Asked by: Oliver Colvile (Conservative - Plymouth, Sutton and Devonport)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what the terms of reference are for the inquiry into the re-opening of Plymouth Airport.
Answered by Robert Goodwill
The Department for Transport is looking at how best to take this study forward and hopes to be in position to announce shortly how this will be undertaken. We recognise the need to consider the views of all stakeholders who have an interest in the site and take to account of previous studies that have been commissioned with regards to Plymouth airport.
Asked by: Oliver Colvile (Conservative - Plymouth, Sutton and Devonport)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will publish the timetable for the inquiry into the viability of Plymouth Airport; and when that report will be published.
Answered by Robert Goodwill
The Department for Transport is looking at how best to take this study forward and hopes to be in position to announce shortly how this will be undertaken. We recognise the need to consider the views of all stakeholders who have an interest in the site and take to account of previous studies that have been commissioned with regards to Plymouth airport.
Asked by: Oliver Colvile (Conservative - Plymouth, Sutton and Devonport)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how much funding his Department has provided for railway and station infrastructure projects in (a) Plymouth, (b) Devon, (c) Cornwall, (d) Torbay, (e) Somerset, (f) Durham, (g) Newcastle, (h) North Tyneside, (i) Northumberland, (j) South Tyneside and (k) Sunderland since 2010; and what estimate he has made of the contribution of the local councils in those locations to such projects.
Answered by Claire Perry
We do not hold the information in the format requested and collating it could only be done at disproportionate cost. However, significant infrastructure improvements have been delivered across the UK since 2010. Further details of this, and committed spend in future years, are available at https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/national-infrastructure-plan.
Asked by: Oliver Colvile (Conservative - Plymouth, Sutton and Devonport)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what plans his Department has to improve signalling on the railway between (a) Exeter and Plymouth and (b) Reading and Exeter; and what assessment he has made of the potential effect of improved signalling on those routes.
Answered by Claire Perry
Signal failures are one of the biggest causes of delays on the network. For that reason, Network Rail has an extensive programme underway to improve both the standard and reliability of signalling across the national network.
The Western Route is gradually benefitting from transfer of signalling to a single control centre in Didcot, and this process will eventually encompass the entire route, including those stretches mentioned by my Hon Friend. This will allow a faster and better coordinated response to delays across the route.
My Hon Friend will also be aware of the very large investment which is being made by Network Rail, Cornwall Council and others into the Totnes-Penzance resignalling scheme, which will radically improve the train flow and reliability. It will do this by allowing bidirectional running on the line, meaning that maintenance and disruption can be managed vastly more effectively.
Further details of Network Rail’s plans can be found at the links below. These documents also provide information on the benefits of improved signalling:
http://www.networkrail.co.uk/publications/strategic-business-plan-for cp5/
http://www.networkrail.co.uk/publications/delivery-plans/control-period-5/cp5-delivery-plan/
Asked by: Oliver Colvile (Conservative - Plymouth, Sutton and Devonport)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what plans his Department has to increase capacity on the railway between Exeter and Plymouth.
Answered by Claire Perry
Future rail proposals are being developed with local stakeholders the department and Network Rail, this group will be deliver a local plan for rail investment covering the next 10-20 years. The first step in this process is a meeting of interested parties which is being organised by the South West Peninsular Group, and is due to take place early February. This meeting will work through what is required to provide the South West with greater accessibility and to examine wider issues surrounding connectivity to and within the South West Peninsula.
Asked by: Oliver Colvile (Conservative - Plymouth, Sutton and Devonport)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how much his Department plans to spend on improving the road network (a) in Devon and Cornwall and (b) within a 30 mile radius of the centre of Plymouth in each of the next five years.
Answered by Robert Goodwill
The Government is committed to improving the road network in the South West over the next five years.
This includes committing £5.8 billion for local highways maintenance, between 2015 and 2021, to English local authorities. We anticipate announcing local highway allocations by the end of the year.
We have also announced funding for integrated transport which could include road improvement schemes as follows:
Authority
| 2015/16 (£m)
| 2016/17 (£m)
| 2017/18 (£m)
| 2018/19 (£m)
| 2019/20 (£m)
| 2020/21 (£m)
|
Devon
| 3.60
| 3.60
| 3.60
| 3.60
| 3.60
| 3.60
|
Cornwall
| 4.10
| 4.10
| 4.10
| 4.10
| 4.10
| 4.10
|
Plymouth City
| 1.94
| 1.94
| 1.94
| 1.94
| 1.94
| 1.94
|
Torbay
| 1.63
| 1.63
| 1.63
| 1.63
| 1.63
| 1.63
|
A number of other major Schemes which help to improve the local road network which are receiving specific funding in 2015/16 are currently under construction and these are as follows:
Council
| Project
| Total Funding (DfT) (£m)
| Timeline
|
Devon
| A380 Kingskerswell Bypass
| 76.40
| Completion Date: December 2015
|
Cornwall
| Camborne-Pool-Redruth Transport Package
| 16.10
| Completion Date: April 2015
|
Cornwall
| A3059/A3058 Rialton Link
| 2.00
| Completion Date: May 2015
|
Cornwall
| A386 Union Corner Junction Improvements
| 1.60
| Completion Date: July 2015
|
The Local Growth Deals announced in July 2014 provided funding for a number of schemes to improve the road network in Devon, Cornwall and Plymouth. Further details can be found at the following link:
https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/local-growth-deals
The total funding provided which will be spent on road schemes is:
Area
| Funding (£m)
|
Devon and Cornwall
| 74.77
|
Plymouth (within 30 mile radius)
| 52.87
|
For the strategic road network, the Department is undertaking a feasibility study of the A303/A30/A358 corridor. This is expected to report back at Autumn Statement 2014.
Looking forward to the next five years, the Highways Agency is currently developing route strategies which outline investment priorities for the strategic road network for the period up to March 2021 and beyond. Proposals emerging from this will be considered by Ministers leading up to the Autumn Statement, with completion of the route strategies programme by the end of March 2015.
Asked by: Oliver Colvile (Conservative - Plymouth, Sutton and Devonport)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what financial assistance he is providing to local authorities to repair potholes.
Answered by Robert Goodwill
The Government recognises that potholes are a menace for all road users. We are providing over £10 billion for local highways maintenance between 2010 and 2021, including £168 million through the Pothole Fund announced in the March 2014 Budget.
Asked by: Oliver Colvile (Conservative - Plymouth, Sutton and Devonport)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what progress his Department has made on a second railway line to connect Plymouth with London and the Midlands.
Answered by Stephen Hammond
It is for the south west local authorities and the local enterprise partnership to continue to stress the importance of additional rail route to connect Plymouth to London and the Midlands.
However, I would like to emphasise that a long term resilient rail route to Plymouth and far South West is a priority for this Government. Network Rail is reviewing measures of improvement in a number of key locations on the Western Route.