Asked by: Peter Kyle (Labour - Hove)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps his Department is taking to improve toilet facilities on coastal rail routes in the South East.
Answered by Chris Heaton-Harris - Secretary of State for Northern Ireland
Operators are required through their Franchise Agreements to achieve challenging satisfaction targets across a range of key measures which include toilet facilities at stations and on trains. The Department closely monitors this, and if these targets are missed, they must invest in improvements for passengers. Furthermore, toilet facilities at some stations are being improved as part of the £15m Passenger Benefit Fund, that was established by GTR following the May 2018 timetable disruption.
Toilet improvements have been requested by over half of the coastal stations as a high priority as part of the Passenger Benefit Fund. The Department will review these requests using its due diligence and approval process. The aim is to progress to implementation to realise the passenger benefits as soon as practicably possible.
Asked by: Peter Kyle (Labour - Hove)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps his Department is taking to introduce flexible season tickets for rail passengers.
Answered by Chris Heaton-Harris - Secretary of State for Northern Ireland
We require all new franchise bidders to bring forward proposals that meet the needs of passengers who work or commute fewer than 5 days a week. This could include the use of multi-buy discounts such as carnet style tickets to provide passengers with a better deal than they get now.
Additionally, we are trailing a new, more flexible fares structure starting with part of GTR’s network and will use the findings to inform development of wider plans to improve fares. As operators often serve diverse markets it is more appropriate to trial different reforms on certain operators.
The detailed design of the trial and locations are being developed by DfT and industry; and there will be a further announcement when that work is complete.
Keith Williams, who has been tasked by my Department with conducting a root and branch review of the railway, has been clear that fares reform is fundamental to the creation of a modern, customer focused railway. This represents an essential first step towards a major overhaul of the whole fares system.
Asked by: Peter Kyle (Labour - Hove)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps his Department is taking to improve rail ticketing services (a) in stations and (b) online.
Answered by Chris Heaton-Harris - Secretary of State for Northern Ireland
Following the Department’s recent work with the rail industry to roll out smart ticketing, train companies have greatly expanded the range of smart tickets that can be bought online and at stations. The Government wants to improve passengers’ experience of buying tickets, which is why I wrote to train operators in the autumn asking for their plans to improve their customer offer. My department will work with train companies to deliver these improvements.
During the recent General Election the Government committed to extending contactless pay-as-you go ticketing to almost 200 more stations in the South East, meaning that 50 per cent of all rail journeys and almost all London commuter journeys can be completed using a contactless bank card. Pay-as-you-go means that passengers do not need to buy a ticket before travelling, which greatly simplifies rail travel and helps people commute more flexibly. Similarly, on 2 January the Government announced trials of part-time season tickets.
Asked by: Peter Kyle (Labour - Hove)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps his Department is taking to improve staff support for rail passengers with mobility challenges.
Answered by Chris Heaton-Harris - Secretary of State for Northern Ireland
The Department is committed to ensuring that measures are in place for supporting passengers with additional needs, including those with mobility challenges on the rail network. As promised in the Inclusive Transport Strategy, we are supporting the Rail Delivery Group to improve the Passenger Assist system, including creating a new application for mobile phones that would be used for booking assistance.
The Department also worked with the Office of Rail and Road to review the Disabled People’s Protection Policy guidance, now known as the Accessible Travel Policy guidance. The revised guidance includes strengthened provisions for staff support for disabled passengers.
Asked by: Peter Kyle (Labour - Hove)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps he is taking to ensure that fume events on aircraft are investigated by the Civil Aviation Authority.
Answered by Paul Maynard - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
Maintaining the safety record of UK aviation is something we take very seriously. That is why concerns raised about cabin air have been investigated at length over a number of years. These scientific research projects have not been able to confirm a link between perceived cabin air quality and illness. The results have shown that the cabin/cockpit air quality is similar or better than what is observed in normal indoor environments (offices, schools, or dwellings). No occupational exposure limits and guidelines were exceeded.
