Asked by: Lord Snape (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the recent announcement regarding the electrification of the Midland Main Line and the TransPennine route, what plans they have to ensure that electric haulage is used whenever possible on both (1) passenger, and (2) freight, trains.
Answered by Baroness Vere of Norbiton
We continue to work through design and development phases of these schemes and have already commenced construction works for electrification of some sections of the routes. We expect rail operators to deliver passenger and freight services with rolling stock that makes the best use of the available infrastructure, while considering operational requirements and the need to reduce industry emissions.
As we decarbonise the railway, we will design the rollout of further electrification of the Midland Main Line and the TransPennine Route Upgrade in such a way to allow the switchover from diesel to electric as soon as possible, although some services will not be able to switch immediately if they use multiple lines.
Asked by: Lord Snape (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what discussions they have had with Freightliner UK Ltd regarding its plans to replace electric locomotives with diesels on its services.
Answered by Baroness Vere of Norbiton
The Government fully recognises business concerns around increasing electricity prices, and we have been regularly engaging with Freightliner, amongst other Freight Operating Companies, on this issue and will continue to do so. It is however a commercial decision for private sector freight operators to decide whether or not to pause their use of some electric trains and return to using diesel trains due to the increased price of electricity. Freightliner has stated that this is a temporary measure and will be kept under review.
Despite Freightliner deciding to revert to diesel locomotives, rail freight remains one of the most carbon efficient ways of moving goods over long distances. To reduce congestion and emissions from across the freight sector, the Government continues to support the modal shift of freight from road to rail, including through the £20m Mode Shift Revenue Support grant scheme (2021/22) that supports the carriage of freight by rail and water on routes where road haulage has a financial advantage.
This Government is committed to going further and faster to tackle climate change than ever before. In our recently published Transport Decarbonisation Plan – the first such plan in the world – the Government committed to delivering a net zero railway by 2050. We will continue to build on the strong, green credentials of the rail sector by electrifying more of the network. Additionally, we committed to incentivising the take up of low carbon traction by the Freight Operating Companies and will be working with the rail freight industry as we develop potential policy interventions.
Asked by: Lord Snape (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they will take to ensure that Avanti West Coast Trains Ltd stop using diesel trains on lines which have been fully electrified.
Answered by Baroness Vere of Norbiton
Avanti West Coast is replacing its current diesel powered trains with a new electric and electric/diesel hybrid bimodal fleet which will start operating in 2022/23. With the ability to switch seamlessly between electric and diesel power, the new fleet will ensure that there is no longer diesel operation on electrified lines in support of a drive to a cleaner environment.