Asked by: Craig Whittaker (Conservative - Calder Valley)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps he is taking to improve parking arrangements and provision at Brighouse, Mytholmroyd, Hebden Bridge and Todmorden railway stations.
Answered by Paul Maynard
The Department for Transport is supportive of increasing the number of car parking spaces at stations where possible.
The current Northern franchise agreement contains a commitment for the franchisee to provide 250 additional car park spaces across its estate at specific named stations. Whilst none of those stations affected by the increase are those named above, the franchisee has the discretion to carry out improvements at alternative stations, should any of those covered by the initial commitment prove unworkable.
Asked by: Craig Whittaker (Conservative - Calder Valley)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what estimate his Department has made of the potential economic effect on (a) Calderdale and (b) West Yorkshire of the High Speed 2 rail link.
Answered by Andrew Jones
Much of the research on the impacts of HS2 on specific areas of the UK so far has focused on the HS2 station cities such as Manchester, Leeds, Birmingham and London. However, to build an understanding of the potential for HS2 to contribute to balanced economic growth in the UK the HS2 Phase 2 West Midlands to Crewe Economic Case (the version published in January 2016 by HS2 Limited) apportioned the estimated benefits of the project to different regions. The Yorkshire and Humber region was estimated to receive 11% of the benefits of the full HS2 network in 2037.
Earlier research published in the HS2 Regional Economic Impacts report (2013) estimated there could be a positive GDP impact for West Yorkshire of around £1bn per year by 2037, equivalent to an increase in total economic output of 1.6%. The report did not include an estimate for Calderdale on its own.
Asked by: Craig Whittaker (Conservative - Calder Valley)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent assessment he has made of the effect of noise from flights approaching Manchester Airport on people living in Calder Valley constituency.
Answered by John Hayes
Manchester Airport publishes a range of noise information on its website which can be accessed at the address below:
http://www.manchesterairport.co.uk/community/environment/what-are-we-doing/aircraft-operations/
This also includes a link to the airport’s noise action plan. As well as detailing its current measures to address aircraft noise, section 13 of this document provides an overview of the airport’s current noise monitoring.
As stated in the Government’s 2013 Aviation Policy Framework, the Government expects airports to help local communities understand the noise impacts they are affected by, through the monitoring and provision of information. It is the responsibility of the airport to determine what monitoring is appropriate, and to carry out such monitoring.
Asked by: Craig Whittaker (Conservative - Calder Valley)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps are being taken to introduce flexible and smart season tickets in West Yorkshire.
Answered by Paul Maynard
By the end of 2018, my aim is for every rail passenger to have the choice of travelling without a paper ticket. In the first instance this means commuters having access to a smart season ticket, and other travellers being able to buy and use barcode tickets on their mobile phones anywhere on the rail network. Smart tickets offer passengers more convenience and choice – we also want to improve data so there is better and more targeted travel information such as real time train running and platform information. My Department will oversee the delivery of these programmes.
We have committed £150 million to Transport for the North to develop a multi-modal smart ticketing programme for the North. Transport for North’s vision is to roll out a phased pan-Northern approach that will simplify fares, slash queuing times for ticket purchases, and help passengers travel and switch easily between buses, trains and trams. The recently published Northern Transport Strategy report outlines plans to introduce carnet style ticketing early on in their implementation plan for smart and integrated ticketing.
Asked by: Craig Whittaker (Conservative - Calder Valley)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what change there has been in passenger numbers on trains in West Yorkshire since 2010.
Answered by Paul Maynard
Information on the number of journeys made by rail is shown below.
Year | Number of journeys in West Yorkshire |
2014/15 | 44,419,978 |
2013/14 | 42,584,787 |
2012/13 | 40,775,454 |
2011/12 | 39,676,018 |
2010/11 | 38,552,743 |
2009/10 | 34,779,614 |
Source: The Office of Rail and Road
Asked by: Craig Whittaker (Conservative - Calder Valley)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment he has made of the number of people using railway stations in West Yorkshire since 2010.
Answered by Paul Maynard
The Office of Rail and Road publish estimates of passenger demand for all railway stations in West Yorkshire since 2010. These figures can be found in their ‘Estimates of Station Usage’ publication, which can be found at the following link: http://orr.gov.uk/statistics/published-stats/station-usage-estimates.
Asked by: Craig Whittaker (Conservative - Calder Valley)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether he plans to review the regulations and guidance governing taxi and private hire vehicles working outside their primary licensing authority area.
Answered by Andrew Jones
The Department for Transport’s Best Practice Guidance on taxi and private hire licensing was issued in 2010. It is expected that a consultation on revised guidance will be launched early next year. Subject to Royal Assent to the Policing and Crime Bill, this will be accompanied by draft Statutory Guidance in relation to the safeguarding of children and vulnerable adults.
The Government is currently considering all the recommendations in the Law Commission’s report on taxi and private hire regulation in England and Wales and will formally respond to the Law Commission and announce its intentions once this scrutiny is completed.
Asked by: Craig Whittaker (Conservative - Calder Valley)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment he has made of the potential economic effect on the West Yorkshire area of improvement of the road network between Huddersfield and Bradford.
Answered by Andrew Jones
Determining which local road improvement schemes will offer the greatest benefit to the local economy is a matter for the West Yorkshire Combined Authority and the five constituent Local Authorities.
As part of the Roads Investment Strategy, Highways England’s Delivery Plan for the Strategic Road Network includes a number of improvements which will improve connectivity between Huddersfield and Bradford. As well as providing additional capacity, these improvements will also present the opportunity to release additional land along the corridor for development, which will support economic growth in West Yorkshire.
Asked by: Craig Whittaker (Conservative - Calder Valley)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment he has made of the potential economic effect on the West Yorkshire area of an additional junction on the M62 between junctions 24 and 25.
Answered by John Hayes
This Government is committing investment to improve the M62 by upgrading to Smart Motorway between Junction 20 and 25. Additional funding was also announced at the Budget (2016) to bring forward the start of works to mid 2019-2020.
Proposals to improve the M62 from post-2020 will be considered as we prepare the second Road Investment Strategy – announced at Budget 2016. As part of the evidence-gathering process, Highways England is revisiting its Route Strategies to examine issues right across England’s motorways and major trunk roads. MPs and stakeholders are encouraged to engage with Highways England throughout this process.
Asked by: Craig Whittaker (Conservative - Calder Valley)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent representations he has received from Calderdale Council on the construction of a new rail station at Elland.
Answered by Claire Perry
We are aware of aspirations for a new station at Elland but have not received any representations about it from Calderdale Council. The promotion of any new station is a matter for the relevant local transport authority, in this case West Yorkshire Combined Authority.