Asked by: Steve McCabe (Labour - Birmingham, Selly Oak)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether his Department has made an assessment of the potential impact of discontinuing paper rail tickets on people with epilepsy and who have difficulty using online services.
Answered by Huw Merriman - Minister of State (Department for Transport)
The Plan for Rail set out our ambitions to roll out digital ticketing and we will consider the needs of all users when considering how to move forward with rail ticketing. Passengers should have access to a ticketing system which is user-friendly, where help and advice from a trained representative is available and is accessible to all.
Asked by: Steve McCabe (Labour - Birmingham, Selly Oak)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent assessment his Department has made of the accessibility of rail travel for people with disabilities.
Answered by Huw Merriman - Minister of State (Department for Transport)
We have completed accessibility audits at over 98% of mainline stations in Britain and expect to finish this work by April.
Asked by: Steve McCabe (Labour - Birmingham, Selly Oak)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of introducing stronger penalties for people who do not obey road safety rules.
Answered by Richard Holden - Minister without Portfolio (Cabinet Office)
The Department keeps the law under review and listens to the concerns of those affected by tragic cases of death or serious injury.
Asked by: Steve McCabe (Labour - Birmingham, Selly Oak)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of introducing mandatory vehicle driving re-tests on similar terms to those for HGV and public service vehicle licences.
Answered by Richard Holden - Minister without Portfolio (Cabinet Office)
The Driving and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) believes that most people want to be safe, law-abiding drivers and any post-test intervention needs to be focused where it will achieve most benefit and, where appropriate, should be targeted against irresponsible drivers.
The courts already have the powers to require drivers to retake the driving test in certain circumstances, and the police can also offer remedial education courses to those who would otherwise be prosecuted for some driving offences.
All new drivers who incur six, or more, penalty points within two years of gaining their first full licence, already undergo retesting before they are allowed to drive unaccompanied.
There are currently no plans to introduce mandatory vehicle driving re-tests.
If drivers do not drive for a period of time, the DVSA recommends they receive a form of refresher training.
Asked by: Steve McCabe (Labour - Birmingham, Selly Oak)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent assessment he has made of the adequacy of road safety in England.
Answered by Richard Holden - Minister without Portfolio (Cabinet Office)
We have some of the safest roads in the world, but we are not complacent. The Government takes road safety very seriously. Reducing the numbers of those needlessly killed and injured on our roads is a key priority for this Department.
The Department for Transport is developing the new Road Safety Strategic Framework which will include an implementation plan to improve road safety. We are considering road safety indicators as part of the Road Safety Strategic Framework. It is our intention, subject to wider consultation and agreement, to publish in the spring.
Asked by: Steve McCabe (Labour - Birmingham, Selly Oak)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment his Department has made of the potential effect of removing train guards from trains for disabled passengers who use the railways.
Answered by Huw Merriman - Minister of State (Department for Transport)
Trains have operated safely in the UK for many years as Driver Only Operation, and the Office of Rail and Road as the independent regulator has approved this approach. The proposed reforms, including to station roles, intend to provide greater flexibility for operators to deploy staff in multiskilled customer-facing roles, able to deliver more assistance for disabled passengers and those with additional needs where and when it is most needed. The Secretary of State takes his duty to consider equality issues when forming policy, in line with the Public Sector Equality Duty under the Equality Act 2010, very seriously. Due regard on equalities impacts is being given accordingly.
Asked by: Steve McCabe (Labour - Birmingham, Selly Oak)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if his Department has taken into account the rising cost of living as part of the decision-making process of increasing train penalty fares to £100 from January 2023.
Answered by Huw Merriman - Minister of State (Department for Transport)
The Penalty Fare increase will only impact passengers travelling without valid tickets and does not represent a cost of living increase for fare paying passengers.
Asked by: Steve McCabe (Labour - Birmingham, Selly Oak)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of introducing free off-peak bus travel for people over 60 in England.
Answered by Lucy Frazer - Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport
Funding the concessionary bus pass costs around £1 billion annually and any changes would have an impact on the scheme’s financial sustainability.
In England, the age of eligibility for the concessionary bus pass is linked to the state pension age. This addresses the anomalous position of non-disabled, working age citizens receiving free bus buses, which in turn supports the financial sustainability of the scheme. There are no current plans to change the concessionary bus travel age of eligibility in England.
However, concessionary travel legislation gives local authorities the flexibility to offer local travel concessions, such as reducing the eligible age for a bus pass to 60.The additional concessions above the statutory minimum are not funded by central Government but by their own local resources.
Asked by: Steve McCabe (Labour - Birmingham, Selly Oak)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether her Department has taken steps to ensure that people without smartphones or internet access can buy train tickets when ticket offices and machines are closed at train stations.
Answered by Kevin Foster
We have no plans to remove ticket machines from stations.
Passengers should have access to a ticketing system which is user-friendly, where help and advice from a trained representative is available and is accessible to all.
While no final decision has been taken on ticket offices, station staff will still provide face-to-face services on the railways, which can be crucial for those who need additional support. This includes those who cannot or do not want to use contactless or mobile tickets and instead wish to purchase a ticket at the station.
Asked by: Steve McCabe (Labour - Birmingham, Selly Oak)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many traffic collisions have been recorded in Birmingham in each year starting 2015.
Answered by Katherine Fletcher
The number of reported personal injury road collisions in Birmingham are shown in the table.
Year | Number of collisions |
2015 | 2,970 |
2016 | 2,787 |
2017 | 2,724 |
2018 | 2,614 |
2019 | 2,623 |
2020 | 1,802 |
2021 | 2,137 |