Asked by: Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi (Labour - Slough)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what estimate he has made of the quantity of freight that was transported on the rail network in each of the last five years.
Answered by Huw Merriman - Minister of State (Department for Transport)
The attached table summarises freight lifted, and freight moved by rail in Great Britain in each of the last 5 years.
Freight lifted is the mass of goods carried on the rail network measured in tonnes, excluding the weight of the locomotives and wagons. Unlike freight moved it takes no account of the distance travelled.
Freight moved measures the amount of freight moved on the railway network, taking into account the weight of the load and the distance carried. It is measured in net tonne kilometres.
Asked by: Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi (Labour - Slough)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many times train signalling equipment has failed in each of the last 12 months.
Answered by Huw Merriman - Minister of State (Department for Transport)
According to data recorded by Network Rail, there were 12,687 train signalling equipment failures between 8 September 2022 and 7 September 2023, which is equivalent to 1,057 failures per month on average. The figure for 2022-23 is comparable to recent years and lower than the average number of signal failures over the past decade.
Network Rail are undertaking a number of actions to reduce instances of signalling equipment failures on the network. This includes replacing old and obsolete equipment as part of their renewals work, undertaking reliability analysis to identify assets that are failing prematurely to enable targeted remedial action, applying predictive technology to identify the risk of failures, monitoring trends to identify underperforming assets so these can be replaced, and reviewing staff training to ensure staff are in the best position to manage and mitigate signalling failures. Moving to digital signalling, such as on the East Coast Digital Programme, will also lead to increased infrastructure reliability.
Asked by: Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi (Labour - Slough)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps his Department plans to take to prepare the rail network for adverse weather in winter 2023.
Answered by Huw Merriman - Minister of State (Department for Transport)
The department is working actively with Network Rail, train operating companies and the wider rail industry to ensure their seasonal preparedness plans are in place with clear mitigations outlined to minimise disruption throughout the winter.
Network Rail and train operators have well-established operational measures to manage services safely during incidents affecting railway operations, including extreme weather events.
Asked by: Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi (Labour - Slough)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether sanctions are applied to train operating companies that do not provide fully-accessible trains.
Answered by Huw Merriman - Minister of State (Department for Transport)
All rolling stock in use by operators contracted by the Department for Transport comply with relevant accessibility standards. The Office of Rail and Road is the authority responsible for the enforcement of accessibility standards for both mainline and non-mainline rolling stock.
Asked by: Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi (Labour - Slough)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answers to Questions 193235 and 194771 on Railways: Tickets, on which date the meeting where Ministers met stakeholders to discuss closing the majority of ticket offices in England took place; who attended that meeting; and whether the proposal to close the majority of ticket offices was first raised by (a) Ministers or (b) stakeholders.
Answered by Huw Merriman - Minister of State (Department for Transport)
I held roundtables with industry and accessibility stakeholders and passenger representative groups on 6 June 2023 and 18 July 2023 to discuss potential reforms. Over 20 different organisations were represented at the different roundtables including accessibility groups.
Through the industry-led Ticketing and Settlement Agreement process Train Operating Companies have put forward proposals to change the opening hours or closure of station ticket offices and consulted on these. This consultation closed on 1 September and the independent passenger bodies, Transport Focus and London TravelWatch, are currently assessing the proposals and consultation responses.
We expect train operators to work collaboratively with the passenger bodies in the coming weeks, to listen to the concerns raised and to refine their proposals accordingly.
Asked by: Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi (Labour - Slough)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent assessment he has made of the adequacy of the monitoring of occupational psychological fitness of train drivers.
Answered by Huw Merriman - Minister of State (Department for Transport)
My department recently published a statutory post implementation review of the Train Driver Licensing and Certificates Regulations 2010 (TDLCR) on 19th May 2023, which contains the requirements for becoming a train driver in Great Britain. The purpose of the review was to assess whether the regime was meeting its original objectives and whether it remains fit for purpose.
Since publication, my officials have started the process of exploring options for potential reform to address the findings of the review, and will engage industry to develop and consult on these proposals in due course. This will include reviewing the adequacy of the monitoring requirements concerning the occupational psychological fitness of train drivers.
Asked by: Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi (Labour - Slough)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps he is taking to adapt the rail network to take account of (a) long-term changes in weather patterns and (b) increased incidences of extreme weather.
Answered by Huw Merriman - Minister of State (Department for Transport)
Extreme weather events are likely to become more frequent as a result of climate change. In 2022 the Department for Transport published the High-Level Output Specification (HLOS) which outlines the Secretary of State’s objectives for Network Rail’s operation, maintenance and renewal of railway infrastructure between 2024 and 2029—tied to a record £44.1 billion funding settlement. The HLOS is clear that the rail network must be as resilient as reasonably possible to the effects of climate change and extreme weather.
Network Rail’s resilience taskforce was established in 2022 and is being led by independent experts. Their recommendations to improve weather resilience on the network are already being put into effect, including renewed investment in Network Rail’s capability and use of weather data and technology, upskilling of its workforce and competencies, and improving inspections and examinations of earthworks and drainage assets.
The Department for Transport is developing a transport adaptation strategy taking a holistic approach to addressing the transport-related risks in the UK Climate Change Risk Assessment.
Asked by: Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi (Labour - Slough)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether he plans to take steps to increase the amount of freight transported by rail.
Answered by Huw Merriman - Minister of State (Department for Transport)
The Government is committed to growing rail freight. We are undertaking a number of initiatives including setting a long-term rail freight growth target, which will be announced later this year, and a review of the Mode Shift Revenue Support scheme. The Rail Minister hosts bi-monthly roundtable meetings with key rail freight stakeholders. Network Rail also continues to work closely with freight operators to improve performance, with increases seen recently in Network Rail’s Freight Delivery Metric.
Asked by: Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi (Labour - Slough)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what progress has he made on decarbonising rail freight.
Answered by Huw Merriman - Minister of State (Department for Transport)
We are committed to working with industry and the private sector to decarbonise the rail network. We are working with the Great British Railways Transition Team to provide costed options for Government to consider in terms of deliverability and affordability, including options for rail freight.
Electrification is important in our decarbonisation programme. Since 2010, over 1,200 miles of electrification has been delivered in Great Britain, including almost 800 miles in England and Wales since 2016.
The Government is undertaking a number of initiatives to grow rail freight, recognising the environmental benefits it delivers, including setting a long-term rail freight growth target, which will be announced later this year.
We encourage and incentivise modal shift from road to rail by allocating £20m per year to the Mode Shift Revenue Support scheme. In 2022/23, the scheme removed the need for around 900,000 HGV journeys, saving almost 40,000 tonnes of CO2 emissions.
Asked by: Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi (Labour - Slough)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many buildings on land owned by (a) Network Rail and (b) his Department use reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete.
Answered by Huw Merriman - Minister of State (Department for Transport)
Network Rail is currently undergoing a review of the use of RAAC across the rail estate as a priority. Once this is concluded, they will supply their findings to the Department.