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Written Question
Driverless Vehicles: Standards
Monday 11th September 2023

Asked by: Alun Cairns (Conservative - Vale of Glamorgan)

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of (a) legal and (b) industry standards for emerging technologies for autonomous vehicles.

Answered by Jesse Norman

The Government paper “Connected & Automated Mobility 2025: realising the benefits of self-driving vehicles in the UK” sets out the Government’s plans to support the development and deployment of safe self-driving vehicles in the UK. This includes proposals for a comprehensive regulatory, legislative and safety framework. The Department remains committed to these plans will bring forward primary legislation as soon as parliamentary time allows.

Alongside developing legal and regulatory frameworks, the government has committed £100 million of new Research and Development funding following the Government’s Spending Review for the period 2022/23 to 2024/25, which is allocated to the Centre for Connected and Autonomous Vehicles (CCAV) through two Departments:

  1. £66 million in the Department for Business and Trade to support commercial deployment of connected and self-driving technologies.
  2. £34 million in the Department for Transport (DfT) for creation of a safety assurance framework for self-driving vehicles.


Written Question
Driverless Vehicles
Monday 11th September 2023

Asked by: Alun Cairns (Conservative - Vale of Glamorgan)

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what his Department’s latest plans are to support the rollout of autonomous vehicles.

Answered by Jesse Norman

The Government paper “Connected & Automated Mobility 2025: realising the benefits of self-driving vehicles in the UK” sets out the Government’s plans to support the development and deployment of safe self-driving vehicles in the UK. This includes proposals for a comprehensive regulatory, legislative and safety framework. The Department remains committed to these plans will bring forward primary legislation as soon as parliamentary time allows.

Alongside developing legal and regulatory frameworks, the government has committed £100 million of new Research and Development funding following the Government’s Spending Review for the period 2022/23 to 2024/25, which is allocated to the Centre for Connected and Autonomous Vehicles (CCAV) through two Departments:

  1. £66 million in the Department for Business and Trade to support commercial deployment of connected and self-driving technologies.
  2. £34 million in the Department for Transport (DfT) for creation of a safety assurance framework for self-driving vehicles.


Written Question
Railway Stations: Construction
Monday 28th March 2022

Asked by: Alun Cairns (Conservative - Vale of Glamorgan)

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what the track gradient was for each new train station built in the last 10 years.

Answered by Wendy Morton

The location of new stations must satisfy safety regulations and performance and not be located on gradients greater than 1 in 500. Network Rail holds gradient information for each station built in the last 10 years.


Written Question
Electric Scooters
Thursday 13th January 2022

Asked by: Alun Cairns (Conservative - Vale of Glamorgan)

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what discussions he has had with the Home Secretary on providing guidance to the police on tackling (a) illegal or (b) unsafe usage of E-scooters.

Answered by Trudy Harrison

The Department has in place a comprehensive monitoring and evaluation programme for the trials. The interim report should be published shortly, and we expect to publish the final report in spring 2022.

Officials have been in regular contact with the National Police Chiefs’ Council who are developing a national strategy for tacking the illegal use of e-scooters (both private use and illegal use in trial areas – pavement and twin riding) to ensure a more uniform approach, but it is not our intention to provide guidance to the police. Enforcement of offences relating to unlawful use of e-scooters is an operational matter for individual Chief Officers of police in conjunction with local policing plans.

Officials have also been in contact with their counterparts at the Home Office to provide briefing for Ministers on the e-scooter trials.


Written Question
Electric Scooters
Thursday 13th January 2022

Asked by: Alun Cairns (Conservative - Vale of Glamorgan)

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, when he will publish the findings of the trials conducted by the Government on E-scooters.

Answered by Trudy Harrison

The Department has in place a comprehensive monitoring and evaluation programme for the trials. The interim report should be published shortly, and we expect to publish the final report in spring 2022.

Officials have been in regular contact with the National Police Chiefs’ Council who are developing a national strategy for tacking the illegal use of e-scooters (both private use and illegal use in trial areas – pavement and twin riding) to ensure a more uniform approach, but it is not our intention to provide guidance to the police. Enforcement of offences relating to unlawful use of e-scooters is an operational matter for individual Chief Officers of police in conjunction with local policing plans.

Officials have also been in contact with their counterparts at the Home Office to provide briefing for Ministers on the e-scooter trials.


Written Question
Motorways: Accidents
Thursday 17th December 2020

Asked by: Alun Cairns (Conservative - Vale of Glamorgan)

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what estimate he has made of the number of (a) accidents and (b) breakdowns on each stretch of smart motorway in each of the last 5 years.

Answered by Rachel Maclean

The number of accidents has been taken to mean the number of injury casualties. The tables in Annexes B, C and D of the Smart Motorways Evidence Stocktake and Action Plan show the number of reported casualties by road class on England's Strategic Road Network (SRN) for slight, serious and fatal casualties. These tables show the casualty split on different types of motorway. These tables are attached for ease of reference. Highways England is currently analysing the 2019 data and, when available, will analyse the 2020 data, which is expected to be in Autumn 2021.

