Asked by: Louise Haigh (Labour - Sheffield, Heeley)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, with reference to the Answer of 23 October 2023 to Question 203073 on Railways: Greater Manchester, whether funding for Network North will be allocated to track upgrades on the West Coast Mainline.
Answered by Huw Merriman - Minister of State (Department for Transport)
High Speed 2 (HS2) will now be delivered between Euston in central London and the West Midlands as planned, with a branch to Handsacre, near Lichfield, where there is a plan for HS2 services to travel to Liverpool, Manchester and Scotland via the West Coast Main Line (WCML). Following the announcement of Network North, the Department is also working with industry to develop the plan for a train service to maximise the use of the WCML. Network Rail will also consider the implications of Network North for the West Coast Main Line when planning its future operations, maintenance and renewals.
Asked by: Mark Pritchard (Conservative - The Wrekin)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will redirect funding that would have otherwise been used for the cancelled phase 2 of HS2 to electrification of the Shrewsbury to Wolverhampton line.
Answered by Huw Merriman - Minister of State (Department for Transport)
I am aware of and grateful for Midlands Connect’s Strategic Outline Business Case which sets out the case for the electrification of the Shrewsbury to Wolverhampton line, as well as work from other local parties to identify and promote improvements to the line.
We are committed to a rail infrastructure portfolio which delivers benefits for rail users and value for money for the taxpayer. Individual schemes are assessed on their alignment with Government priorities and the strength of their business cases in line with the Rail Network Enhancement Pipeline policy.
Asked by: Andrew Bridgen (Independent - North West Leicestershire)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether his Department plans to reopen the Ivanhoe line from Burton-on-Trent to Leicester.
Answered by Huw Merriman - Minister of State (Department for Transport)
The project is in the Development stage and is currently focusing on the reinstatement of services between Derby and Coalville. This will reconnect all key towns in the corridor and is likely to be deliverable the fastest. The Department is considering how an extension of this service to Leicester is best progressed.
Asked by: Andrew Lewer (Conservative - Northampton South)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will take steps to build a railway line between Northampton and Market Harborough.
Answered by Huw Merriman - Minister of State (Department for Transport)
On behalf of sub-national transport body England's Economic Heartland, Network Rail previously prepared a feasibility study into reinstating a railway connection between the West Coast Main Line at Northampton and the Midland Main Line at Market Harborough. I encourage him to engage with England's Economic Heartland further on this.
Asked by: Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi (Labour - Slough)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what the (a) projected end date is, (b) forecast spend in the financial year 2023-24 is, (c) initial planned whole life costs were and (d) delivery confidence assessment is of the Midlands Rail Hub programme; and when each of those figures were last reviewed.
Answered by Huw Merriman - Minister of State (Department for Transport)
The Midlands Rail Hub is projected to enter service in the early 2030s, and the forecast spend in 2023/24 is £7.98m. Initial planned whole life costs (at the time of the 2019 Strategic Outline Business Case) were £1,544m. The Delivery Confidence Assessment remains Amber, as set out in the Infrastructure and Projects Authority Annual Report. This detail is reviewed quarterly in line with the requirements of the Government’s Major Projects Portfolio.
Asked by: Zarah Sultana (Labour - Coventry South)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of closing train station ticket offices in Coventry South constituency on the (a) safety and (b) accessibility of passenger rail travel in the West Midlands.
Answered by Huw Merriman - Minister of State (Department for Transport)
When proposing major changes to ticket office opening hours, including closures, operators are required to take into account the adequacy of the proposed alternatives in relation to the needs of all passengers; and to include this in the notice of the proposal sent to other operators and passenger groups. We would also expect operators to consider other equality related needs and make this clear in the notice sent to other operators and passenger groups.
Together with industry, we want to improve and modernise the passenger experience by moving staff out from ticket offices to provide more help and advice in customer focused roles. No currently staffed station will be unstaffed as a result of industry changes, and train operators will ensure staff are well located to meet passenger needs in future.
Asked by: Louise Haigh (Labour - Sheffield, Heeley)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, with reference to the Answer of 5 June 2023 to Question 186535 on Railways: Tickets, what proportion of stations outside of London (a) have digital barcode ticketing and (b) are PAYG enabled; and if he will provide a list of stations outside London which have access to digital barcode ticketing and PAYG.
Answered by Huw Merriman - Minister of State (Department for Transport)
Barcode ticketing is already available on many routes across the country, and we are investing to roll out barcode ticketing across outstanding areas of the network, including c2c, Southeastern and Govia Thameslink Railway by the end of this year. We have committed to expanding PAYG to a further 52 stations in the South East by the end of the year, and are also currently working with local authorities on PAYG proposals for Manchester and the West Midlands as committed in the trailblazer devolution deals.
Asked by: John Hayes (Conservative - South Holland and The Deepings)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps he is taking to invest in rail infrastructure in Lincolnshire
Answered by Huw Merriman - Minister of State (Department for Transport)
Investment will see us continue to support ambitious and transformative growth plans for our railways, particularly in the North and Midlands. The way people use the railway is changing and we are investing to make sure it supports passengers, freight and the economy for the future.
The Integrated Rail Plan (IRP) commits to upgrading and improving line speeds and capacity on the East Coast Main Line, which will have benefits to services to Lincoln. We have provided Network Rail with early-stage development funding to begin consideration of how these ambitious route-wide plans can be delivered as efficiently as possible.
This IRP activity will build upon the £1.2 billion East Coast Enhancements Programme – a collection of infrastructure upgrades across the route, helping to deliver journey time, reliability and capacity improvements.
Asked by: Ben Lake (Plaid Cymru - Ceredigion)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what comparability factor is applied to Wales in order to calculate Barnett consequential funding for each element of the Integrated Rail Plan core pipeline including (a) Northern Powerhouse Rail, (b) Transpennine Route Upgrade and (c) other rail schemes in the North and Midlands.
Answered by John Glen - Paymaster General and Minister for the Cabinet Office
The UK Government is responsible for much of the rail infrastructure in Wales, and therefore spends money on this infrastructure rather than funding the Welsh Government to do so.
In line with this responsibility, the UK Government is currently delivering an ambitious programme to upgrade Welsh railways, including through the electrification of the Severn Tunnel and building a new station at Bow Street.
However at Spending Reviews, Barnett is set at department level and the comparability factor used therefore reflects funding across the whole department. The comparability factors used at Spending Review 2021 are published in the Statement of Funding Policy.
At the recent 2021 Spending Review the UK Government provided the Welsh Government with more than £18 billion on average each year over the Spending Review period. The Welsh Government will determine how to spend this on its devolved responsibilities.
Asked by: Daniel Kawczynski (Conservative - Shrewsbury and Atcham)
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 (a) reliability of and (b) level of priority allocated to railway services running between (i) Wolverhampton and (ii) Shrewsbury.
Answered by Huw Merriman - Minister of State (Department for Transport)
Recent levels of reliability on railway services through Shrewsbury have not been acceptable due to a combination of train and infrastructure issues. Train issues have resulted from Transport for Wales (TfW) recently having to withdraw one of its fleets for safety checks, and from West Midlands Trains (WMT) introducing a new fleet on this route which (in common with all new fleets) is taking a while to reach the required levels of reliability.
In addition, there has been an increase in infrastructure issues, some caused by cable theft, and Network Rail has deployed mitigating measures such as enhanced patrols as a result.
The Department and West Midlands Rail Executive (WMRE) are closely working with WMT and officials from TfW on these issues. I am assured good progress has been made and improvements in services should be seen by passengers shortly.