the Department for Transport to (a) Hertfordshire Council, (b) Lancashire County Council, (c) Oxfordshire County Council, (d) Cumbria County Council and (e) WMCA in (i) 2020-21 and (ii) 2021-22 is listed in the table below. These figures also include allocations from the Potholes Fund.

The precautionary testing scheme is intended to help isolate asymptomatic cases and limit the risk of outbreaks in workplaces, and is therefore focused on those who are at greater risk of infecting each other - for example, due to working together in an enclosed space as well as the criticality of their roles. Approximately 1,200 of all those taking part in the scheme work in highly specialised roles in the rail industry.

A range of teams from across DfT Rail Strategy and Services Group have a role in understanding current and future trends in both passenger and freight train usage, among other responsibilities. This includes policy teams, contract holders, statisticians and analysts. The Department does not hold information on the full-time equivalent resource that this work represents compared to teams' wider duties.

Consultants are used by the Department on a project by project basis. This support is procured for services delivered and the Department does not hold information on the number of full-time equivalents engaged by consultancies to provide these services.

The Government will conduct a full review of international travel restrictions by the end of January, including the approach to responding to future variants, to ensure a stable system for 2022.

The Clean Maritime Plan, published in 2019, and the Transport Decarbonisation Plan, published in 2021, set out the Government’s plans to decarbonise the maritime sector, including coastal and inland shipping. The Clean Maritime Plan can be found on Gov.Uk via this link: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/815664/clean-maritime-plan.pdf

Operation Zero and the Clydebank Declaration were launched at COP26 to help drive the decarbonisation of the maritime sector and meet our targets under the Clean Maritime Plan and IMO Initial GHG Strategy.

The Clydebank Declaration represents the beginning of a multi-year process to develop green shipping corridors. As such, launching the Declaration is the first step to establish at least 6 corridors by the middle of this decade. We are now moving, with other States and the industry, to explore, design and then deliver corridors involving the UK.

My Department is working with industry partners and other government departments to also develop the next steps for Operation Zero, with a view to making zero-emission operations and maintenance vessels a reality in the North Sea offshore wind sector by 2025.

The UK, and England’s port industry, is a thriving and competitive private sector. It continues to make significant ongoing investment across the country in infrastructure necessary for a successful future, estimated at £1bn in 2021 and £600m in 2020 by the British Ports Association. It has shown itself to be adaptable and resilient over recent years and, as an island nation, all ports will very much continue to be a vital enabler of the national economy as 95% of freight by weight arrives by sea. As such we expect ports to be a key element of the UK’s global trade ambitions now we have left the European Union, and we are taking steps to enhance their attractiveness through Freeports. A confidence in our ports far into the future is mapped out in the maritime 2050 Strategy.

The Department for Transport will be conducting a call for evidence on parts of the Road Traffic Act 1988. It is expected that we will be in a position to publish this in the first half of 2022.

While details are still being worked up as to its scope, it is expected that it will include drink and drug driving offences, and the offence of failure to stop and report.

When carrying out the review of The Highway Code to improve road safety for cyclists, pedestrians and horse riders, the Department for Transport worked closely with an expert stakeholder group from the outset representing different users of the road.

We agree that for the changes to have the desired impact it will be important that these are supported by effective communications. We will communicate the changes in two phases, the first being an awareness raising campaign alerting road users to the changes as they come into effect. A broader behaviour change campaign is then planned later in the year, to align with seasonal increases in active travel, to help embed the changes and encourage understanding and uptake of the new guidance. We are also developing a toolkit for stakeholders to use to promote the changes in their area.

The Government recognises the vital role that public transport, including taxi and private hire vehicles, play in getting people to work at all times of the day and night. Passenger safety is integral to the regulation and licensing of passenger transport service providers and policy is constantly kept under review.

The Department for Transport is also working closely with the Home Office on the Government’s cross-departmental strategy to address Violence Against Women and Girls. The Department for Transport’s first Women’s Safety Champions are engaging with campaign groups, industry and Government to understand areas for improvement across the UK’s transport network. They will shortly produce independent recommendations for the Department and wider transport network on what best practice should be adopted to improve safety of the transport network for women and girls. We expect that these measures will enhance safety for all passengers at all times.

As of the 01 January 2021, there were 20,775 public electric vehicle charge points installed in the UK, an increase of 4,270 compared with 01 January 2020.

Additionally, the most recently published statistics show that as of the 01 January 2022, there were 28,375 public electric vehicle charge points installed, an increase of 7,600 compared with 01 January 2021.

Removing tailpipe emissions from road vehicles is fundamental to decarbonising transport. Regulations that ensure that from 2035 all new cars and vans are fully zero emission at the tailpipe will remain technology neutral. The Government’s response to our recent consultation on the regulatory options for the design of those regulations will be published in due course.

