Asked by: Lord Patten (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the dangers caused by cyclists riding on the pavement.
Answered by Lord Hendy of Richmond Hill - Minister of State (Department for Transport)
It is an offence under Section 72 of the Highways Act 1835 to cycle on the pavement and the only exception to this is for designated shared use paths. While there is no assessment of the dangers caused by pavement cycling, new offences in the Crime and Policing Bill are being introduced for cyclists who cause the death or serious injury of another person. These new offences will mean that cyclists will face the same penalties as those who commit motoring offences.
Asked by: Lord Patten (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the danger, if any, caused by cyclists using headphones on roads.
Answered by Lord Hendy of Richmond Hill - Minister of State (Department for Transport)
No such assessment has been made, and it is not an offence to use headphones while cycling. However, if this is done in such a way as to put other road users in danger, the police may choose to bring a prosecution for careless or dangerous cycling.
Rule 66 of the Highway Code states that people should “avoid any actions that could reduce control of your cycle” and Rule 67 says that people should “be aware of traffic coming up behind you, including other cyclists”. Wearing headphones could indirectly affect a person’s ability to comply with either of these rules.
Asked by: Lord Patten (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask His Majesty's Government what is their assessment of the danger, if any, caused by cycling on roads with one hand on the handlebars while using a mobile phone with the other.
Answered by Lord Hendy of Richmond Hill - Minister of State (Department for Transport)
Nobody should hold a mobile phone while cycling as this could affect their concentration and situational awareness. While no assessment of the dangers caused by this has been made, and it is not an offence to cycle and use a mobile phone, cyclists could be prosecuted by the police for careless or dangerous cycling.
Asked by: Lord Patten (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the amount spend on railway flood defences and embankment maintenance by (1) South Western Railway, and (2) Great Western Railway, in each of the past five years.
Answered by Lord Hendy of Richmond Hill - Minister of State (Department for Transport)
The Government has not carried out any assessments as described in the Noble Lord’s questions. Train Operating Companies, including South Western Railway and Great Western Railway, are not responsible for managing or maintaining railway infrastructure and have not incurred any expenditure on flood defences or embankment maintenance.
Network Rail has robust plans in place to improve and maintain infrastructure. The Wales & Western Region will see a £2.6 billion asset renewals programme and £1.6 billion invested to maintain existing assets and the Southern Region will see an investment of over £3 billion in infrastructure during the current Control Period to 2029.
It is also addressing severe weather events through comprehensive weather resilience and climate change adaptation plans, focusing on safeguarding assets, embedding resilience into daily operations, and adapting to climate change impacts across both the Wales & Western and Southern routes.
An example is the extensive works being implemented at Chipping Sodbury on the Great Western Main Line to mitigate the impact of flooding from both surface water and groundwater. The work already completed has improved the level of resilience from closure due to rainfall. Network Rail is funding further work at this location during the current Control Period to 2029.
Asked by: Lord Patten (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the resilience against flooding and landslips on embankments along the railway lines of (1) South Western Railway, and (2) Great Western Railway.
Answered by Lord Hendy of Richmond Hill - Minister of State (Department for Transport)
The Government has not carried out any assessments as described in the Noble Lord’s questions. Train Operating Companies, including South Western Railway and Great Western Railway, are not responsible for managing or maintaining railway infrastructure and have not incurred any expenditure on flood defences or embankment maintenance.
Network Rail has robust plans in place to improve and maintain infrastructure. The Wales & Western Region will see a £2.6 billion asset renewals programme and £1.6 billion invested to maintain existing assets and the Southern Region will see an investment of over £3 billion in infrastructure during the current Control Period to 2029.
It is also addressing severe weather events through comprehensive weather resilience and climate change adaptation plans, focusing on safeguarding assets, embedding resilience into daily operations, and adapting to climate change impacts across both the Wales & Western and Southern routes.
An example is the extensive works being implemented at Chipping Sodbury on the Great Western Main Line to mitigate the impact of flooding from both surface water and groundwater. The work already completed has improved the level of resilience from closure due to rainfall. Network Rail is funding further work at this location during the current Control Period to 2029.
Asked by: Lord Patten (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether bikes with different forms of power assistance used by food delivery drivers on roads and pathways are required to carry front and rear lights.
Answered by Lord Hendy of Richmond Hill - Minister of State (Department for Transport)
The Road Vehicles Lighting Regulations 1989 specify that cycles, must be fitted with a red rear reflector and amber pedal reflectors. The Highway Code, which incorporates the requirements of these Regulations, clarifies in Rule 60 that cycles must have white front and red rear lights lit when being ridden at night. These requirements apply to all cycles, as well as e-cycles which comply with the Electrically Assisted Pedal Cycle Regulations 1983, and are thereby applicable to all cyclists, including delivery riders.
Asked by: Lord Patten (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they will define the term "directing mind" in relation to Great British Railways.
Answered by Lord Hendy of Richmond Hill - Minister of State (Department for Transport)
The Railways Bill will set out Great British Railway's statutory functions, as the directing mind for the railway. In general terms Great British Railways (GBR) will manage cross-network planning and operations for current and future customer needs. With oversight by the Secretary of State and where necessary Scottish Ministers, GBR will make informed trade-offs between different uses of the railway, which is as crucial for the efficiency of freight operations as it is for passenger services.
Passengers and taxpayers expect a consistent service across the rail network, and the majority support the move to a publicly owned-rail network, as outlined in a YouGov survey from 2024.
Asked by: Lord Patten (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the reliability of South Western Railway Sunday services between Yeovil and London Waterloo.
Answered by Lord Hendy of Richmond Hill - Minister of State (Department for Transport)
South Western Railway Sunday services between Yeovil and London Waterloo have been challenging. Over the past 13 rail periods, 79.04% of services have departed within three minutes of their advertised departure time, with 96.73% departing within fifteen minutes. I am meeting South Western Railway on performance issues, as is being done with all Operators, later this month.
Asked by: Lord Patten (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have to reintroduce double track railway lines on the Tisbury loop between Salisbury and Gillingham, Dorset.
Answered by Lord Hendy of Richmond Hill - Minister of State (Department for Transport)
Future rail infrastructure investment will be considered as part of the current Spending Review, which will be concluded in June 2025.
Asked by: Lord Patten (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have to review the service provided by South Western Railway between London and Yeovil.
Answered by Lord Hendy of Richmond Hill - Minister of State (Department for Transport)
There are currently no plans to review the service between London and Yeovil. South-Western Railway is in continued contact with the Department regarding its service provision, including on the West of England line on which Yeovil sits. When reviewing services, the Department needs to assess business cases and balance demand with value for the taxpayer in its considerations.