Asked by: James Cartlidge (Conservative - South Suffolk)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what discussions he has had with the Chancellor of the Exchequer on a new round of access for all funding to improve railway station access for the disabled and other vulnerable users.
Answered by Paul Maynard
The Government’s Statement of Funds Available for Control Period 6 (2019-2024) published on 12 October includes funding for continued investment in the accessibility of the railway.
We will confirm the way in which we will deliver improvements to accessibility later in the year.
Asked by: James Cartlidge (Conservative - South Suffolk)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent progress he has made in introducing flexible ticketing for part-time commuters.
Answered by Paul Maynard
The Department has amended the process for re-letting franchises so that bidders are now required to give customers who work or commute part-time a better value for money option than buying multiple return journeys.
Asked by: James Cartlidge (Conservative - South Suffolk)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what discussions he has had with the Chancellor of the Exchequer on securing a new round of access-for-all funding to improve railway station access for disabled people and other vulnerable rail users; and what assessment he has made of the need for better accessibility at Marks Tey railway station.
Answered by Paul Maynard
The Secretary of State is in regular contact with the Chancellor of the Exchequer about future rail funding and last met him on Monday 26 June to discuss the high level desired outcomes from the rail network for the next investment period.
Marks Tey station currently has step free access to both platforms but no step free interchange between them.
Asked by: James Cartlidge (Conservative - South Suffolk)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 21 July 2016 to Question 43142, what progress he has made on providing a further round of accessibility funding for (a) lifts and (b) other accessibility devices at mainline railway stations; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Paul Maynard
We remain committed to improving access at stations and building on the success of the Access for All programme. We will therefore be seeking additional funding for the programme in the next rail control period from 2019 to 2024 and we will announce later this year the Government’s railway funding and high level strategy for this period.
Asked by: James Cartlidge (Conservative - South Suffolk)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment he has made of the effect on passengers of recent changes to car park charges at franchisee controlled railway station car park on the Greater Anglia franchise route.
Answered by Paul Maynard
No assessment has been made. Car parking charges are a commercial matter for the operator.
Asked by: James Cartlidge (Conservative - South Suffolk)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what power he has to intervene in respect of car park charges set by the rail franchise where the franchisee controls car parks adjacent to railway stations within their franchise area; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Paul Maynard
Car park charges are set on a commercial basis by the train operator, and the Department for Transport plays no role in stipulating these through the franchise agreement.
Parking charges will be set at a level that reflects demand, as well as taking account of local charges at car parks operated by third parties.
Asked by: James Cartlidge (Conservative - South Suffolk)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what information his Department holds on the number of electric vehicle charging points and devices; and how information is made available to the public.
Answered by John Hayes
I refer my Hon Friend to my answer of 25 January 2017, UIN 60812.
Asked by: James Cartlidge (Conservative - South Suffolk)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what plans he has to improve the flexibility of electric vehicle charging points to ensure such points operate across networks and connector types.
Answered by John Hayes
At Autumn Statement 2016, the Chancellor announced additional funding of £80m for charging infrastructure for the period 2017 to 2021 and Government is considering how best to allocate this funding to meet the needs of drivers and deliver value for money.
There are more than 11,000 publicly accessible charging devices already available in the UK, many of which are privately funded. The Department does not maintain a comprehensive register of the UK’s electric vehicle chargepoints, but chargepoints funded by the Office for Low Emission Vehicles must be registered on the National Charge Point Registry. The National Charge Point Registry is an open source data set containing information on the type and geographical location of chargepoints, and is available online at: www.national-charge-point-registry.uk. Additionally, many network operators make this information available on their websites. We want to ensure that motorists are able to charge their electric vehicles easily, conveniently and reliably.
Government has recently consulted on proposals that would require chargepoint operators to make information openly available including chargepoint location, functionality and availability in real-time. Proposals were also made to require a more easily accessible and interoperable UK network, including connector types. Following this consultation, we will respond shortly on the next steps in taking forward these measures.
Asked by: James Cartlidge (Conservative - South Suffolk)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what plans he has to allocate the £80 million expenditure announced for electric vehicle charging points in the Autumn Statement 2016; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by John Hayes
At Autumn Statement 2016, the Chancellor announced additional funding of £80m for charging infrastructure for the period 2017 to 2021 and Government is considering how best to allocate this funding to meet the needs of drivers and deliver value for money.
There are more than 11,000 publicly accessible charging devices already available in the UK, many of which are privately funded. The Department does not maintain a comprehensive register of the UK’s electric vehicle chargepoints, but chargepoints funded by the Office for Low Emission Vehicles must be registered on the National Charge Point Registry. The National Charge Point Registry is an open source data set containing information on the type and geographical location of chargepoints, and is available online at: www.national-charge-point-registry.uk. Additionally, many network operators make this information available on their websites. We want to ensure that motorists are able to charge their electric vehicles easily, conveniently and reliably.
Government has recently consulted on proposals that would require chargepoint operators to make information openly available including chargepoint location, functionality and availability in real-time. Proposals were also made to require a more easily accessible and interoperable UK network, including connector types. Following this consultation, we will respond shortly on the next steps in taking forward these measures.
Asked by: James Cartlidge (Conservative - South Suffolk)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what his target is for the proportion of electric vehicle charging points that are fully functioning.
Answered by John Hayes
At Autumn Statement 2016, the Chancellor announced additional funding of £80m for charging infrastructure for the period 2017 to 2021 and Government is considering how best to allocate this funding to meet the needs of drivers and deliver value for money.
There are more than 11,000 publicly accessible charging devices already available in the UK, many of which are privately funded. The Department does not maintain a comprehensive register of the UK’s electric vehicle chargepoints, but chargepoints funded by the Office for Low Emission Vehicles must be registered on the National Charge Point Registry. The National Charge Point Registry is an open source data set containing information on the type and geographical location of chargepoints, and is available online at: www.national-charge-point-registry.uk. Additionally, many network operators make this information available on their websites. We want to ensure that motorists are able to charge their electric vehicles easily, conveniently and reliably.
Government has recently consulted on proposals that would require chargepoint operators to make information openly available including chargepoint location, functionality and availability in real-time. Proposals were also made to require a more easily accessible and interoperable UK network, including connector types. Following this consultation, we will respond shortly on the next steps in taking forward these measures.