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The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Transport (Andrew Jones)
It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Sir Roger. I congratulate my hon. Friend the Member for Weaver Vale (Graham Evans) on securing this debate on road safety, an issue I know he champions consistently. I am grateful for the opportunity to update the House on current and planned action between junctions 12 and 14 of the M56.
I know that my hon. Friend is concerned about the number of incidents on this stretch of the strategic road network. He has made his case eloquently and I want to reassure him and the House that I take safety seriously. I share his concern that some of the incidents have resulted in serious injuries and, sadly, fatalities. Highways England is already investigating the reasons for that worrying trend, examining the data in depth to see whether any trends emerge in terms of causation factors. It is too early to say at this point what final measures the review might identify or the time scales for implementing them, but I will ensure that that is given priority and that Highways England is aware of the concern in the House, which is shared by colleagues on both sides.
Derek Twigg
Has the Highways Agency carried out a road safety audit? If not, why not? If it has, what were the results?
Andrew Jones
I thank the hon. Gentleman for that intervention. He has been assiduous in asking about safety on the M56 and he will recall that I wrote to him about it in September. I assure him that safety is a top priority for the Department and for Highways England. The investigatory work is ongoing and I will make sure that the results of that work are shared openly and given appropriate priority by Highways England. I will also make sure that a report of this debate is sent to Highways England with immediate effect.
I will say a little about the long-term investment in the road network. We are taking a strategic and long-term approach to planning our network and we are providing stability of funding for Highways England, so that it is better able to plan its investment in the network. My hon. Friend the Member for Weaver Vale will recall that the first road investment strategy, which Highways England is now delivering, includes a commitment to invest in stretches of the M56, including the new junction 11a to link the M56 to the A533 at Runcorn, creating an improved link to the new Mersey Gateway bridge from the south.
The first RIS was informed by a comprehensive review of the entire strategic road network through a series of route strategies, prepared at that time by the Highways Agency. The pressures and needs of the M56 were assessed as part of the broader south Pennines route strategy. Such route strategies marked the first time that the needs of the strategic road network had been comprehensively assessed, link by link and junction by junction. I am pleased to advise my hon. Friend and indeed the House that such an assessment of the M56 and other parts of the network is not a one-off.
We are developing the process for preparing a second RIS, which will cover the period after 2020. A key part of the evidence base will be Highways England’s next iteration of these route strategies, which it will use to identify the current and future constraints that the performance of the strategic road network places on economic growth. It will then use this information to identify how future delivery and investment plans might address and remove those constraints. As we take the local route strategies forward, I think we will see greater collaboration with local authorities, local enterprise partnerships and other local stakeholders to determine the nature, need and timing of the future investment that the network requires.
To inform the second RIS, Highways England will begin to develop the next round of route strategies with a view to publishing them at the end of 2016-17. I want to change the process a little bit for our second RIS, to make it far more open and to ensure that colleagues here in the House are able to contribute to it with their suggestions. There is no shortage of ideas about the improvements that are required across our network and I want to make sure that colleagues get a chance to contribute to, inform and shape the strategy.
Justin Madders
I think we will all be grateful for the opportunity to make an input to this process for investing in the network. Will the investment plan also consider the day-to-day operational costs and expenses of running the network? The hon. Member for Weaver Vale (Graham Evans) highlighted the increase in the time taken to deal with incidents, and my hon. Friend the Member for Halton (Derek Twigg) mentioned the reduction in the number of incident support unit officers. Will some consideration be given to reinvesting in incident support units, to alleviate the impact of collisions on the whole network?
Andrew Jones
Road investment strategies are focused upon capital, but I am acutely aware that in certain cases capital brings with it revenue implications, and we consistently hear arguments about that. Today, however, I am talking specifically about capital investment.
