Tag: Lord Bradshaw

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Bradshaw on 2015-11-04.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what plans are in place to reduce the number of unplanned closures of the East Coast Main Line.

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon

The Department for Transport measures the performance of franchised train operators through a range of metrics as specified within their franchise agreements. The Office of Rail and Road monitor the performance of Network Rail. We expect all in the rail industry to work together to ensure good performance for its customers.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Bradshaw on 2016-02-22.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government how much money the EU provided, in the most recent year for which figures are available, for research, capital expenditure and revenue support for (1) the bus and coach industry, (2) railway passenger and freight-services, (3) the air industry, including runways, aircraft or equipment, (4) the shipping and ports industry, and (5) road schemes and the development of vehicle technology.

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon

The EU budget has a number of programmes aimed at supporting the development of transport which can be at a regional, national or trans-national level.

Given the complexity of the different mechanisms for delivering such funding the UK government does not maintain a central record of the total amount of money that the EU provides for research, capital expenditure and revenue support for transport.

The main source of funding for transport infrastructure comes from the Connecting Europe Facility (CEF) which promotes the development of the different Trans- European Networks for Transport, Energy and Communications. Transport is the major element of the CEF budget with nearly €1.5 billion in commitments allocated to fund EU transport projects in 2016. The EU transport funding priorities are defined in the TEN-T regulation (EU 2013/1315) and focus on improving cross-border connections and developing sustainable and efficient transport infrastructure. Funding is awarded to projects through a competitive bidding process with projects having to meet specific criteria and demonstrate high EU added value. The attached tables have details of projects involving UK participation that have been awarded funding.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Bradshaw on 2016-06-06.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they are aware of any studies regarding the not primarily abstractive” test that the Office of Road and Rail makes in respect of open access applications to test its validity.”

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon

Her Majesty’s Government is not aware of any recent studies which specifically test the validity of the Office of Rail and Road’s not primarily abstractive test. However, it has made representations to the ORR on its appropriateness for use on individual open access applications, most particularly in relation to the recent open access applications on the East Coast Mainline.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Bradshaw on 2016-10-18.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government to what extent emission standards for buses and coaches are set by (1) the Traffic Commissioners, (2) the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency and (3) highway authorities; and who is responsible for ensuring that these standards are adhered to.

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon

Emissions standards for new buses and coaches are not set by any of the parties named, but by the government through EU type approval legislation. Type Approval Authorities such as the UK’s Vehicle Certification Agency (VCA) are responsible for ensuring that these standards are met. In-service emissions checking is carried out at the statutory annual inspection by the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA).

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Bradshaw on 2015-11-04.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of whether the train service in the Lincoln area, to both London and Birmingham, is adequate to meet present needs, and what firm plans they have for developing the service along those rail corridors.

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon

The Government believes that Train Operators are better placed to respond to the changing demands of their customers in the creation of train services and it is the Government’s view that timetable development is an activity that should be managed by Train Operators with minimum interference from Central Government.

In 2016 we will open the competition for the East Midlands franchise, and will engage with stakeholders and run a public consultation to help specify services.

From May 2019, Stagecoach Virgin have been contracted by the Department for Transport to operate 5 additional services each day between London and Lincoln.This will provide a regular service of approximately 1 train every 2 hours in each direction. Delivery of this is subject to the rail industry’s normal timetable development process and to the Office of Road and Rail granting the necessary access rights to the operator.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Bradshaw on 2016-03-08.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they have any new proposals to reduce significantly the number of road casualties.

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon

Britain has some of the world’s lowest road casualty rates. But, in line with our Manifesto commitment, we are determined to do more to make our roads even safer. The British Road Safety Statement, published on 21 December 2015, sets out the Government’s priorities for action, including practical measures to help vulnerable groups stay safe on our roads, extra money to crackdown on drug drivers and tougher penalties for people using mobile phones while driving.

Copies of the British Road Safety Statement are available in the Libraries of the House.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Bradshaw on 2016-06-06.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they are aware of any assessment of the impact on operational resilience by an experienced and professional railway operator of the decision by the Office of Road and Rail to allow further open access operators onto the East Coast Main Line.

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon

The Department for Transport is not aware of any assessment of operational resilience in connection with the decision to extend open access operations on the East Coast Main Line. We expect Network Rail as network operator to ensure that their routes are able to operate effectively, whichever train operators are running on them.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Bradshaw on 2016-10-18.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what powers are available to highway authorities to enforce traffic management law; how many highway authorities have decided to use any powers available to them, and which highway authorities have chosen not to do so.

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon

Highway authorities have a wide range of powers that they can use to deal with particular traffic management issues. A number of enforcement authorities are involved as well and, depending on the issue, includes local authorities themselves, Transport for London, Highways England and the Police. The Government does not keep central records of which enforcement authorities operate which regimes and to collate that information would not be possible except at disproportionate cost.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Bradshaw on 2015-11-10.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the number of modern Class 170 diesel trains that would be released for re-deployment if the route from Hurst Green to Uckfield were electrified.

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon

We have not done an assessment but electrification of the route is expected to be considered as part of the Network Rail led Electrification Route Study.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Bradshaw on 2016-03-08.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what new proposals they have for tackling levels of congestion in towns and cities in the light of the reduction in police service numbers available for enforcement.

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon

I refer the Noble Lord to the answer I provided on 2 December 2015 (HL 3693) which clarified this Government has an ambitious strategy for tackling congestion in our cities and towns and improving performance on our roads.

Local highway authorities who are responsible for managing the local road network have a statutory duty under the Traffic Management Act to provide better conditions for all road users and to help tackle congestion in towns and cities. The size and make-up of the police workforce is a matter for Chief Constables to determine locally in conjunction with their democratically-elected Police and Crime Commissioners and working with other local stakeholders. It is, therefore, ultimately a decision for the Chief Constable to deploy resources according to the priorities agreed in its policing plan.