Asked by: Jonathan Reynolds (Labour (Co-op) - Stalybridge and Hyde)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how much has been spent by his Department on franchising negotiations since 2010.
Answered by Claire Perry
Since 2013, and the setting up of Rail Executive Passenger Services, the Department has separated out the cost of individual Franchise Competitions and Direct Awards. Prior to 2013 such costs are merged within the general costs of running the franchised passenger services and we are unable to disaggregate them from the general costs.
The cost of re-franchising projects since the re-launch of the Franchising Programme in Spring 2013 is £41.4 million. This represents the actual consultancy and non-pay staff costs for the duration of the completed competitions and Direct Awards. This figure includes costs for ongoing competitions and Direct Awards up to and including the end of September.
Franchise competitions are not the result of negotiation, but of open competition. The benefits these competitions bring to the passenger far outweigh the cost to the Department. I also note that the franchising system returned £1.15billion to the taxpayer in financial years 2014/15, and is expected to return a similar amount in 2015/16.
Asked by: Jonathan Reynolds (Labour (Co-op) - Stalybridge and Hyde)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, when he plans for the electrification of the Great Western Mainline to be completed.
Answered by Claire Perry
The Secretary of State announced in June that Sir Peter Hendy, the new Chair of Network Rail, would develop proposals for how the rail upgrade programme, including the Great Western Mainline, will be carried out. He will report to the Secretary of State later in the autumn and it would be premature to speculate on his conclusions.
Asked by: Jonathan Reynolds (Labour (Co-op) - Stalybridge and Hyde)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many complaints by passengers were received by Network Rail in (a) 2010, (b) 2011, (c) 2012, (d) 2013, (e) 2014 and (f) 2015.
Answered by Claire Perry
Network Rail was reclassified as an arm’s-length public sector body on 1 September 2014 and the collation of statistics of annual complaints received remains an operational matter for the company.
Network Rail advises that its customer relationship management system focusses on providing solutions to a range of customer service requests, the majority of which are received from line-side residents rather than passengers. Network Rail’s system does not focus specifically on logging the annual number of passenger complaints.
Asked by: Jonathan Reynolds (Labour (Co-op) - Stalybridge and Hyde)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent progress there has been on the A57/A628 bypass proposals in the Mottram-in-Longdendale and Hollingworth areas; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Andrew Jones
The A57/A628 Mottram bypass was confirmed in the first Road Investment Strategy in December 2014. Following this, Highways England has started developing its design in more detail. This work involves considering variations for the route, which Highways England will be seeking feedback on from stakeholders, including the local communities through which it passes.
Before seeking this feedback, Highways England will assess options to establish what impacts they have – both positive and negative - on the environment, the wider network and economy. They will present information from the assessment to the public in the summer of 2016.
Once this design and assessment work has been completed, the higher-performing options will be put before the public through a consultation process then as part of the statutory planning process. Public consultation is planned for 2017.
Asked by: Jonathan Reynolds (Labour (Co-op) - Stalybridge and Hyde)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 9 June 2015 to Question 665, what assessment he has made of the effect on capacity on the TransPennine route of the delay to electrification.
Answered by Andrew Jones
The timing of TransPennine electrification does not affect the provision of future capacity on the TransPennine route. To address existing crowding and accommodate future growth, the Department’s specification for the next TransPennine Express franchise requires approximately 45 per cent more seats to be provided in the three-hour morning peak into Leeds, Liverpool, Manchester and Sheffield combined (compared to when the Invitation to Tender was issued to short-listed bidders in February). Bidders were required to set out how they will deliver this increase by December 2018, without relying on electrification of the route.
Bids for the future franchise were submitted late last month and are now being evaluated. The outcome of the competition will be announced towards the end of this year.
