Asked by: Bell Ribeiro-Addy (Labour - Clapham and Brixton Hill)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if she will add public interest duties to her Department’s open consultation entitled A railway fit for Britain's future, published on 18 February 2025.
Answered by Simon Lightwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The consultation is clear that Great British Railways (GBR) will run our rail infrastructure and passenger services in the public interest. The consultation has not specified GBR’s exact duties and functions, and we welcome views on these. All responses to the consultation will be considered ahead of introduction of the forthcoming Railways Bill.
Asked by: Bell Ribeiro-Addy (Labour - Clapham and Brixton Hill)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps her Department plans to take to improve rail accessibility via its consultation entitled A railway fit for Britain's future, published on 18 February 2025.
Answered by Simon Lightwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
Accessibility is a priority for this Government and will be for Great British Railways (GBR), and we are committed to delivering a rail system which allows disabled people to travel easily, confidently and with dignity. The consultation states this, with accessibility listed as one of our six objectives. The consultation also includes proposals for a powerful passenger watchdog, with an explicit role on accessibility, that will act as a strong advocate for passengers. The proposed watchdog will have the ability to monitor how services are delivered to disabled passengers, escalate concerns to the regulator for enforcement, and could have a role in setting standards.
Asked by: Bell Ribeiro-Addy (Labour - Clapham and Brixton Hill)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of increased usage of heavy vehicles on recent trends in the levels of expenditure on road maintenance and repairs.
Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
The increased usage of heavy vehicles is one of many factors affecting road condition. Others include weather, overall traffic volumes, the age of the road and standard to which it was constructed, and the topography of the area. It is the responsibility of individual highway authorities to maintain and improve their networks, based on local circumstances.
The Government has recognised the pressures on local highway networks and is providing almost £1.6 billion for local highway maintenance in 2025/26, an increase of £500 million compared to 2024/25. This funding is not ring-fenced, and it is a matter for local authorities to determine how it is best spent. The Department is also committed to updating its guidance to local highway authorities on how to manage their networks, which will include advice on matters of this sort.
Asked by: Bell Ribeiro-Addy (Labour - Clapham and Brixton Hill)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether her Department has plans to extend its consultation entitled A railway fit for Britain's future, published on 18 February 2025.
Answered by Simon Lightwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
We are not intending to extend the consultation ‘A railway fit for Britain’s future’. We understand that the eight-week timeline will be unwelcome for some, but we are also keenly aware that passengers and freight customers have waited far too long to see the improvements to the railway that they rightly expect and deserve. We need to move quickly to legislate in this Parliamentary session and start delivering these improvements. We believe the current timeframe strikes that balance effectively.
Asked by: Bell Ribeiro-Addy (Labour - Clapham and Brixton Hill)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps her Department is taking to improve the safety of female cyclists travelling after dark.
Answered by Simon Lightwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
Everyone should feel safe cycling and harassment and intimidation of women cycling is totally unacceptable. Public sexual harassment is a crime that often leaves victims, who are disproportionately likely to be women, feeling very unsafe. That is why tackling it is very much an important part of our mission on VAWG.
Active Travel England is working with local authorities to provide high-quality cycling infrastructure which should help women feel safer when cycling. Design guidance for new infrastructure, such as that funded through the Active Travel Fund, requires that new schemes are accessible to all users, including women. This can include providing lighting for walking and cycling schemes, improving social safety and delivering road safety improvements to existing schemes.
Asked by: Bell Ribeiro-Addy (Labour - Clapham and Brixton Hill)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of the use of (a) e-scooters and (b) e-bikes on pavements on pedestrians.
Answered by Simon Lightwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The use of e-scooters and e-bikes on pavements is unacceptable and can have serious impacts on pedestrians, both by causing injuries and by making it much harder for pedestrians to get about.
Privately owned e-scooters cannot be legally ridden either on roads or on pavements, and in the e-scooter rental trial schemes, the use of e-scooters on pavements is not allowed. Enforcement is a matter for the police.
The Highway Code makes clear that cyclists, including those riding e-bikes, must not cycle on the pavement. The only exception to this is on pavements that are designated as shared use routes, where the Highway Code says that cyclists should always take care when passing pedestrians, especially children, older or disabled people, and should allow them plenty of room. As above, enforcement is a matter for the police.
E-cycles or e-scooters parked obstructively on the pavement also present a safety risk to pedestrians, and particularly so for vulnerable pavement users such as those with visual impairments or mobility issues. Guidance for those operating the e-scooter trials makes clear that appropriate parking provision should be provided to ensure e-scooters do not cause an obstruction. Operators also use geofencing, parking incentives and penalties to prevent pavement riding and obstructive parking. The Government recently announced plans in the English Devolution White Paper to empower local leaders to regulate shared hire bike schemes to tackle issues such as obstructive pavement parking and antisocial behaviour.
Asked by: Bell Ribeiro-Addy (Labour - Clapham and Brixton Hill)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment has been made of the potential impact of closing train station ticket offices in Streatham on the (a) safety and (b) accessibility of passenger rail travel in London.
Answered by Huw Merriman
When proposing major changes to ticket office opening hours, including closures, operators are required to take into account the adequacy of the proposed alternatives in relation to the needs of all passengers; and to include this in the notice of the proposal sent to other operators and passenger groups. We would also expect operators to consider other equality related needs and make this clear in the notice sent to other operators and passenger groups.
Together with industry, we want to improve and modernise the passenger experience by moving staff out from ticket offices to provide more help and advice in customer focused roles. No currently staffed station will be unstaffed as a result of industry changes, and train operators will ensure staff are well located to meet passenger needs in future.
Asked by: Bell Ribeiro-Addy (Labour - Clapham and Brixton Hill)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether his Department has assessed the potential merits of simplifying the application process for renewing a Blue Badge.
Answered by Richard Holden - Shadow Secretary of State for Transport
The Department conducts an ongoing programme to identify ways to improve the Blue Badge scheme application and re-application process for all users, including acting on feedback from local authority administrators and citizen users of the scheme.
Asked by: Bell Ribeiro-Addy (Labour - Clapham and Brixton Hill)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent discussions he has had with the Chancellor of the Exchequer on funding for active travel programmes in the UK.
Answered by Jesse Norman - Shadow Leader of the House of Commons
The Department’s Ministers and officials have regular discussions with their counterparts in His Majesty’s Treasury on active travel programmes in England. Recent discussions have included the development of the second Cycling and Walking Investment Strategy (CWIS2) and Active Travel England’s delivery programme.
Asked by: Bell Ribeiro-Addy (Labour - Clapham and Brixton Hill)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment his Department has made of the implications for its policies of Guide Dogs’ Scoot Aware report on the impact of e-scooters on people with visual impairments.
Answered by Trudy Harrison
The Department has noted the Guide Dogs Scoot Aware report and officials met with Guide Dogs on 18 August 2022 to discuss the recommendations further. Reducing the impact of e-scooters on people with visual impairments, including their safe use and perceptions of safety, is a priority for the Department as we consider regulations for e-scooters. The Scoot Aware report is a useful guide and we will continue to engage with a range of stakeholders representing the needs of blind and visually impaired people, including through a public consultation, before any new arrangements come into force.