Asked by: Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they plan to conduct a comparative assessment with other European nations on the state of rail services including on reliability, comfort and pricing.
Answered by Lord Davies of Gower - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The Department seeks to identify best practice from other countries’ rail networks but is not currently planning a formal comparative assessment.
The latest Common Safety Indicators from the Office of Rail and Road, which were published 15 February 2024, showed that Great Britain ranks favourably compared with other European countries in terms of employee safety, level crossing user safety and trespasser safety.
Asked by: Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assistance, financial or otherwise, they have provided to businesses in the development of automated vehicles.
Answered by Lord Davies of Gower - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
Government, through the Centre for Connected and Autonomous Vehicles, a joint DfT and DBT specialist policy unit, has jointly committed with industry more than £600m to the development of Automated Vehicles between 2015 and 2025.
CCAV is currently supporting 20 projects with £50m of government funding to further operationalise CAM technologies and services.
In the recently published Advanced Manufacturing Plan, Government also committed to long-term support for Connected and Automated Mobility with up to £150m in the five-year period to 2030.
Asked by: Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask His Majesty's Government what discussions they have had with other countries regarding the development of automated vehicles, including in relation to developing common standards for such vehicles.
Answered by Lord Davies of Gower - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
UK officials actively participate in various international fora to discuss standards for automated vehicles.
The United Nations Economic Commission for Europe’s World Forum for Harmonisation of Vehicle Regulations has been developing technical requirements for automated vehicles for over 5 years, and the Global Forum for Road Traffic Safety is considering wider safety implications.
The UK is an active participant in both fora, working to drive development of requirements to assure the safety of such vehicles.
Asked by: Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask His Majesty's Government what discussions they have had, if any, with the devolved administrations regarding automated vehicles.
Answered by Lord Davies of Gower - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
We are grateful to officials in the Devolved Administrations for the productive engagement that we have had so far on the Automated Vehicles Bill. The Automated Vehicles Bill implements the recommendations of a four-year review by the Law Commission of England and Wales, and the Scottish Law Commission.
In line with legislative processes, we will seek legislative consent from Scottish Parliament and Senedd Cymru where appropriate.
We are keen for Great Britain to share in the benefits of these planned measures and look forward to the support of the Devolved Administrations as this Bill moves through parliamentary passage.
Asked by: Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the effect on climate change goals of the cancellation of the Birmingham to Manchester leg of HS2.
Answered by Baroness Vere of Norbiton - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)
The cancellation of HS2 between the West Midlands and Manchester does not change our ambition to achieve the Government’s stated climate targets and objectives, and the Government remains committed to achieving Net Zero by 2050.
Asked by: Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask His Majesty's Government when they expect a decision to be announced regarding the closure of railway ticket offices.
Answered by Baroness Vere of Norbiton - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)
The consultation on ticket offices closed on 1 September. We are now in a period where the independent passenger bodies (Transport Focus and London TravelWatch) are engaging with train operators on the basis of the consultation responses they have received and the criteria they have set out. We expect train operators to work collaboratively with the passenger bodies in the coming weeks, to listen to the concerns raised and to refine their proposals accordingly.
Asked by: Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask His Majesty's Government what reassurances regarding employment they are providing to railway station staff in advance of a decision about the closure of railway ticket offices.
Answered by Baroness Vere of Norbiton - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)
Whilst it is our expectation that no currently staffed station should be unstaffed as a result of industry changes, it is for train operators to decide on their staffing arrangements at each of the stations from which they operate services, so they can best meet the needs of passengers. As part of this train operators will discuss employment matters with trade unions as part of their own collective bargaining processes.
Asked by: Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask His Majesty's Government what are the reasons for initiating consultations on the closure of ticket offices in railway stations.
Answered by Baroness Vere of Norbiton - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)
Together with industry, we want to improve and modernise the experience for passengers by moving staff out from behind the ticket office screens to provide more help and advice in customer focused roles and additional support to those who need it.
When proposing major changes to ticket office opening hours – including closures – train operators are required to take into account the adequacy of the proposed alternatives in relation to the needs of passengers who are disabled; 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.
Asked by: Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the case for reviewing the maximum legal alcohol limit in relation to driving motor vehicles as measured by breathalyser tests.
Answered by Baroness Vere of Norbiton - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)
While the Government keeps this issue under review, there are not currently any plans to change the drink drive limit.
Asked by: Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask His Majesty's Government what recent assessment they have made of the reliability of rail services.
Answered by Baroness Vere of Norbiton - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)
Despite the fact fewer trains are operating on the network, and passenger demand is still suppressed compared to pre-pandemic levels, current performance remains unacceptably low.
The Department has been clear that the current, sustained poor performance on the railway is unacceptable, and industry needs to make significant improvements to deliver the punctual, reliable services that passengers and taxpayers deserve.
The Department will continue to monitor the situation very closely and hold industry to account, including through regular high-level meetings with both Network Rail and representatives from the train operating companies.