Asked by: James McMurdock (Independent - South Basildon and East Thurrock)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment she has made of the risk posed by potholes to vulnerable road users, including a) cyclists and b) motorcyclists.
Answered by Simon Lightwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
There have not been specific Department for Transport assessments on the risks posed by potholes to vulnerable road users, or on the relationship between road surface conditions and road traffic accidents.
However, the Government recognises that defective road surfaces, including potholes, can present significant safety risks to vulnerable road users such as cyclists and motorcyclists. Local highway authorities have a statutory duty under Section 41 of the Highways Act 1980 to maintain their road networks and must consider the needs of vulnerable groups when planning and delivering maintenance programmes.
The Government is committed to tackling the poor state of our local roads. That is why we have made available an additional £500 million for local highways maintenance this financial year, and have confirmed a record investment of £7.3 billion for the next four years. These funding increases will enable local authorities to invest in significantly improving the long-term condition of England’s road network, delivering faster, safer and more reliable journeys.
On Active Travel schemes where Active Travel England has been requested to inspect or assess existing layouts, available metrics can be used to score the scheme based on surface quality.
It is for local authorities to determine the most appropriate road safety interventions, based on their knowledge of local conditions and the needs of their communities.
Asked by: James McMurdock (Independent - South Basildon and East Thurrock)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment she has made of the relationship between road surface condition and road traffic accidents.
Answered by Simon Lightwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
There have not been specific Department for Transport assessments on the risks posed by potholes to vulnerable road users, or on the relationship between road surface conditions and road traffic accidents.
However, the Government recognises that defective road surfaces, including potholes, can present significant safety risks to vulnerable road users such as cyclists and motorcyclists. Local highway authorities have a statutory duty under Section 41 of the Highways Act 1980 to maintain their road networks and must consider the needs of vulnerable groups when planning and delivering maintenance programmes.
The Government is committed to tackling the poor state of our local roads. That is why we have made available an additional £500 million for local highways maintenance this financial year, and have confirmed a record investment of £7.3 billion for the next four years. These funding increases will enable local authorities to invest in significantly improving the long-term condition of England’s road network, delivering faster, safer and more reliable journeys.
On Active Travel schemes where Active Travel England has been requested to inspect or assess existing layouts, available metrics can be used to score the scheme based on surface quality.
It is for local authorities to determine the most appropriate road safety interventions, based on their knowledge of local conditions and the needs of their communities.
Asked by: James McMurdock (Independent - South Basildon and East Thurrock)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what representations he has received from (a) Thurrock, (b) Basildon, (c) Essex County Council and (d) other south Essex councils requesting financial support to improve the strategic road network in (i) South Basildon and East Thurrock constituency and (ii) Essex.
Answered by Simon Lightwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
Essex County Council, Colchester City Council, Chelmsford City Council, Braintree District Council, Tendring District Council, Maldon District Council and Brentwood Borough Council wrote to the Secretary of State about the benefits of the A12 (Chelmsford to A120) widening scheme, and the role it could potentially have played in any future upgrade of the A120 from Braintree to Marks Tey. However, as announced on 8 July 2025, this Government inherited a series of commitments that could not be afforded, therefore the Secretary of State had to take the difficult decision not to progress the A12 widening scheme. The Department will continue to work with National Highways and relevant partners to explore potential small-scale interventions that could address issues on the A12 to support housing growth.
Asked by: James McMurdock (Independent - South Basildon and East Thurrock)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what the total cost to date has been of Private Finance Initiative contracts for transport infrastructure projects.
Answered by Simon Lightwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The Government's Spending on Private Finance Initiative contracts is published annually by the National Infrastructure and Service Transformation Authority (NISTA) on the gov.uk website: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/pfi-and-pf2-projects-2024-summary-data.
Asked by: James McMurdock (Independent - South Basildon and East Thurrock)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many road traffic accidents involved road surface defects as a contributory factor in each of the past three years.
Answered by Simon Lightwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The number of reported personal injury road collisions in Great Britain that were assigned the “Poor or defective road surface or deposits on road” road safety factor (RSF) are shown in the table:
Year | Collisions |
2022 | 1,092 |
2023 | 1,248 |
2024 | 1,378 |
Data on road collisions involving personal injury are reported to the Department by police forces in Great Britain via the STATS19 system.
