Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what financial provision he has made for possible travel disruption caused by winter weather.

The Department for Transport has undertaken a great deal of work with the transport sector to prepare for this winter season and all key transport operators, including local authorities, train operating companies, the Highways Agency, Network Rail and airports, have contingency plans in place to deal with any winter weather that may be encountered.

The Department continues to liaise with salt producers and as in previous years started to monitor salt stock holdings being held across the country. Analysis from a recent stock survey highlights the Highways Agency (HA) and local highway authorities are holding over one million tonnes of road salt. The Government has also retained an emergency salt stockpile of around 400,000 tonnes for this winter season. In addition both the Highways Agency and local highways authorities have winter service vehicles for use on the road network, including 500 vehicles for dealing with any incidents that may occur on the strategic road network.

It must, however, be recognised that severe winter weather may cause some disruption to the transport network. If travel is disrupted then we expect operators and highway authorities to do everything they can to keep passengers and road users informed whilst ensuring that the networks resume services as quickly as possible.

In respect of what financial provision has been made for possible travel disruption, the Department for Transport monitors its financial position regularly, including considering any risks such as poor weather that could affect its forecast of expenditure, and manages these within the context of its overall budget.