Asked by: Jo Platt (Labour (Co-op) - Leigh and Atherton)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 4 June 2018 to Question 146982 on High Speed 2 Railway Line, whether the level of local funding to the High Speed Two station at Manchester Airport is greater than the average level of funding for stations in receipt of local funding.
Answered by Nusrat Ghani
Other station places along the Phase 2b route, such as Leeds, are proposed to have one HS2 station. Greater Manchester is proposed to have two HS2 stations; Manchester Airport station is a unique case in that it was included as part of the proposed route following petitioning by Greater Manchester and only agreed to on the basis of a locally-led funding package. The local funding expected from Greater Manchester is in recognition of these key differences.
Asked by: Jo Platt (Labour (Co-op) - Leigh and Atherton)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 22 May 2018 to Question 145409 on High Speed 2 Railway Line: Manchester Airport, what proportion of the total cost of Manchester Airport HS2 Station will be sourced from (a) the Greater Manchester Combined Authority, (b) Manchester Airports Group and (c) other local partners.
Answered by Nusrat Ghani
The proportion of the total costs assigned to each of the interested parties highlighted is dependent on Greater Manchester organising and agreeing a locally-led funding package for the station. It is for Greater Manchester to lead; the Government continues to support Greater Manchester in reaching an agreement on this funding package.
Asked by: Jo Platt (Labour (Co-op) - Leigh and Atherton)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 22 May 2018 to Question 145409 on High Speed 2 Railway Line: Manchester Airport, how many other High Speed Two rail stations will receive funding from (a) local authorities and (b) local interest groups.
Answered by Nusrat Ghani
There are several examples of third party funding being provided towards the costs of High Speed Two stations, including towards local connectivity, the details of which are under discussion and therefore commercially sensitive.
A station in the Manchester Airport area was included as part of the proposed High Speed Two route only when it was petitioned for by Greater Manchester (Greater Manchester Combined Authority, Manchester Airports Group and other local partners), and only on the basis of the local funding offer they made, in recognition of the benefits that a second High Speed Two station in Manchester would bring to the local area.
Asked by: Jo Platt (Labour (Co-op) - Leigh and Atherton)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what estimate he has made of the funding that will be allocated by Greater Manchester Combined Authority to the High Speed 2 railway station at Manchester Airport.
Answered by Nusrat Ghani
Greater Manchester Combined Authority, Manchester Airports Group and other local partners made the case for a station at the Airport, with an offer of local funding to pay for its construction. The Government continues to work collaboratively with the Greater Manchester Combined Authority and Manchester Airports Group on the details of reaching an agreement on a locally led funding package for the High Speed 2 station at Manchester Airport.
Asked by: Jo Platt (Labour (Co-op) - Leigh and Atherton)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment his Department has made of the (a) feasibility, (b) cost and (c) potential merits of a loop railway line to connect Leigh constituency with the Chat Moss railway line.
Answered by Lord Johnson of Marylebone
I refer the Hon Member for Leigh to the answer given by the then Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, the Hon Member for Blackpool North and Cleveleys (Paul Maynard) of 28 November 2017 (UIN 114760).
Asked by: Jo Platt (Labour (Co-op) - Leigh and Atherton)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment his Department has made of the potential future capacity on the Chat Moss railway line as a result of the plans for the Northern Powerhouse Rail; and whether those plans include the opening of additional stations on that line.
Answered by Paul Maynard
Any assessment of the potential for future capacity on the Chat Moss line as a result of the plans for Northern Powerhouse Rail will depend on (i) the route options between Liverpool to Manchester, (ii) what intermediate destinations are served and (iii) how that option interacts with related portions of the classic rail network. These factors are being considered by Transport for the North as part of the development of the Strategic Outline Business Case for Northern Powerhouse Rail which is due to be developed by the end of 2018.
Asked by: Jo Platt (Labour (Co-op) - Leigh and Atherton)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 7 December to Question 116379, for what reasons his Department will not specify whether Leigh was discussed as part of the range of issues discussed between his Department, Transport for Greater Manchester and Transport for the North.
Answered by Paul Maynard
As stated previously, the Secretary of State has regular meetings with both Transport for Greater Manchester (TfGM) and Transport for the North (TfN) where a range of issues are discussed.
We do not comment on the issues that are discussed at individual meetings, regardless of the subject.
This is to enable full and frank discussions between the Government and our partners at TfN and TfGM.
Asked by: Jo Platt (Labour (Co-op) - Leigh and Atherton)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment his Department has made of the (a) feasibility, (b) cost and (c) social and economic benefit of reopening Golborne railway station.
Answered by Paul Maynard
The Department has made no such assessment at the current time regarding re-opening Golborne railway station.
However, the Government is working with local authorities and other partners to identify the best new rail projects that can unlock new housing and economic growth, ease overcrowding, meet future demand and offer good value for money.
Asked by: Jo Platt (Labour (Co-op) - Leigh and Atherton)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 29 November 2017 to Question 114759, on railways: Greater Manchester, how Leigh will benefit from improved rail connectivity in the Greater Manchester area.
Answered by Paul Maynard
Leigh will benefit from the improvements to be delivered to services at its nearest rail stations including Atherton, which will see an increase in the level of weekday train service to four trains per hour using newly refurbished trains.