Following the most recent STATS19 review contributory factors (CFs) are being replaced by new road safety factors (RSFs), in some police forces from late 2023 onwards. This has resulted in a break in the time series for some of the data. As a result, we are presenting all data using the RSF specification (direct), but separating out data initially recorded as CFs (converted).
Because of that, the numbers presented are the combination of direct and converted numbers.
Further details can be found in published road safety factors guidance.
STATS19 includes all road collisions involving human death or personal injury occurring on the Highway ('road' in Scotland) and notified to the police within 30 days of occurrence, and in which one or more vehicles are involved, are to be reported. Collisions occurring on private roads (except Royal Parks) or in car parks are not included. Full details of which roads are reportable for STATS19 purposes can be found in the STATS20 guidance available here: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/road-accident-and-safety-statistics-guidance#data-collection
Asked by: James McMurdock (Independent - South Basildon and East Thurrock)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if she will publish a full funding profile for the Lower Thames Crossing, including the split between plans for public and private funding.
Answered by Simon Lightwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The Chancellor committed a further £891m at the Autumn Budget 2025 to complete the publicly funded works for the Lower Thames Crossing. This brings the total public investment to £3.1bn, including spend to date. The latest cost assured estimate for the project is c.£10.6bn. The Department will continue to publish information on committed public expenditure for the Lower Thames Crossing through official reporting mechanisms.
Asked by: James McMurdock (Independent - South Basildon and East Thurrock)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether changes will be made to the provision of road safety campaigns under the new media strategy arrangements.
Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
THINK! is the Government’s flagship road safety campaign that aims to reduce the number of people killed and seriously injured on the roads in England and Wales.THINK! prioritises running campaigns to change attitudes and behaviours among those most at risk.
There are currently no planned changes to the provision of road safety campaigns. These will continue to target priority issues such as drink driving, drug driving and speeding, as well as communicating other key policy interventions at the appropriate times.
Asked by: James McMurdock (Independent - South Basildon and East Thurrock)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps she is taking to tackle the use of e-scooters on pavements and the associated risks to pedestrians.
Answered by Simon Lightwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
Enforcement of illegal e-scooter use on public roads and pavements is a matter for the police. A range of motoring offences and penalties already apply, such as criminal prosecution, points on the user’s driving licence and having the e-scooter seized. The Government will continue to support the police to ensure they have the necessary tools to enforce road traffic legislation.
The Government has committed to pursuing legislative reform for micromobility vehicles, which will include e-scooters, when parliamentary time allows. This will help the police to crack down on those who use them in an unlawful or irresponsible way. Any regulations will be publicly consulted on before they come into force, but the Government has no plans to allow pavement riding in the future.
Asked by: James McMurdock (Independent - South Basildon and East Thurrock)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what data she collects on (a) injuries and (b) fatalities linked to road surface defects.
Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
The percentage and number of casualties (by severity) involved in reported road collisions in Great Britain where the “Poor or defective road surface or deposits on road” road safety factor was assigned for the last 10 years can be found in table RAS0701 published on gov.uk: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistical-data-sets/reported-road-accidents-vehicles-and-casualties-tables-for-great-britain#factors-contributing-to-collisions-and-casualties-ras07
Asked by: James McMurdock (Independent - South Basildon and East Thurrock)
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 logistics industry to the achievement of the Modern Industrial Strategy.
Answered by Keir Mather - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
Government recognises the logistics industry as a critical enabler of the Modern Industrial Strategy (IS) and its wider economic growth ambitions. The IS identifies freight and logistics as a cross-cutting sector, essential to the success of the Government’s growth ambitions across the eight frontier industries.
Page 159 of the Strategy also recognises ports as a key foundational sector, providing critical inputs that enable growth across these frontier industries. This approach is supported by the National Wealth Fund, which will help unlock long-term private investment in strategically important infrastructure, including ports and associated logistics capacity, where this supports economic growth, industrial competitiveness and the transition to net zero.
Logistics therefore plays a central role in strengthening national supply chain resilience and supporting delivery of the Industrial Strategy. This contribution will be further reflected in the forthcoming plan for freight, which will set out how Government will work with industry and investors to support long-term growth.