Government and industry have supported the installation of over 28,000  publicly available charging devices including more than 5,100 rapid devices – one of the largest networks of rapids in Europe. The Government will provide over £1.3 billion over the next four years to support the continued roll-out of chargepoints on motorways and major A roads, in homes and businesses and on-street. Government’s forthcoming EV Infrastructure Strategy will define our vision for the continued roll-out of a world-leading charging infrastructure network across the UK. The strategy will be published soon.

The UK is well placed to lead on hydrogen powered transport, and government is supporting the use of hydrogen cars, vans, buses and lorries through our £23m Hydrogen for Transport programme. As of December 2021, there are fourteen publicly accessible hydrogen refuelling stations across the UK providing hydrogen for road vehicles, with just over 350 hydrogen vehicles operating on UK roads. Additional refuelling infrastructure will be deployed as part of our plans to demonstrate at scale hydrogen fuel cell trucks on UK roads.

One of the benefits of biofuels is that they can be deployed using existing infrastructure. The Department has supported the supply of liquid biofuels at fuelling stations across the UK through the Renewable Transport Fuel Obligation which has been successful for 13 years in promoting a market for biofuels. The recent introduction of E10 in September 2021 now means that up to 10% bioethanol is blended into petrol while diesel is also blended with up to 7% biodiesel, a grade known as B7.

Following a thematic inspection of roads policing, Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary Fire and Rescue Services recommended that the Department review DfT Circular 1/2007 on the use of speed cameras, which includes guidance and best practice on the deployment of fixed speed cameras. The Department has taken this recommendation forward by convening a working group of key stakeholders, who are currently working collaboratively to redraft the Circular.

Launched in 2019, the Clean Maritime Plan is the environmental route map of the Maritime 2050 Strategy. We intend to publish a refresh of the Clean Maritime Plan in 2023. This will identify clear milestones and actions to spark the transition to net zero shipping technologies, as we place the UK at the forefront of the industries of the future.

Following publication of the Integrated Rail Plan for the North and Midlands (IRP), Ministers from the Department met the Liverpool Metro Mayor to discuss the decisions taken in the IRP, and to explain the benefits it provides for Merseyside.

The Department will continue to engage with local leaders and councils as work on the proposals in the IRP is taken forward.

Last year’s spending review set aside £360 million investment to modernise industry ticketing and retailing systems. Accordingly, we announced alongside the Integrated Rail Plan, an expansion of pay-as-you-go travel on rail to more than 700 stations in urban areas across the country including more than 400 in the north, exceeding our manifesto commitment.

We are working with the newly formed Great British Railways Transition Team to develop proposals to deliver this modernisation programme and PAYG and will announce further details in due course.

The call for evidence saw 149 responses submitted, many of which were incredibly detailed. We will publish once we have given the responses our full consideration.

None, but the Department has funded various programmes which help get old bicycles roadworthy again. In 2020-21, for example, it made available some 400,000 “Fix Your Bike” vouchers to enable people to get £50 off the cost of a bicycle service. The Government has also provided £2 million to Cycling UK’s Big Bike Revival programme this financial year, to support activities such as free events that teach bicycle maintenance skills, enabling more people to give a new lease of life to their old bicycles. In previous years the Department has also provided funding for programmes such as the Big Birmingham Bike Scheme which made bicycles available free of charge to people across Birmingham who could not otherwise have afforded them.

National Highways’ inspectors carry out weekly safety inspections of the A1. The A1 near Stibbington and south of Wansford was last inspected for potholes and other safety defects on 11 January 2022.

Where safety critical defects, including potholes, are identified, they are made safe within 24 hours. The inspection on 11 January identified a safety critical pothole in the northbound A1 carriageway, that was then made safe overnight on 11/12 January 2022.

Permanent repairs are carried out according to the severity of the defect, often within 28 days.

No resurfacing is currently scheduled for the A1 near Stibbington and south of Wansford. National Highways does, however, have plans to improve the skid resistance of the road surface at the A1 Wansford southbound junction and for drainage improvements at the northbound entry slip road on the A1 at Stibbington.

Drink and drug driving is unacceptable and has no place on our roads, and we as Ministers are aware of the trauma that results. If the Honourable Member for Houghton and Sunderland South writes to the Secretary of State requesting a meeting the invitation will be considered.

In July 2020, the Prime Minister launched ambitious plans to boost walking and cycling in England, with a vision for half of all journeys in towns and cities to be walked or cycled by 2030. This commitment is backed with £2 billion of investment over five years, including significant funding for local authorities to develop and deliver local cycling and walking networks, and for the National Cycle Network.

