Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of smart motorways in terms of road safety; and whether further remedial works are planned on converted smart motorways.

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

This Government takes road safety seriously, and we are committed to reducing the numbers of those killed and injured on our roads.

The latest published safety data (covering 2017 to 2021) shows that overall, in terms of serious or fatal casualties, smart motorways remain the safest roads on the Strategic Road Network. National Highways continues to take action to improve safety, including the roll out of more than 150 additional Emergency Areas on the network, which is due to complete by end of March.

We continue to work with the Office for Rail and Road (ORR) to assess the effectiveness of safety systems in place on smart motorways, with further reporting due in Spring.

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask His Majesty's Government what is total cost of the installation of new emergency areas on smart motorways, broken down by each motorway.

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

The previous Government committed £390 million for National Highways to construct over 150 Emergency Areas across the All Lane Running (ALR) smart motorway network through the National Emergency Area Retrofit programme. The work is being managed as a single programme and final costs for the installation of Emergency Areas on each section of motorway will be confirmed when accounts are settled, expected no earlier than Q3 2025/26.

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask His Majesty's Government what has been the total cost of the smart motorway programme to date, broken down by each motorway.

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

National Highways has managed smart motorways as a programme since 2013. The total spend to date on reconfiguring sections of the motorway network to predominantly All Lane Running (ALR) smart motorways in England since 2013 is £5.075 billion. The table below breaks this down by each motorway scheme:

In addition, National Highways is investing £900 million over the second road investment strategy (RIS2) to add further safety features to smart motorways. This includes £390 million to construct over 150 additional emergency areas on existing ALR smart motorways, which is due to complete in March.

This government takes road safety very seriously, we have been clear, we will not roll out new smart motorways.

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have to change or restrict open access operations on the railway network.

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

The Secretary of State recently wrote to the Chair of the ORR to set out her expectations for the future of Open Access. She was clear on the benefits that Open Access can bring, but equally that balance must be struck between passenger benefits and impacts upon taxpayers and network performance. This does not represent a ‘restriction’ on Open Access, but rather that it is important to ensure that this balance is applied when ORR undertakes its statutory duties in relation to each application. We remain committed to a role for Open Access where it provides benefits for both passengers and taxpayers.

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the merits of expanding Heathrow Airport, particularly regarding the creation of a third runway.

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

There is currently no live application for a third runway at Heathrow. It is for Heathrow Airport Limited to decide how it takes forward any Development Consent Order application for a third runway.

The Government would carefully consider any Development Consent Order application for a third runway at Heathrow Airport in line with the relevant planning process.

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the merits of expanding Gatwick airport, particularly regarding the creation of a second runway.

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

An application for a Development Consent Order has been made by Gatwick Airport Limited to bring their existing Northern runway into routine use alongside their main runway.

The Planning Inspectorate submitted its recommendation report to the Department for Transport on 27 November 2024 and the Secretary of State for Transport has until the 27 February 2025 to make a decision.

As this is a live planning application, it would not be appropriate to comment.

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