Asked by: Baroness McIntosh of Pickering (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have to encourage more freight on to rail for efficiency and environmental reasons; and to improve Ely Junction to facilitate goods travelling by rail from east coast ports and elsewhere in the UK.
Answered by Lord Davies of Gower - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The Government is committed to growing rail freight to unlock the economic and environmental benefits it can deliver. We are undertaking a number of initiatives including setting a long-term growth target of increasing freight moved by rail by at least 75% by 2050, which was announced in December 2023, and a review of the Mode Shift Revenue Support scheme. Network Rail also continues to work closely with freight operators to improve performance and efficient use of the network.
The October 2023 Network North announcement confirmed Government’s support for the Ely Area Capacity Enhancement. The next stage of work for the scheme will involve detailed design work, development of a Full Business Case and beginning the process for securing delivery powers (for example, a Transport and Works Act Order).
Asked by: Stephen Morgan (Labour - Portsmouth South)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps he is taking to help simplify the rail ticketing system.
Answered by Huw Merriman - Minister of State (Department for Transport)
The Plan for Rail proposes the biggest shake-up of rail in a generation. We have already made progress on fares and ticketing reforms, for example introducing flexible season tickets, expanding single leg pricing to most of London North Eastern Railway’s (LNER) network and committing to Pay As You Go (PAYG) in urban areas across the country.
In February we announced that PAYG pilots in both Manchester and the West Midlands are due to be launched in 2025, expanding pay as you go to an additional 92 rail stations. We will also be extending contactless PAYG ticketing to 53 additional stations in the South East.
In addition, on 16 January this year, LNER began selling tickets for its two year long “Simpler Fares” pilot, for travel from 5 February. This pilot involves removing the old off-peak which led to some very quiet “peak” and very busy “off-peak” services, simplifying the fares and ticketing system to smooth out demand and reduce crowding, making travel more comfortable for passengers.
Asked by: Colleen Fletcher (Labour - Coventry North East)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how much funding his Department has provided for transport projects in (a) the West Midlands and (b) Coventry in each of the last three years.
Answered by Guy Opperman - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The Government has spent £8.4 billion on transport in the West Midlands region over the last three years, improving connectivity, shortening journey times, reducing congestion, and transporting people and goods.
Figures are not available at the level of individual local authorities. However, in Coventry, recent Government investment includes;
Coventry also stands to benefit from allocations to West Midlands Combined Authority (WMCA) including
Asked by: Lord Wigley (Plaid Cymru - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to ensure that the train cancellations announced by Avanti West Coast for the summer do not negatively impact tourist-related businesses in the coastal resorts of north Wales.
Answered by Lord Davies of Gower - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
Avanti West Coast (AWC) plans to maintain current service levels between London and North Wales throughout summer 2024. Network Rail engineering works over six weekend days between May and August 2024 will, however, close parts of the North Wales Coast Line to all operators, with temporary changes required to accommodate these.
The Department recognises the inconvenience that these works will cause, however, this investment in renewing and upgrading rail infrastructure is critical to meeting current and future needs of communities in North Wales. Alongside these crucial infrastructure works, AWC is working to introduce a brand-new fleet of bi-mode Hitachi trains offering more space and a quieter journey for passengers along the North Wales mainline.
Asked by: Gavin Williamson (Conservative - South Staffordshire)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, when strategic development of the Parish of Millington and Rostherne to Liverpool section of Northern Powerhouse Rail commenced; who is responsible for overseeing that work; what the estimated timeline for completing the work is; and what budget his Department has allocated for delivering that section.
Answered by Huw Merriman - Minister of State (Department for Transport)
The Integrated Rail Plan (IRP) and Network North set out the strategic plan and funding for Northern Powerhouse Rail. The high-level route will continue to be developed as set out in the IRP. This includes sections of the track between the Parish of Millington and Rostherne and Liverpool. The government is working closely with our delivery partners including Network Rail and HS2 Ltd to achieve this. The government aims to complete Northern Powerhouse Rail by the mid-2040s.
