Asked by: Neale Hanvey (Alba Party - Kirkcaldy and Cowdenbeath)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent discussions he has had with Network Rail on (a) allocating additional resources, (b) deploying specialist drainage teams and (c) recruiting and retaining qualified maintenance staff to (i) pre-empt and (ii) mitigate the impact of (A) flooding and (B) landslips on railway network infrastructure.
Answered by Huw Merriman - Minister of State (Department for Transport)
Maintaining world leading levels of rail safety remains our top priority in rail. My department has committed £44.1 billion to Network Rail to spend on operations, maintenance, and renewal work on the network in England and Wales during Control Period 7. A further £4.2 billion has been made available to Network Rail Scotland for similar purposes to drive improvements in safety and reliability. Network Rail is responsible for mitigating risks associated with drainage issues within this funding settlement and in accordance with rail safety legislation.
Asked by: Neale Hanvey (Alba Party - Kirkcaldy and Cowdenbeath)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether he is taking steps to help provide additional resources to tackle flooding on the railway network following Storm Babet.
Answered by Huw Merriman - Minister of State (Department for Transport)
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 improving inspections and examinations of drainage assets.
Flooding is 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 in England and Wales between 2024 and 2029—tied to a £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, including flooding. Scotland has a further £4.2bn available, with the Scottish Government responsible for determining priorities for the Scottish network.
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: Dan Jarvis (Labour - Barnsley Central)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps his Department is taking to deliver major rail infrastructure improvements in the north of England.
Answered by Huw Merriman - Minister of State (Department for Transport)
The Government is committed to delivering major rail infrastructure improvements in England and Wales including the north of England. We are committed to investing in the transport that really matters to people. Network Rail are developing options to improve the capacity and resilience of Sheffield station, that can be delivered in the shorter term within the existing constraints of the station footprint, including platform extensions and track upgrades. This work will underpin the future improvements set out in Network North including electrification of the Hope Valley Line, delivering increased capacity and journey time savings.
Asked by: Jonathan Edwards (Independent - Carmarthen East and Dinefwr)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will publish submissions made by the Wales Rail Board to his Department.
Answered by Huw Merriman - Minister of State (Department for Transport)
The aim of the Wales Rail Board is to facilitate open and honest collaboration between the Welsh and UK Governments, and routine submissions to ministers are not in the public domain.
Future formal outputs from the Board may be published by agreement between the UK and Welsh Government.
Asked by: Jonathan Edwards (Independent - Carmarthen East and Dinefwr)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many times the Wales Rail Board has met since it was established.
Answered by Huw Merriman - Minister of State (Department for Transport)
The Wales Rail Board was inaugurated in March 2022 and has met on a total of six occasions to date.
Asked by: Stephen Morgan (Labour - Portsmouth South)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what progress his Department has made on meeting the government's target of delivering a net zero railway by 2050.
Answered by Huw Merriman - Minister of State (Department for Transport)
The Government is committed to meeting our target of a net zero railway by 2050. Since 2010, more than 1,200 miles of electrification has been delivered in Great Britain, including almost 800 miles in England and Wales in the last seven years. Government is also investing in further electrification schemes including electrification of TransPennine Route between Manchester, Leeds and York and completion of the electrification of the Midland Main Line to Sheffield and Derby. Since the start of 2019, the Government has also contributed over £12.5 million to 33 First of a Kind (FoaK) projects that will help decarbonise the railway or reduce harmful emissions.
Network Rail has set the standard as the first railway organisation in the world to set science-based targets to the most ambitious target of limiting emissions from its own operations to a 1.5°C warming scenario.
We are working with the Great British Railways Transition Team to bring forward options to decarbonise the whole network, in line with our net zero targets, for Government to carefully consider in terms of overall deliverability and affordability.
Asked by: Stephen Morgan (Labour - Portsmouth South)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment he has made of trends in the level of passenger demand for train services across (a) England, (b) Wales, and (c) Scotland.
Answered by Huw Merriman - Minister of State (Department for Transport)
Annual statistics on passenger rail usage at national and region level are published by the Office of Rail and Road (ORR). These include journeys within and between England, Scotland, and Wales. The latest statistical release provides estimates for April 2021 to March 2022: Regional rail usage (orr.gov.uk)
Asked by: Jonathan Edwards (Independent - Carmarthen East and Dinefwr)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what progress his Department has made on plans for a new Swansea Parkway train station.
Answered by Huw Merriman - Minister of State (Department for Transport)
We are working with Transport for Wales, Welsh Government and local authorities to develop plans for better connectivity within South West Wales, including new station provision. The Government has established a Wales Rail Board with the Welsh Government, to develop a strategic programme and prioritisation for the future progression of rail schemes in Wales.
Asked by: Stephen Doughty (Labour (Co-op) - Cardiff South and Penarth)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent discussions he has had with (a) National Rail, (b) the Welsh Government and (c) Transport for Wales on the provision of relief lines between Newport and Cardiff Central to facilitate the addition of services and stations in (i) St.Mellows and (ii) other areas.
Answered by Huw Merriman - Minister of State (Department for Transport)
Upgrading the south Wales relief lines has been identified as a high priority by the Wales Rail Board comprising my department, Welsh Government and Transport for Wales and I recently authorised Network Rail to undertake further development work. Progression of the proposed Cardiff Parkway station at St Mellons is subject to the outcome of a Welsh Government planning decision.
Asked by: Jim McMahon (Labour (Co-op) - Oldham West and Royton)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will publish data providing a breakdown of the number of rail journey cancellations in England and Wales for each year between 2010 and 2023.
Answered by Huw Merriman - Minister of State (Department for Transport)
Statistics on the number of trains part and fully cancelled are published by the Office of Rail and Road (ORR) - Table 3123 - Trains planned and cancellations by operator and cause