Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask His Majesty's Government whether they plan to carry out an assessment of rolling stock as part of the move to Great British Railways to ensure that new trains meet passenger needs and the required speed of travel.

Answered by Lord Hendy of Richmond Hill - Minister of State (Department for Transport)

The Government is developing a long-term rolling stock and infrastructure strategy, for the first time in over 30 years, and we expect to publish it this summer. The strategy will pursue modern standards of carbon-friendly traction, passenger comfort and accessibility that can unlock jobs, opportunities and economic growth right across the country. The strategy will outline our expectations for our future rolling stock needs, including consideration of capacity and reliability, and how these can best be met.

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to assess and monitor the quality of revenue protection services provided by publicly managed train operators; what assessment they have made of whether railway byelaws and the British Railways Act 1989 are being used proportionately and appropriately; and what training they are providing to publicly run train operators to ensure consistency and appropriate use of those regulations.

Answered by Lord Hendy of Richmond Hill - Minister of State (Department for Transport)

Our priority is to ensure that fare evasion is addressed, with passengers treated fairly and in accordance with the correct procedures. DFT Operator (DFTO) has reviewed the revenue protection practices of its operators to ensure they are acting consistently and in accordance with legislation. Before an operator enters public ownership, DFTO reviews their practices and prepares to take any action that is required to align activity as appropriate. The Office for Rail and Road carried out a review of revenue protection, and we have accepted all of their recommendations. The Department will publish an update on this in due course which will outline the actions we and industry are taking to ensure revenue protection is addressed.

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of hybrid trains and the reliability of those trains for long distance journeys, following recent reported issues with generator units on Great Western Railway trains.

Answered by Lord Hendy of Richmond Hill - Minister of State (Department for Transport)

Hybrid trains play an important role in providing connectivity across the UK. Great Western Railway (GWR) has been working with its supplier Hitachi, which manufactured and maintains GWR’s Intercity Express Trains, to understand and address the significant recent and current issues with generator units. The Government expects all rail industry partners to work together urgently to deliver reliable services for passengers.

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask His Majesty's Government what work they are undertaking towards the electrification of railways lines, in particular the Midland Main Line, and what is the timescale for that work.

Answered by Lord Hendy of Richmond Hill - Minister of State (Department for Transport)

The Midland Main Line (MML) is now electrified as far as Wigston, south of Leicester, which has enabled the phased introduction of East Midland Railway’s new bi-mode intercity trains to begin. As part of Spending Review 2025, however, the decision was taken to pause electrification of the remainder of the route to Nottingham and Sheffield via Derby.

Continued electrification remains part of this government’s approach to decarbonising our railways and this includes electrification of the MML. Although it is not currently funded within this Spending Review period, further electrification of the MML will be kept under active review and consideration, as part of our longer-term pipeline of proposed rail investment schemes.

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the suitability of the HS2 order of 8-carriage trains with 504 seats and no tilt ability compared to the current Pendolino trains, particularly in regard to journey times between London and Scotland.

Answered by Lord Hendy of Richmond Hill - Minister of State (Department for Transport)

High-speed services will provide more reliable and faster end-to-end journeys to Birmingham, the Northwest and Scotland using the new, dedicated high-speed infrastructure despite the train's inability to tilt on the west coast Mainline. Moving long distance trains onto HS2 will create opportunities for additional services on the West Coast Mainline. No decisions have been made on the timetable which will operate when HS2 opens. These decisions will be made nearer the time and be subject to consultation.

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Hendy of Richmond Hill on 28 July 2025 (HL9776), what recent progress they have made towards ensuring that every platform has level boarding at the new Old Oak Common station.

Answered by Lord Hendy of Richmond Hill - Minister of State (Department for Transport)

Old Oak Common station will provide full street to platform step-free access, with HS2 platforms designed to offer full level boarding. Platforms serving the Elizabeth Line and conventional rail services have been designed to accommodate different kinds of rolling stock that have different boarding heights. Work to establish the feasibility and safety of deviating from standard 915mm platform heights on the relief line platforms (platforms 5-8, which will predominantly serve the Elizabeth Line) is continuing. Completed assessments to enable a final decision on this issue are expected by Spring 2026, with an announcement expected by the end of the year.