Asked by: Gavin Williamson (Conservative - South Staffordshire)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, when strategic development of the Manchester Piccadilly to West Yorkshire section of Northern Powerhouse Rail commenced; who is responsible for overseeing that work; what the estimated timeline for completing the work is; and what budget his Department has allocated for delivering that section.
Answered by Huw Merriman - Minister of State (Department for Transport)
The Integrated Rail Plan (IRP) and Network North set out the strategic plan and funding for Northern Powerhouse Rail. The high-level route will continue to be developed as set out in the IRP. This includes sections of the track between Manchester Piccadilly to West Yorkshire. The government is working closely with our delivery partners including Network Rail and HS2 Ltd to achieve this. The government aims to complete Northern Powerhouse Rail by the mid-2040s.
Asked by: Gavin Williamson (Conservative - South Staffordshire)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether the Network North budget allocated to connect Manchester to Liverpool applies to the entire section of Northern Powerhouse Rail.
Answered by Huw Merriman - Minister of State (Department for Transport)
Funding for Northern Powerhouse Rail has been set out in the Integrated Rail Plan and Network North. Network North confirmed £12 billion (2023 prices) of investment to enable Northern Powerhouse Rail to proceed in line with previous plans to better connect Liverpool and Manchester. On 25 March 2024, following extensive engagement with local leaders and local MPs, Government announced that it had heard clear support for Northern Powerhouse Rail to serve Warrington Bank Quay and Manchester Airport. Taking account of local views, this will be the primary options for the next stage of development for the NPR route between Liverpool and Manchester.
Asked by: Gavin Williamson (Conservative - South Staffordshire)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether the Ashley railhead is required for the Northern Powerhouse Rail core route; and how much funding has been allocated for that railhead.
Answered by Huw Merriman - Minister of State (Department for Transport)
The government is seeking to adapt the High Speed Rail (Crewe-Manchester) Bill to deliver Northern Powerhouse Rail (NPR) only, removing scope south of the Parish of Millington and Rostherne, which was included only for HS2. A motion to formalise the point of truncation will be brought to the House and a supplementary environmental statement will be produced.
As set out in the Network North Command paper, £12 billion in 2023 prices has been retained to deliver NPR scope between Manchester and the Parish of Millington and Rostherne. The funding has not been disaggregated further.
Asked by: Gavin Williamson (Conservative - South Staffordshire)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether the Ashley Satellite Infrastructure Maintenance Base – Rail is required for the Northern Powerhouse core route; and how much funding has been allocated for its construction.
Answered by Huw Merriman - Minister of State (Department for Transport)
The government is seeking to adapt the High Speed Rail (Crewe-Manchester) Bill to deliver Northern Powerhouse Rail (NPR) only, removing scope south of the Parish of Millington and Rostherne, which was included only for HS2. A motion to formalise the point of truncation will be brought to the House and a supplementary environmental statement will be produced.
As set out in the Network North Command paper, £12 billion in 2023 prices has been retained to deliver NPR scope between Manchester and the Parish of Millington and Rostherne. The funding has not been disaggregated further.
Asked by: Gavin Williamson (Conservative - South Staffordshire)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether the junction between Phase 2b of HS2 and Northern Powerhouse Rail will be removed from the adapted Northern Powerhouse Rail scheme; and how much funding has been allocated to the construction of that junction.
Answered by Huw Merriman - Minister of State (Department for Transport)
The government is seeking to adapt the High Speed Rail (Crewe-Manchester) Bill to deliver Northern Powerhouse Rail (NPR) only, removing scope south of the Parish of Millington and Rostherne, which was included only for HS2. A motion to formalise the point of truncation will be brought to the House and a supplementary environmental statement will be produced.
As set out in the Network North Command paper, up to £12 billion in 2023 prices has been retained to deliver NPR scope between Manchester and the Parish of Millington and work on the NPR scheme between Liverpool and Millington, and Manchester Piccadilly and West Yorkshire is currently at strategic scheme development stage. This work is being carried out in line with WMS of 25 March, which set out that Northern Powerhouse Rail will develop a route that is in favour of serving Warrington Bank Quay and Manchester Airport and will use the previously proposed route Millington and Manchester. A formal consultation on the remainder of the preferred route is expected to take place following this work.