Asked by: Al Pinkerton (Liberal Democrat - Surrey Heath)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment she has made of the potential merits of providing funding for new railway stations that offer a direct route to London in Surrey Heath constituency.
Answered by Simon Lightwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The Government believes that local leaders are best placed to prioritise and take forward regeneration projects which are most appropriate for the areas they serve, particularly where they will support economic growth, job creation, more and better housing. I would encourage you to engage further with local planning teams and local stakeholders to make the case for funding new railway stations in the Surrey Heath constituency.
Asked by: Al Pinkerton (Liberal Democrat - Surrey Heath)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps she is taking to improve road safety near schools in Surrey Heath constituency.
Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
My Department is developing our Road Safety Strategy and will set out more details in due course.
Active Travel England and my Department published joint School Streets Guidance in November 2024. School Streets schemes restrict motor traffic outside schools during pick-up and drop-off times; reducing congestion, improving safety and enabling more pupils to walk, wheel or cycle.
Asked by: Al Pinkerton (Liberal Democrat - Surrey Heath)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if Ministers in her Department will meet with the hon. Member for Surrey Heath to discuss national infrastructure improvements where the A322 meets the M3 Junction 3.
Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
I would be happy to meet to discuss potential improvements to this junction and surrounding roads as the Minister responsible for this matter.
Asked by: Al Pinkerton (Liberal Democrat - Surrey Heath)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps her Department has taken to reduce congestion at the meeting of the A322 with the M3 Junction 3 in Surrey Heath constituency.
Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
National Highways undertook an early-stage study of the M3 junction 3 in 2023. As well as a long-term large-scale enhancement to address both congestion and incidents, it is considering smaller, tactical solutions that can be delivered in the short-term. It is commencing a feasibility study on small-scale improvements, working closely with Surrey County Council who are responsible for the A322. This work will form the evidence base for potential future enhancements to be delivered during RIS3, beyond 2026.
Asked by: Al Pinkerton (Liberal Democrat - Surrey Heath)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment she has made of the (a) effectiveness and (b) cost-efficiency of pothole repair strategies in Surrey Heath Constituency.
Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
Surrey County Council is the local highway authority for the Surrey Heath constituency. The Government takes the condition of local roads very seriously and is committed to helping local highway authorities such as Surrey County Council maintain and renew their local highway networks.
At Budget 2024, the Chancellor announced an extra £500 million for local highway maintenance for the 2025/26 financial year, with funding allocations to individual English local highway authorities announced on 20 December 2024. Surrey County Council will receive up to £32.4 million for local highway maintenance in 2025/26, an increase of around 38% compared to the current financial year.
The effectiveness and cost-efficiency of Surrey’s highway maintenance programmes, including strategies concerning potholes and other road defects, is a matter for the Council.
Asked by: Al Pinkerton (Liberal Democrat - Surrey Heath)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps her Department is taking to prevent sinkhole formation in Surrey Heath constituency.
Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
Tackling problems such as sinkholes on local roads is a matter for local highway authorities. Surrey County Council is the local highway authority for Surrey Heath constituency. For the 2025/26 financial year, the Government is providing Surrey County Council with £32.4 million for local highway maintenance, which is an extra £8.5 million compared to 2024/25. It is up to local highway authorities to determine how best to spend this funding to maintain all parts of their networks, including tackling issues of this sort.
Asked by: Al Pinkerton (Liberal Democrat - Surrey Heath)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps her Department is taking to mitigate travel disruptions caused by flooding in Surrey Heath constituency.
Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The Government recognises that flooding can have a devastating impact on people, businesses and communities, as well as causing disruption to all road users. The Government is working at pace to accelerate the building of flood defences through a new Floods Resilience Taskforce and is investing £2.4 billion to better protect people and communities across the country.
Surrey County Council is the local highway authority for Surrey Heath. For the 2025/26 financial year, the Government is providing Surrey County Council with £32.4 million for local highway maintenance, which is an extra £8.5 million compared to 2024/25. Funding allocations can be found on gov.uk.
In addition, the Department is working with the UK Roads Leadership Group’s (UKRLG) Adaptation, Biodiversity & Climate Board to provide guidance to local highway authorities on how to reduce the mitigate the impacts of flooding on local roads. A recently published UKRLG-commissioned report, Emergency Preparedness, Response & Recovery, considers the lessons learned from extreme weather events, such as flooding, and makes recommendations for Government and local highway authorities on improving resilience.
Asked by: Al Pinkerton (Liberal Democrat - Surrey Heath)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of Farnborough Airport’s expansion on (a) noise pollution and (b) air pollution in the South-East.
Answered by Mike Kane - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
Assessment of the potential impact of Farnborough Airport’s expansion is a matter for Rushmoor Borough Council as local planning authority responsible for considering the airport’s planning application.
Asked by: Al Pinkerton (Liberal Democrat - Surrey Heath)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment her Department has made of the impact of London-licensed Uber drivers operating in non-metropolitan areas on the viability of independent taxi businesses.
Answered by Simon Lightwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
Taxis and private hire vehicles have always been permitted to carry pre-booked fares outside the area in which they are licensed. This allows the sector to work more flexibly to meet the needs of their passengers.
The Government however recognises concerns around out-of-area working and is considering options to strengthen the regulation of the sector.
Asked by: Al Pinkerton (Liberal Democrat - Surrey Heath)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps her Department has taken to (a) promote and (b) develop green transport infrastructure such as (i) cycle paths, (ii) electric vehicle charging points and (iii) electric bus routes.
Answered by Simon Lightwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The Department has recently announced nearly £300 million of funding to help local authorities and Sustrans to introduce and improve walking and cycling paths, and to fund promote walking, wheeling and cycling.
As of 1 February 2025, the Government and industry have supported the installation of 74,234 publicly available charging devices (including 14,687 rapid charging devices).
Since 2021, the Department has awarded over £460m of dedicated funding for zero emission buses and infrastructure in England (outside London). Future funding to support the continued decarbonisation of the bus sector, as well as to support local authorities to deliver important air quality improvements, will be considered as part of the forthcoming Spending Review.