Asked by: Andy McDonald (Labour - Middlesbrough)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment he has made of the of accidents on smart motorways.
Answered by George Freeman
The top three contributory factors identified by police officers attending the scene of collisions on smart motorways, which represent around three quarters of those identified are:
Driver/Rider Error (i.e. failed to look properly, loss of control)
Injudicious Action (i.e. close following, travelling too fast for the conditions);
Impairment/Distraction (i.e. fatigue, mobile phones and impaired by alcohol).
Asked by: Andy McDonald (Labour - Middlesbrough)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many woodland clearances have been (a) proposed and (b) undertaken by Highways England since 2015; and what estimate he has made of the total number of woodland clearances proposed by HS2 Ltd.
Answered by Paul Maynard - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
Highways England do not hold data on woodland clearances centrally. Data on woodland clearance is, however, recorded within the relevant Environmental Statement or environmental assessment report developed for each project. Given the various stages at which Highways England’s projects are developed and delivered it is not possible to provide an accurate figure at this time of how many woodland sites have been affected.
HS2’s anticipated impacts on woodlands are set out in the Environmental Statements for each Phase of the project. The route between London and Crewe (Phases One and 2a) will affect approximately 3.8 square kilometres of woodland (consisting 0.39km2 ancient woodland, 3.4km2 non-ancient). Along the Phase One route alone, HS2 Ltd will be creating 9 square kilometres of new native woodland. In addition HS2’s Woodland Fund will create further woodland and enhance the quality of existing woodlands.
The working draft Environmental Statement for Crewe to Manchester and West Midlands to Leeds (Phase 2b) assumes approximately 0.5 square kilometres of woodlands (consisting 0.17km2 ancient, 0.34km2 non-ancient) will be affected. Further woodland planting similar to Phase One and 2a will be implemented to mitigate and compensate.
Asked by: Andy McDonald (Labour - Middlesbrough)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 22 October to Question 238 on Northern: Finance and with reference to the financial performance data received by his Department on 27 September 2019, whether Arriva is fully compliant with the requirements of its operating franchise agreement.
Answered by Chris Heaton-Harris - Secretary of State for Northern Ireland
The Department can confirm that Northern was fully compliant with the relevant financial requirements of its Franchise Agreement based on the financial performance data received on 27 September 2019.
Asked by: Andy McDonald (Labour - Middlesbrough)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 22 October to Question 239 on First TransPennine Express: Finance and with reference to the financial performance data received by his Department on 27 September 2019, whether First is fully compliant with the requirements of its operating franchise agreement.
Answered by Chris Heaton-Harris - Secretary of State for Northern Ireland
The Department can confirm that First TransPennine Express was fully compliant with the relevant financial requirements of its Franchise Agreement based on the financial performance data received on 27 September 2019.
Asked by: Andy McDonald (Labour - Middlesbrough)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, with reference to the First Transpennine Express accounts 2018-19, filed at Companies House on 4 October 2019, what comparative assessment he has made of the (a) adjusted revenue growth of 8 per cent and (b) projected adjusted revenue growth provided by the franchise contract agreement.
Answered by Chris Heaton-Harris - Secretary of State for Northern Ireland
The financial performance of First Transpennine Express is monitored and analysed by the Rail North Partnership team on behalf of the DfT and Transport for the North (TfN). This analysis takes place every four weeks and is reported to the Rail North Partnership Board comprising representatives of both DfT and TfN.
Asked by: Andy McDonald (Labour - Middlesbrough)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, with reference to the First Transpennine Express accounts for 2018-19, filed at Companies House on 4 October 2019, what assessment he has made of the implications for his policies of the finding that the operator’s (a) punctuality fell by 10 per cent ; (b) Moving Annual Average was 13 per cent below target and (c) customer satisfaction fell to 1 per cent below target over 2018-19.
Answered by Chris Heaton-Harris - Secretary of State for Northern Ireland
The operational and customer performance of First Transpennine Express is monitored by the Rail North Partnership team on behalf of the DfT and Transport for the North (TfN). Performance is monitored against the requirements and benchmarks set out in its Franchise Agreement and any shortfalls are dealt with in accordance with its terms.
Asked by: Andy McDonald (Labour - Middlesbrough)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of his Department’s regulation of the (a) finances, (b) performance, (c) public interest benefit and (d) transparency of train operating companies.
Answered by Chris Heaton-Harris - Secretary of State for Northern Ireland
The Secretary of State for Transport does not regulate the rail industry. Regulation is carried out by the independent Office of Rail and Road (ORR).
The Secretary of State for Transport holds TOCs to account through the contractual terms of their franchise agreements. These include obligations around finance, operational performance, delivery of passenger benefits, and transparency. If a TOC does not meet these (or any other) obligations the SoS acts to remedy the situation in accordance with the enforcement provisions in the contract and in consideration of the SoS’s Statutory Duties given in the attached Public Enforcement Policy.
Asked by: Andy McDonald (Labour - Middlesbrough)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, with reference to his Department's policy paper, Rail network enhancements pipeline: autumn 2019 update, published on 16 October 2019, when he plans to publish the (a) timescales and (b) costs for the development of those schemes.
Answered by Chris Heaton-Harris - Secretary of State for Northern Ireland
The inclusion of an individual scheme in the Rail Network Enhancements Pipeline (RNEP) Update does not guarantee its delivery. The Government subjects each scheme to continual assessment for it to progress to the next stage of the pipeline. There are no plans to publish the timescales and costs of schemes separately.
Asked by: Andy McDonald (Labour - Middlesbrough)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment he has made of the credit ratings of UK rolling stock companies (a) Porterbrook, (b) Angel Trains, (c) Eversholt Rail and (d) Rock Rail and the costs at which those companies can respectively secure finance.
Answered by Chris Heaton-Harris - Secretary of State for Northern Ireland
The Department has not made an assessment of the credit rating of any of the rolling stock companies including Porterbrook, Angel Trains, Eversholt Rail or Rock Rail. It is a matter for the credit rating agencies to determine the ratings of such companies and for market to determine the cost of providing competitive financing.
Asked by: Andy McDonald (Labour - Middlesbrough)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment he has made of the effect Operation Brock will have on congestion levels on the Kent (a) road network and (b) economy.
Answered by Chris Heaton-Harris - Secretary of State for Northern Ireland
The Department for Transport has worked closely with the Kent Resilience Forum on developing traffic management plans, known as Operation Brock, to be used as a contingency in the event of severe disruption to travel via the Channel Tunnel at Folkestone and the Port of Dover. Operation Brock has been designed to ensure that the M20 motorway in Kent (the primary route to the Channel Tunnel and Port of Dover) will be kept open and traffic will continue to flow in both directions.
From Monday 28 October, a contraflow will be in place so that HGVs heading for mainland Europe use the coastbound carriageway of the M20 between junctions 8 and 9. All other traffic will run on the London-bound carriageway between these junctions. These arrangements will ensure that the M20 will be able to hold HGVs should traffic disruption result from delays to cross Channel services.
Operation Brock is intended as a replacement for Operation Stack during periods of severe and protracted disruption. Operation Stack involved closing junctions and carriageways on the M20 motorway to hold freight traffic in several locations. In contrast Operation Brock has been designed to allow traffic in Kent to keep flowing minimising congestion for the wider community, whilst providing the capacity to hold HGVs if needed.