Asked by: Jonathan Reynolds (Labour (Co-op) - Stalybridge and Hyde)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent assessment he has made of the condition of the Woodhead Tunnels and their suitability for potential transport use in future; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Claire Perry
The previous Government announced on 5 November 2013 that it would not be purchasing the Victorian rail tunnels at Woodhead on the former Manchester to Sheffield line from National Grid in order to instigate an inspection and maintenance regime on those tunnels. That decision, taken following consultation with 40 local MPs, statutory bodies, and Network Rail reflected the following key considerations:
· The Government has committed funding to the Northern Hub programme. This includes schemes to increase capacity and line speeds on the Hope Valley route between Manchester and Sheffield.
· A study carried out by Network Rail had indicated that demand for travel between Manchester and Sheffield could more than double in thirty years. With the planned investment, the Hope Valley line and its trains could accommodate this growth. If freight grows, schemes have also been identified which could enable more freight trains to run.
· The Victorian tunnels were not in a good condition and would have required on-going funding to keep them in a condition necessary for possible re-use. These costs would have fallen on the taxpayer or meant less money for other vital rail investment in the north.
· If an additional rail route were required between Manchester and Sheffield, it is unlikely that even the modern tunnel at Woodhead would be suitable for re-use and, given advances in tunnelling technology as witnessed by Crossrail, the best solution would most likely be the construction of a new tunnel.
Asked by: Jonathan Reynolds (Labour (Co-op) - Stalybridge and Hyde)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what progress has been made on electrification of the TransPennine rail line; and what the likely completion date is.
Answered by Andrew Jones
Network Rail has been developing the scheme to electrify the route between Manchester and York since 2011. Network Rail has recently concluded that more work will be needed than previously planned. This is in order to accommodate the expected growth in train services, deliver the significant improvement in journey times needed to generate economic growth, and provide the best possible performance and capacity on this line. Network Rail has been working with the Department to ensure that this work will be planned as efficiently as possible, and we cannot clarify the completion date until the planning is completed.
Asked by: Jonathan Reynolds (Labour (Co-op) - Stalybridge and Hyde)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, when he expects TransPennine Express to sign a franchise extension; and what the duration of that extension will be.
Answered by Claire Perry
A Direct Award is currently being negotiated with Transpennine Express to maintain services whilst the competition to award the franchise from February 2016 is running. In accordance with the published franchising programme schedule the Direct Award is expected to last from the end of the current franchise in April 2015 until February 2016. We intend to conclude negotiations for the Direct Award well ahead of the end of the current contract in April 2015.
Asked by: Jonathan Reynolds (Labour (Co-op) - Stalybridge and Hyde)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, when he expects electrification of TransPennine routes to be completed.
Answered by Claire Perry
Network Rail continues to work towards delivering electrification as specified. This is an extremely challenging programme and we are working closely with Network Rail and the Office of Rail Regulation to ensure successful delivery.
As with any programme of this ambition and complexity, the programme is kept constantly under review.
Timescales for elements of infrastructure programmes that will be delivered further into the future are naturally less certain. This reflects the time required for planning and procurement, for modifying bridges and tunnels to provide sufficient clearances and for securing connections to the National Grid for the power for the overhead lines.
Asked by: Jonathan Reynolds (Labour (Co-op) - Stalybridge and Hyde)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent progress his Department has made in increasing the use of renewable energy in transport.
Answered by Robert Goodwill
The Renewable Transport Fuel Obligation (RTFO) is the UK’s primary mechanism for meeting our targets for renewable energy in transport. In October the Department established a Transport Energy Taskforce made up of experts from industry and Non-Government Organisations to examine options to meet our renewable energy and greenhouse gas reduction targets.
Under the RTFO scheme the volume of biofuel supplied in the UK increased from 2.7 per cent of fuel supplied in its first year (2008/09) to 3.46 per cent in 2013/14. Over this period average greenhouse savings of biofuels supplied relative to petrol and diesel increased from 46 per cent to 69 per cent (without taking account of emissions from indirect land use change). We introduced additional incentives for waste-derived biofuels in 2011.
We are also seeking to encourage the development of advanced biofuels and launched a demonstration plant competition on the 10th of December. The competition will provide up to £25 million of capital funding, supported by significant private sector investment. With the UK’s world class research capabilities, we have the potential to become a global player in the advanced biofuels market.