Asked by: Michael Fallon (Conservative - Sevenoaks)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many vehicles used the Dartford crossing in each year since 2010; and how many vehicles his Department forecasts will use the Dartford crossing in 2027.
Answered by Jesse Norman
| During charging hours only | All Hours |
2014 | 43,877,259 | 49,931,560 |
2015 | 46,658,806 | 53,396,502 |
2016 | 48,113,881 | 55,527,345 |
2017 | 49,498,775 | 57,341,717 |
2018 (up until 30/11/2018) | 45,898,753 | 53,251,637 |
Highways England does not hold forecast data for vehicles on the Dartford Crossing in 2027.
Asked by: Michael Fallon (Conservative - Sevenoaks)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, for what reason the building of a footpath over the railway bridge in Crockenhill, reference SD341, has been delayed; and what the timetable is for Network Rail to complete that work.
Answered by Andrew Jones
The Department for Transport does not hold this detailed information. However, I understand from Network Rail (NR) that the Crockenhill footbridge was inspected and found to be in a dangerous and unsafe condition and has been closed since September 2017. NR has put together a plan to see this old bridge removed and a new one installed by the end of this financial year. However this schedule is dependent on agreement of third parties whose co-operation is required to carry out both the removal of the old bridge and the installation of the new one. Providing NR can resolve these matters successfully, they expect to be able to confirm the timescales for the replacement of the bridge before the end of 2018.
Asked by: Michael Fallon (Conservative - Sevenoaks)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps his Department is taking to monitor variations in the water table in the area around Stonehenge to ensure that any new roads constructed near to that site do not have a destructive impact on the archaeological remains.
Answered by Jesse Norman
Previous surveys have provided an extensive understanding of the variations in the water table that can occur in the area around Stonehenge. Highways England are supplementing this knowledge through further groundwater monitoring, which is informing hydrological modelling being undertaken in collaboration with the Environment Agency.
The scheme is being designed to minimise effects on groundwater flows. The proposed use of a tunnel boring machine means the tunnel would be constructed in a sealed, watertight environment. This means water would not need to be pumped out of the ground during construction, ensuring no adverse effects on the water table.
Asked by: Michael Fallon (Conservative - Sevenoaks)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, with reference to Article 4 of the 1972 World Heritage Convention, what assessment he has made of whether plans for a new tunnel and flyover at Stonehenge are compliant with the terms of that Convention.
Answered by Jesse Norman
A key aim of the scheme is to remove the roads and heavy traffic, with their associated noise and disturbance, from the vicinity of the Stonehenge World Heritage Site – improving the presentation of the Site both for now and for future generations.
A full environmental impact assessment of the A303 Stonehenge scheme is under way. This will include a Heritage Impact Assessment, that has regard to Article 4 of the World Heritage Convention. This will be published as part of Highways England’s application for a Development Consent Order.
A historic environment assessment was undertaken in relation to the choice of preferred route for the A303 Stonehenge scheme. This is contained in Appendix E to the scheme assessment report published in September 2017 and is available at: https://highwaysengland.citizenspace.com/cip/a303-stonehenge/results/sar-volume-7.pdf
Asked by: Michael Fallon (Conservative - Sevenoaks)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment his Department has made of the potential effect on the prehistoric landscape at Stonehenge of the proposals for a new flyover and tunnel.
Answered by Jesse Norman
A principal aim of the scheme is to remove the roads and heavy traffic, with their associated noise and disturbance from the vicinity of the stones and to reunite Stonehenge with its surrounding monuments in their natural chalk downland setting. This involves removing the road and its traffic completely from within sight of the stones, with the locations of the tunnel portals being beyond the visual horizons from Stonehenge.
Highways England is carrying out extensive Heritage Impact Assessments to ensure the scheme brings benefits without creating unacceptable effects on the important features of the World Heritage Site.
A programme of archaeological surveys has been developed with input from an independent Scientific Committee, which comprises some of the country’s most eminent archaeologists. The project also has a Heritage Monitoring and Advisory Group comprising Historic England, Wiltshire Council Archaeology Service, English Heritage and The National Trust. The Scientific Committee and Advisory Group will continue to have oversight of all the archaeological findings as the scheme develops. Further information about the Scientific Committee’s work can be found at: http://www.a303scientificcommittee.org.uk/
Asked by: Michael Fallon (Conservative - Sevenoaks)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what revenue has been raised by the Dart Charge in each year since 2015.
Answered by Jesse Norman
The revenue raised by Dart Charge for financial years 2014-15, 2015-16 and 2016-17 can be found in the Dart Charge annual accounts which can be found at:
Asked by: Michael Fallon (Conservative - Sevenoaks)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps his Department is taking to pursue outstanding payments owed by the drivers of vehicles from non-UK EU Member States who have travelled through the Dartford tunnel.
Answered by Jesse Norman
Highways England are serious about tackling cases of evasion. They use an Automatic Number Plate Recognition (ANPR) system which is capable of capturing non-UK vehicle registration marks and they apply effective penalty and recovery processes that have been proven elsewhere, such as London’s congestion charging and Dublin’s M50 toll schemes. Ultimately a European debt recovery agency is used to pursue and recover outstanding charges from non-UK vehicles that evade paying the Crossing charge.
Asked by: Michael Fallon (Conservative - Sevenoaks)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps he plans take to reduce travel disruption caused by slow traffic through and around the Dartford Tunnel.
Answered by Jesse Norman
In April, the Government committed £10 million to improve the traffic flow at and around the Dartford crossing. This was as part of the preferred route announcement for the new Lower Thames Crossing (LTC) which will help reduce demand at the Dartford Crossing, while also improving links to London and the south coast.
Alongside this, a Dartford - Thurrock study will identify ideas to reduce congestion that could be delivered in advance of the construction of the LTC. In addition, improvement work to M25 Junction 2 is due to start in Spring 2018 to help reduce congestion south of the Dartford crossing.
Asked by: Michael Fallon (Conservative - Sevenoaks)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, for what reasons the new Thameslink twice-hourly fast service from Maidstone East, Otford and Swanley has been postponed until December 2019.
Answered by Paul Maynard - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
Learning lessons from previous major changes and to enable the industry to reduce the risk of disruption to passengers from too much change on the network at any one time, the Secretary of State for Transport asked Govia Thameslink Railway (GTR) to propose options to reduce the risk of disruption to passengers from the introduction of the Thameslink timetable and operational changes. GTR’s proposal increases the number of services through central London more gradually than had been planned, beginning in May 2018 and ending in December 2019.
The changes have been selected as the best option to benefit the most passengers across the wider south east network. The new Thameslink services from Maidstone East will now be delivered in December 2019.
Asked by: Michael Fallon (Conservative - Sevenoaks)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what representations his Department has made to Thameslink and Network Rail on the postponement of the new Thameslink service from Maidstone East, Otford and Swanley that was originally due from December 2018.
Answered by Paul Maynard - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
Learning lessons from previous major changes and to enable the industry to reduce the risk of disruption to passengers from too much change on the network at any one time, the Secretary of State for Transport asked Govia Thameslink Railway (GTR) to propose options to reduce the risk of disruption to passengers from the introduction of the Thameslink timetable and operational changes. GTR’s proposal increases the number of services through central London more gradually than had been planned, beginning in May 2018 and ending in December 2019.
The changes have been selected as the best option to benefit the most passengers across the wider south east network. The new Thameslink services from Maidstone East will now be delivered in December 2019.