The Department intends to publish the second statutory Cycling and Walking Investment Strategy (CWIS 2) later this year. It will reflect these new policies and the multi-year funding settlement for walking and cycling announced at the recent Spending Review. It will also reflect the commitment published in the Transport Decarbonisation Plan in 2021, to deliver a world class cycling and walking network in England by 2040.

The applications submitted by Transport for London to the Department contain sensitive information and are subject to agreements with potential developers. It would not be appropriate to publish this information. However, the planning process provides the necessary transparency in relation to these applications.

The Department does not produce estimates for the cost of fuel for bus operators.

As part of monitoring the Bus Recovery Grant and current covid situation, the Department is engaging with bus operators to understand the impact of cost inflation on fuel.

According to the National Travel Survey covering households in England, the proportion of bus users who fall into different individual income brackets is as shown in the following table below. Data for 2021 and 2022 will be available in summer 2022 and summer 2023 respectively.

The figures above refer only to bus users aged 16 and older as individual income information is not held for children.

The Bus Recovery Grant will provide £226.5m in support for operators and Local Transport Authorities until April 2022. The Department is consulting with the sector on its needs once the scheme ends, and the potential merits of providing further support.

The proposed changes to The Highway Code to improve road safety for cyclists, pedestrians and horse riders includes amendments to Rule 66 of The Highway Code.

In accordance with section 38 of the Road Traffic Act 1988, the revised version of The Highway Code was laid before both House of Parliament on 1 December 2021 for approval.

The Secretary of State for Transport does not have any plans to make a statement on the proposed alterations of The Highway Code to improve safety for cyclists, pedestrians and horse riders as a revised version of The Highway Code was laid before both House of Parliament on 1 December 2021 in accordance with section 38 of the Road Traffic Act 1988. The revised Highway Code will remain in Parliament for a period of 40 days and if Parliament agrees to the proposed changes being made, The Highway Code will be updated in early 2022.

Please find attached the XLSX file – “387004 – PQ Data”

The department is able to provide information on the staffing levels (full-time equivalent and headcount) for each Director General led area of the department. This data can be provided for the last 24 months from 31 December 2019 to 31 November 2021 (the most recently available data).

Important notes on the data provided:

This data can only be provided for the last 23 months because accurate and cleansed data to this level of detail is only held in our systems for a rolling 24 month period. December 2021 has not been included as we are currently conducting QA internally.

Our data is consolidated as at the last day of the month rather than the first day of the month.

Changes in organisational structure over time will be part of the cause for increases or decreases for the size of these Director General led areas, as well as growth or decline in total headcount.

March 2020 data is unavailable.

This matter is currently under consideration and therefore it would not be appropriate to comment on this specific application. The Secretary of State’s consideration of section 163 applications is in line with the relevant sections of the Greater London Authority Act 1999 and other legal requirements such as those under the Equality Act 2010.

The Secretary of State’s consideration will include whether operational land is no longer required by Transport for London for discharging its functions. The Secretary of State may also consider whether an application would impact their ability to implement national policies relating to transport affecting any area outside of Greater London.

The Department has provided unprecedented levels of financial support to the bus sector during the pandemic. Through the Coronavirus Bus Service Support Grant, over £1.5 billion in emergency funding has been provided to operators and Local Transport Authorities. Since September 2021, an additional £226.5 million has been made available to the sector through the Bus Recovery Grant.

Together, this funding has played an important role in ensuring those who need to travel by bus have been able to do so. The Department is committed to seeing the sector return to financial sustainability, but recognises the ongoing challenges faced to maintain services.

The Department is working with the sector to understand the implications of recovery funding ending, including the effect this would have on service levels and passengers.

The Government has no plans at this stage to introduce a vehicle scrappage scheme. It is vital that the policies we implement to deliver net zero emissions across the transport sector are evidence-based and provide value-for-money. The Prime Minister’s bold vision for cycling and walking, detailed in the July 2020 publication Gear Change, set out the steps we will take to boost cycling in England. These measures include support for local authorities to reallocate road space, changing the Highway Code to make the streets safer for cyclists, and establishing the new body Active Travel England.

Since the Prime Minister announced the Integrated Rail Plan in February 2020, development of the Eastern Leg of HS2 has been paused to avoid nugatory spend whilst the Integrated Rail Plan took this work forward. Safeguarding of the Eastern leg route remains in place pending conclusion of work on the most effective way to serve Leeds and towns and cities along the Eastern Leg. Any property that has been acquired already by the Government but is not required for the eventual route will be resold.

In relation to staff numbers there were five FTE staff working on the Eastern Leg at the end of October 2021, which remains unchanged. Their work continues to be supported by other officials across the department.