However, the Government supports further research being conducted by the European Aviation Safety Agency to test the chemical composition and possible toxicity of air samples to assess the potential health impact as well as mitigation measures.
At a national level, the Aviation Health Unit within the Medical Department of the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) will continue to monitor issues around cabin air as part of their wider role as specialist adviser to the Government on aviation health issues.
Asked by: Peter Kyle (Labour - Hove)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps he is taking to prevent aircraft (a) passengers and (b) crew from the effects of fume events on aircraft.
Answered by Paul Maynard - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
Maintaining the safety record of UK aviation is something we take very seriously. That is why concerns raised about cabin air have been investigated at length over a number of years. These scientific research projects have not been able to confirm a link between perceived cabin air quality and illness. The results have shown that the cabin/cockpit air quality is similar or better than what is observed in normal indoor environments (offices, schools, or dwellings). No occupational exposure limits and guidelines were exceeded.
The Government supports further research being conducted by the European Aviation Safety Agency to test the chemical composition and possible toxicity of air samples, and the guidance produced by the International Civil Aviation Organisation to develop mitigation measures and ensure awareness and training to flight crew to enable them to prevent and respond to the presence of any fumes.
Asked by: Peter Kyle (Labour - Hove)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what progress his Department has made on the introduction of (a) flexible rail season tickets and (b) rail season tickets targeted at part-time workers on the Govia Thameslink Railway franchise.
Answered by Chris Heaton-Harris - Secretary of State for Northern Ireland
Part-time season tickets and flexible multi-buy tickets give people who commute part-time a better deal than they would otherwise have access to.
All new franchisees are required as part of their franchise procurement process to offer a product or products in addition to existing season tickets, that give customers who travel less than 5 days a week a better value-for-money option than buying multiple return journeys. Govia Thameslink Railway already offer carnet products on selected routes.
Asked by: Peter Kyle (Labour - Hove)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps his Department is taking to implement audio visual announcements on buses.
Answered by Nusrat Ghani - Minister of State (Minister for Europe)
The Government understands the importance of accessible on-board information in helping bus passengers to travel with confidence, and in Summer 2018 published a public consultation on proposals to require its provision on local bus services throughout Great Britain. This follows the Government’s commitment, set out in the Inclusive Transport Strategy, to invest £2 million towards ensuring that audio visual equipment is installed on buses.
We continue to analyse responses to the consultation and expect to announce our next steps regarding the making of Regulations and publication of guidance later in the year.
Asked by: Peter Kyle (Labour - Hove)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what level of co-operation there will be on maritime transport including access to the European Maritime Safety Agency after the UK leaves the EU.
Answered by Chris Grayling
The UK is committed to cooperating globally on maritime transport including through leading international organisations such as the International Maritime Organisation as well as continued collaboration with our European partners, to ensure we maintain high levels of safety and environmental standards.
In recognition of this, the political declaration accompanying the Withdrawal Agreement notes that our future relationship with the EU should facilitate cooperation on these issues, including through the exchange of information between the Maritime Coastguard Agency and the European Maritime Safety Agency (EMSA).
As a responsible government we will be planning for all eventualities with regards to when the UK leaves the European Union, and will ensure that our Maritime agencies have the tools they need to manage UK waters as effectively in future as they do now.
Asked by: Peter Kyle (Labour - Hove)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what cooperation there will be on maritime transport including access to the European Maritime Safety Agency after the UK leaves the EU.
Answered by Chris Grayling
The UK is committed to cooperating globally on maritime transport including through leading international organisations such as the International Maritime Organisation as well as continued collaboration with our European partners, to ensure we maintain high levels of safety and environmental standards.
In recognition of this, the political declaration accompanying the Withdrawal Agreement notes that our future relationship with the EU should facilitate cooperation on these issues, including through the exchange of information between the Maritime Coastguard Agency and the European Maritime Safety Agency (EMSA).
As a responsible government we will be planning for all eventualities with regards to when the UK leaves the European Union, and will ensure that our Maritime agencies have the tools they need to manage UK waters as effectively in future as they do now.