Asked by: Charlotte Cane (Liberal Democrat - Ely and East Cambridgeshire)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps she is taking to increase railway capacity.
Answered by Simon Lightwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The department requires its operators to plan services and rail timetables that are designed to meet expected passenger demand. These should be resilient and provide value for money for the taxpayer. Timetables are kept under review and, where appropriate, adjusted to reflect fluctuations in demand.
Individual infrastructure enhancement schemes that may increase capacity will be assessed on their alignment with Government Missions and Transport Priorities, the strength of their business case, and their affordability.
Great British Railways will provide the opportunity to take joined up, whole system decisions that make the best use of the network for passengers and taxpayers.
Asked by: Charlotte Cane (Liberal Democrat - Ely and East Cambridgeshire)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of changes to the bus fare cap on vulnerable people.
Answered by Simon Lightwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
On 1 January, the government introduced a £3 cap on single bus fares in England outside London until 31 December 2025. The government is investing over £150 million to deliver the £3 cap, which replaced the £2 cap, and will ensure millions of people, including vulnerable people, can continue to access affordable bus fares and better opportunities all over the country.
If the government had not taken action, the bus fare cap would have ended and fares would have jumped back up to their previous levels on 1 January which could have meant fares soaring above £10 on the most expensive routes.
Asked by: Charlotte Cane (Liberal Democrat - Ely and East Cambridgeshire)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps she is taking to make rail fares more affordable.
Answered by Simon Lightwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
Whilst it is our ambition through public ownership to deliver a more affordable railway, any long-term changes or concessions made to rail fares policy require balancing against the potential impacts on passengers, taxpayers and the railway. Most regulated rail fares will increase by 4.6 per cent on 2 March 2025. This will be the lowest absolute increase in three years and will support the Government’s long-term plans to achieve financial sustainability of the railway.
Asked by: Charlotte Cane (Liberal Democrat - Ely and East Cambridgeshire)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps she is taking to increase access to rail links in rural communities.
Answered by Simon Lightwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
Rail has an important role in connecting rural communities as part of the wider transport system. The department requires its train operators to plan services and rail timetables that are designed to meet expected passenger demand. These should be resilient and provide value for money for the taxpayer. These timetables are kept under review and, where appropriate, adjusted to reflect fluctuations in demand.
Asked by: Charlotte Cane (Liberal Democrat - Ely and East Cambridgeshire)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent assessment she has made of the adequacy of passenger rail performance.
Answered by Simon Lightwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
Ministers have been clear that rail services have been failing passengers. Cancellations are at a ten-year high and punctuality is inconsistent across the network. We need to improve services for passengers and deliver better value for money for the taxpayer.
Publicly-owned Great British Railways will end years of fragmentation – bringing together track and train to deliver for passengers with more reliable, better-quality services and simpler ticketing and fares. Shadow Great British Railways (SGBR) will start to provide the opportunity to take joined up, whole system decisions that improve performance for the benefit of passengers and taxpayers.
Asked by: Charlotte Cane (Liberal Democrat - Ely and East Cambridgeshire)
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 changes to the bus fare cap on trends in the level of bus users.
Answered by Simon Lightwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The government is investing over £150 million to deliver the new £3 cap on single bus fares in England outside London from 1 January until 31 December 2025. Under the plans of the previous administration, the £2 cap on bus fares had been due to expire on 31 December 2024, and prior to the Budget, there was no further funding available to maintain a cap on bus fares beyond this point.
The published interim evaluation of the £2 fare cap showed that patronage continued to recover following the COVID 19 pandemic and early evidence from the first two months of the scheme suggested the £2 fare cap may have played a role in this recovery. The final evaluation of the £2 fare cap, including a further assessment of its impact on patronage will be published in due course.
Asked by: Charlotte Cane (Liberal Democrat - Ely and East Cambridgeshire)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent assessment she has made of the adequacy of bus services in rural areas.
Answered by Simon Lightwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
Good local bus services have an essential role to play in keeping rural communities connected. The government introduced the Bus Services (No.2) Bill on 17 December as part of its ambitious plan for bus reform. The Bill puts the power over local bus services back in the hands of local leaders right across England and is intended to ensure bus services reflect the needs of the communities that rely on them, including in rural areas. The government has committed to increasing accountability by including a measure on socially necessary services so that local authorities and bus operators have to have regard for alternatives to changing or cancelling services.
In addition, the government has confirmed £955 million for the 2025 to 2026 financial year to support and improve bus services in England outside London. This includes £243 million for bus operators and £712 million allocated to local authorities across the country. Local authorities can use this funding to introduce new bus routes, make services more frequent and protect crucial bus routes for local communities.
Asked by: Charlotte Cane (Liberal Democrat - Ely and East Cambridgeshire)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps she is taking to help increase the availability of electric vehicle charging infrastructure.
Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The Government’s Local Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Fund is providing local authorities in England with over £380m to support the installation of tens of thousands of public chargepoints.
As well as significant funding, the Government continues to make it easier, quicker and cheaper to install chargepoints. In December, the Government announced that it will make changes to planning legislation to facilitate off-street chargepoint installations and to allow the use of street works permits for quicker charger deployment. The Government also published guidance to help local authorities with cross-pavement charging solutions and the results of a review to address common issues around EV infrastructure and grid connections.
Asked by: Charlotte Cane (Liberal Democrat - Ely and East Cambridgeshire)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, when she plans to decide whether her Department will provide funding for the Ely area capacity enhancement scheme.
Answered by Simon Lightwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
This government is committed to delivering economic growth, and projects such as the Ely Area Capacity Enhancement have the potential to contribute to this. While the previous government made public statements of support for the project, no funding was provided to allow it to progress.
The Chancellor has been clear about the state of the nation's finances and has launched a multi-year Spending Review. Decisions and timescales about individual projects will be informed by the review process and confirmed in due course.
Asked by: Charlotte Cane (Liberal Democrat - Ely and East Cambridgeshire)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether her Department has a strategy for maintaining floating roads in the Fens.
Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The Government takes the condition of local roads very seriously and is committed to maintaining and renewing the local road network.
Local highway authorities, such as Cambridgeshire County Council, have a duty under Section 41 of the Highways Act 1980 to maintain the highways network in their area. They are best placed to understand local needs and priorities as well as any particular challenges caused by the local geology or topography.