Asked by: Robert Flello (Labour - Stoke-on-Trent South)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what discussions his Department has had with trades unions officials representing Highways England traffic officers on the potential danger of serious injury or death arising from trying to move a heavy goods vehicle from a live lane using a Highways England traffic officer 4 by 4 vehicle.
Answered by Andrew Jones
The Trade Union that represents Highways England Traffic Officers was consulted throughout the life of the enhanced carriageway clearance project, which focused on carriageway clearance of vehicles of all types. Trade Union representatives attended a number of meetings and specific workshops.
Asked by: Robert Flello (Labour - Stoke-on-Trent South)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how much compensation has been paid from the public purse to owners of heavy goods vehicles damaged as a result of being moved by Highways England traffic officers from live lanes to (a) hard shoulders and (b) emergency refuge areas in the last 12 months.
Answered by Andrew Jones
Highways England has not received any claims relating to heavy goods vehicles damaged as a result of being moved by Highways England traffic officers in the last 12 months. Hence, no compensation has been paid.
Asked by: Robert Flello (Labour - Stoke-on-Trent South)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many Highways England traffic officers have been (a) trained to move heavy goods vehicles from live motorway lanes on Smart motorways to emergency refuge areas and (b) not so trained but issued with an instruction manual to move such vehicles.
Answered by Andrew Jones
As at 6 June 2016, 910 Highways England Traffic Officers have been trained in the activity of carriageway clearance. This training is appropriate for all vehicle types as it is designed to provide specific criteria which Traffic Officers must follow to determine whether it is safe to remove any vehicle from a carriageway to a place of relative safety.
In addition, all Traffic Officers who work on smart motorway sections are trained in the specifics of that operational environment before they are designated as safe to operate. No operational activity is undertaken by Highways England Traffic Officers without appropriate training and supporting safe systems of work.
Asked by: Robert Flello (Labour - Stoke-on-Trent South)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many Highways England traffic officers have moved heavy goods vehicles from live lanes to (a) hard shoulders and (b) emergency refuge areas in the last 12 months.
Answered by Andrew Jones
Highways England does not specifically record how many Highways England traffic officers have moved heavy goods vehicles from live lanes to hard shoulders or emergency refuge areas.
Asked by: Robert Flello (Labour - Stoke-on-Trent South)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps his Department is taking to reduce HGV testing waiting lists at Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency testing centres.
Answered by Andrew Jones
The Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency is reducing vocational waiting times by recruiting more examiners, improving its forecasting model to better match resource with demand and redeploying examiners from lower wait centres to those with higher waiting times.
Asked by: Robert Flello (Labour - Stoke-on-Trent South)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what progress his Department has made on signing the Luxembourg rail protocol.
Answered by Claire Perry
The United Kingdom signed the Luxembourg Rail Protocol on the 26th February 2016.
Asked by: Robert Flello (Labour - Stoke-on-Trent South)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps he took and when to address the flooding that disrupted rail services between Rugby and Milton Keynes on Wednesday 9 March 2016.
Answered by Claire Perry
This was an operational matter for Network Rail and the train operators, who did what they could to keep services moving so far as was safely practicable in the difficult conditions. Given the reduced line capacity available, it was necessary for the train operators to substantially thin out the level of service; the resulting serious disruption to passengers on the route is regretted.
Asked by: Robert Flello (Labour - Stoke-on-Trent South)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many times there has been disruption to rail services arising from flooding between Rugby and Milton Keynes in each of the last five years.
Answered by Claire Perry
This information is not held by the Department as it is an operational matter for Network Rail.
Asked by: Robert Flello (Labour - Stoke-on-Trent South)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what progress he has made on an exemption from the European Commission on the Directive 2006/125/EC on driving licences to enable electric vehicles over 3.5 tonnes to be driven on a B licence.
Answered by Andrew Jones
The UK has not sought an exemption from Directive 2006/126/EC to enable electric vehicles over 3.5 tonnes to be driven on a Category B licence. Any driver that holds a full category B licence issued before 1 January 1997 has a “grandfather right” to drive vehicles in category C1 – not for hire and reward. We will continue to monitor the situation.