I expect to make announcements about RIS2 and the process for it within the next few weeks. I expect that the assessment of the M56, as part of the route strategy work, will include consideration of any further safety-related measures, as well as consideration of whether or not to upgrade this section of the motorway to a smart motorway. I noted the support of my hon. Friend the Member for Weaver Vale for smart motorways. They work by using technology to control traffic and to vary speed limits, with detectors in the carriageway that monitor the flow of traffic. I have seen these smart motorways being introduced up and down the country, and they have been highly successful. I have also noted that colleagues have expressed support for them on many occasions in other debates. These solutions are very much long-term solutions, and if a decision is made to upgrade this section of the M56 to a smart motorway, it may be that the construction work could commence after 2020, but I assure the House once again that as we develop RIS2, safety will be central. It is one of the key requirements in the first RIS and it will continue to be a priority as we develop our plans.
In the meantime, I recognise the importance of minimising the disruption to road users when incidents occur. Highways England is considering, subject to final funding decisions, improving technology around the junction of the M56 and M53, known as Stoak interchange, or junction 15 of the M56. There are plans to install portable variable message signs at this junction. When an incident occurs on the M56 that results in severe congestion or even a closure, Highways England’s north-west regional control centre would be able to activate these signs, which would highlight the problems ahead and advise motorists to look for alternative routes, for example a signed diversionary route.
On a different issue, I notice that my hon. Friend has an online campaign to support quieter road surfacing on the M56. I fully understand his concern, and he has spoken powerfully on behalf of his constituents. Like all colleagues, I recognise how distressing traffic noise can be. It can be extremely loud, even if it is a clear fact that road surfaces have improved significantly in recent years. As a Minister with responsibility for roads, I am taking a great interest in asphalt technology and bitumen. I am keen to impress on my officials the importance of working with the sector, particularly contractors, on bitumen research and development to deliver better surfaces and quieter roads. Such work is a part of improving our road network, including its durability and safety. I have also received a very interesting presentation on this subject from Shell, which then kindly presented me with “The Shell Bitumen Handbook”—a surprisingly large tome.
I understand that my hon. Friend has been out with Highways England to see some of the resurfacing work on the network, and I commend him for that. Of course, road surfaces can help to reduce noise levels, but it is not just the road surface that highway authorities should consider to mitigate the noise for residents living close to a busy road. There are other measures that can be taken, such as erecting noise barriers, walls or noise embankments.
I will quickly mention the local road network. The Government are providing local authorities with £6 billion between 2015 and 2021 to improve local roads. This certainty of funding will ensure that local authorities can plan ahead and use cost-effective and sustainable materials for their roads to mitigate excessive road noise. I am pleased that local residents close to the M56 will benefit from the resurfacing of the westbound carriageway with a material that makes less noise than the material used in 2014. I think they will be reassured to know that Highways England will consider resurfacing the eastbound carriageway within the next two to three years.
Finally, my hon. Friend and the House will recognise the benefits for the region that will result from the plan to relieve build-up in and around Runcorn, and the new junction 11A, which forms part of the Government’s commitment to the northern powerhouse. Rebalancing the economy by creating a northern powerhouse is part of our long-term economic plan. Our objective is simple: it is to allow the north to pool its strengths and to become greater than the sum of its parts. That plan puts transport right at the heart of the agenda. We are making huge progress. By committing £13 billion to transport across the north in this Parliament, we aim to capitalise on the success of transport investment in London to create the northern powerhouse, which will be a second powerhouse region in the UK.
Rail investment has been mentioned, but I think that is a subject for another day.
I thank my hon. Friend the Member for Weaver Vale for all he does in championing his constituency, and I hope that he is reassured that the Government are listening. A fantastic level of investment is going into our transport infrastructure, now and in the future. Safety is at the heart of that investment and it will remain so. My hon. Friend made some specific points and I will write to him with detailed responses, but I assure him that road safety is at the heart of our plans. In fact, the first piece of work that I commissioned as a Minister was on road safety, which I hope indicates my personal commitment to the subject. I thank all Members for their contributions to this debate.
Question put and agreed to.