The last full year of data available is for 2019, the statistic for which are set out in the table 1, note that ‘motorway’ refers to ‘conventional motorways’ excluding all other types set out in the table.

As outlined in the published STATS19 data, the number of incidents increased across the network in 2019, and the amount of All Lane Running (ALR) sections of the network also increased over this period. In the time available, it has not been possible to provide data on accidents and breakdowns for each stretch of motorway.

Highways England does not hold data for the attendance of incidents by vehicle recovery companies or the emergency services.


Written Question
Motorways: Emergency Services
Thursday 17th December 2020

Asked by: Alun Cairns (Conservative - Vale of Glamorgan)

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what estimate his Department has made of the (a) longest and (b) shortest amount of time taken for rescue vehicles to reach vehicles that have broken down on smart motorways in each of the last 5 years.

Answered by Rachel Maclean

The number of accidents has been taken to mean the number of injury casualties. The tables in Annexes B, C and D of the Smart Motorways Evidence Stocktake and Action Plan show the number of reported casualties by road class on England's Strategic Road Network (SRN) for slight, serious and fatal casualties. These tables show the casualty split on different types of motorway. These tables are attached for ease of reference. Highways England is currently analysing the 2019 data and, when available, will analyse the 2020 data, which is expected to be in Autumn 2021.

The last full year of data available is for 2019, the statistic for which are set out in the table 1, note that ‘motorway’ refers to ‘conventional motorways’ excluding all other types set out in the table.

As outlined in the published STATS19 data, the number of incidents increased across the network in 2019, and the amount of All Lane Running (ALR) sections of the network also increased over this period. In the time available, it has not been possible to provide data on accidents and breakdowns for each stretch of motorway.

Highways England does not hold data for the attendance of incidents by vehicle recovery companies or the emergency services.


Written Question
Motor Vehicles: Fuels
Wednesday 26th February 2020

Asked by: Alun Cairns (Conservative - Vale of Glamorgan)

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment he has made on the potential for synthetic fuel to drive motor vehicles to help meet the 2035 ban on diesel and petrol cars.

Answered by Rachel Maclean

The Government is consulting on ending the sale of new petrol, diesel and hybrid cars and vans from 2040 to 2035, or earlier if feasible. This is in line with advice from the independent Committee on Climate Change on what is required to achieve net zero emissions in 2050. Existing vehicles will be unaffected by this.

Renewable fuels, including renewable synthetic fuels, are incentivised through the Renewable Transport Fuel Obligation and are an important measure to reduce greenhouse gas emissions as we transition to zero emission vehicles.

Vehicles fuelled by renewable synthetic equivalents of petrol and diesel have the potential to reduce greenhouse gas emissions but are unlikely to offer the air quality benefits of battery electric or hydrogen fuelled vehicles.


Written Question
Motor Vehicles: Exhaust Emissions
Thursday 13th February 2020

Asked by: Alun Cairns (Conservative - Vale of Glamorgan)

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what plans he has to provide exemptions to specialist automotive sectors from the proposed ban on the sale of petrol and diesel vehicles in 2035.

Answered by Grant Shapps - Secretary of State for Defence

The Prime Minister announced last week that we are consulting on bringing forward the end to the sale of new petrol and diesel cars and vans to 2035, or earlier if a faster transition appears feasible, as well as including hybrids for the first time. We are consulting on the Committee on Climate Change recommendation that any new vehicles sold after the phase out date must be zero emission at the tailpipe. We understand the concerns of low volume manufacturers and we will be engaging with stakeholders on a package of support allowing us to seize the opportunities and lead the world in the shift to zero emission vehicles.

As part of this consultation, we are asking what the accompanying package of support will need to be to enable the transition and minimise the impacts on businesses and consumers across the UK, building on the significant demand and supply side measures already in place. The Government will continue to work with all sectors of industry to accelerate the rollout of zero emission vehicles - helping to deliver new green jobs in the UK.


Written Question
Driving Licences
Thursday 13th February 2020

Asked by: Alun Cairns (Conservative - Vale of Glamorgan)

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many driving licences were (a) revoked and (b) suspended for medical reasons in each of the last five years.

Answered by Grant Shapps - Secretary of State for Defence

The table below provides a breakdown of revocations or applications refused on medical grounds, for drivers with car and motorcycle entitlement (group one) and for drivers with lorry and bus entitlement (group two) for the last five calendar years.

Year

Group1 (car/motorcycle)

Group 2 (lorry/bus)

2015

47,658

8,095

2016

61,354

10,665

2017

59,163

11,213

2018

61,482

12,242

2019

62,613

10,371

Some individuals may be recorded in both groups as their licences to drive all vehicles have been revoked or refused. Others may not meet the higher medical standards required for driving lorries or buses but may have been allowed to retain their entitlement to drive cars and motorcycles.

The Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency does not temporarily suspend driving licences for medical reasons.