Below is a table containing the Department’s estate size year-by-year from 2010-11.

The Department for Transport is committed to creating and maintaining a working environment that is free from hostility, abuse, offensive behaviour, harassment, bullying, prejudice, discrimination and victimisation. This commitment is included in the Staff Handbook and in our Dignity at Work policy which was published on the Departments Intranet in September 2016.

The policy is supported by a Bullying Harassment and Discrimination toolkit launched on 31 January 2018 and republished as part of a revised Dispute Resolution policy in October 2019.

The DfTc Staff handbook includes a policy statement on fraud, theft and corruption that was first published in October 2016 and last updated in August 2020.

The DfT Group Counter Fraud, Bribery and Corruption strategy for 2019-2021 was published in November 2019. A new DfT Group Counter Fraud, Bribery and Corruption strategy for 2022-2025 is due to be published in April 2022.

DfT is committed to evidence-based policy making, and so as part of its business as usual activity, undertakes a wealth of research and conducts studies to inform decision-making in specific policy areas. This includes areas such as Transport Security Resilience and Response, Road Safety, National and High Speed Rail, Electric Vehicles, Local Transport, and Aviation and Airports. Specific pieces of research/ studies (not exhaustive) due to be published in 2022 include: Retrospective evaluation of key Office for Zero Emission Vehicle schemes, National Evaluation of the E-scooter Trials and In-depth Research into Confidence in Public Transport.

In addition to policy-led research to support specific modes, the department conducts cross-cutting research, development and innovation (see DfT’s Science Plan for more information). Often, this is to support delivery of its strategic priorities such as decarbonisation and in response to emerging issues, like Covid-19. The department publishes its Areas of Research Interest each year which sets out its strategic evidence and research needs for the medium-long term to help achieve DfT’s wide-ranging and ambitious objectives.

The department is committed to publishing the social research and evaluation studies it commissions to inform its policies and projects. Studies will be published at the final report stage after thorough analytical review of their findings has been completed, including peer review where appropriate. Interim outputs are not published routinely. As a guideline for publication timing, we follow the Government social research publication protocol.

In terms of upcoming reports, the department is hoping to publish a number in 2022 which will bring together research into a number of key areas. These include, the UK’s EV Infrastructure Strategy for 2030 (our long-term plan for a world-leading charging infrastructure network across the UK), Course to Zero (aimed at achieving net zero emissions in the UK domestic maritime sector by 2050), Aviation Jet Zero (our vision for how the aviation sector will reach net zero aviation by 2050), and a Low Carbon Fuels Strategy (a strategy on the deployment of low carbon fuels across different transport modes in the period up to 2050).

As of 31^st December, the most recent point at which this data is available, 262 roles have been filled.

Transport for London’s application, submitted under section 163 of the Greater London Authority Act 1999, relating to Cockfosters Underground Station remains under consideration. It would not therefore be appropriate to publish a copy in the House of Commons Library at this time.

The Government recognises the vital role that safe public transport, including taxi and private hire vehicles, plays in getting people to and from work at all times of the day and night.

Bus Back Better, the Government’s national bus strategy published last year, recognises the important role buses have to play in meeting local transport needs. Through the Bus Service Operators Grant £259 million of funding is available annually to be claimed by operators of qualifying services. This enables operators to keep fares down and ensure services are run which otherwise would not be, providing greater accessibility to bus services than otherwise would be the case. As part of the strategy the Government plans to issue new guidance on ‘socially necessary’ services, expanding the category to include ‘economically necessary’ services such as those supporting the night time economy.

Taxis and private hire vehicles play an important role in supporting the night-time economy when mass transit may not be so readily available. As of 31 March 2021, there were 251,100 licensed taxis and private hire vehicles. Local authorities have the power to set taxi fares for journeys within their area, and most authorities do so. Local authorities have no power to set fares for private hire vehicles. Fares for private hire vehicles, which must be pre-booked with a licensed operator, are set by the operator. The competitive pre-booked market allows operators to compete on price as well as other factors such as quality of service.

The Department has worked with Local Transport Authorities and light rail operators to ensure the availability of light rail public transport is correct for the conurbations they serve. Light rail coronavirus (COVID-19) funding has ensured Local Transport Authorities can continue to operate services for the people of their region allowing for access to jobs and leisure, and that this remains unaffected by any impacts the pandemic may have had.

Maintaining a safe and secure railway remains a priority for Government, through initiatives such as the British Transport Police’s 61016 campaign.

The same number of fast trains per hour (6) would run between Leeds and Manchester under (a) Transport for the North's preferred option and (b) the Integrated Rail Plan proposals.