Asked by: Derek Twigg (Labour - Halton)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many Avanti trains between Runcorn and London have been cancelled each month since November 2021.
Answered by Huw Merriman - Minister of State (Department for Transport)
Generally, Runcorn is served by one Avanti West Coast train per hour to and from London Euston.
Period | Number of Avanti West Coast services cancelled between Runcorn and London Euston (Avanti West Coast caused, both directions) | Number of Avanti West Coast services cancelled between Runcorn and London Euston (All causes, both directions) |
14 November – 11 December 2021 | 19.5 | 23.5 |
12 December – 8 January 2022 | 46 | 49 |
9 January – 5 February 2022 | 12 | 13.5 |
6 February – 5 March 2022 | 20 | 27.5 |
6 March – 31 March 2022 | 28.5 | 29 |
1 April – 30 April 2022 | 46 | 53 |
1 May – 28 May 2022 | 31 | 41 |
29 May – 25 June 2022 | 44.5 | 56 |
26 June – 23 July 2022 | 115 | 138 |
24 July – 20 August 2022 | 80.5 | 88 |
21 August – 17 September | 42.5 | 51 |
18 September – 15 October 2022 | 42.5 | 43 |
16 October – 12 November 2022 | 36.5 | 48.5 |
Cancellation data by rail period was provided by the operator.
1 = A train ran less than half its planned mileage
0.5 = A train was cancelled but ran more than half its planned mileage
‘All causes’ includes cancellations resulting from infrastructure failure as well as any other external cause such as trespass or other train/freight operator failure. In the same period there were seven instances of services failing to call at Runcorn on route, as these services ran more than half their booked mileage they are counted as part cancellations in the table. None were Avanti West Coast caused.
Asked by: Derek Twigg (Labour - Halton)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 5 January 2022 to Question 92818, for what reason the DVLA is confident that it can trace 92.1 per cent of vehicles from its records; what records that Answer refers to; and how many vehicles comprise the 92.1 per cent of vehicles in that Answer.
Answered by Trudy Harrison
The Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) carries out quarterly scans of the vehicle register. The most recent scan shows that 92.1 per cent of vehicles on the database are traceable, equating to 46,284,393 vehicles that have been taxed or had a statutory off road notification made in the last five years. Traceable means that each of these vehicle records will have contact details (name and address) for the registered keeper of the vehicle to which the DVLA can send correspondence.
Asked by: Derek Twigg (Labour - Halton)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 13 December 2021 to Question 89507 on Motor Vehicles: Registration, how many vehicles have not been able to be traced in the latest period for which figures are available.
Answered by Trudy Harrison
While the DVLA is confident it can trace 92.1 per cent of vehicles from its records it does not hold specific information on how many vehicle keepers it has been unable to trace over a set period.
Asked by: Derek Twigg (Labour - Halton)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent assessment the DVLA has made of the accuracy of the V5C database.
Answered by Trudy Harrison
All vehicle keepers are legally responsible for ensuring that the information on the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA)’s vehicle record is accurate. This is important to ensure that vehicle keepers receive important information, for example reminders when their vehicle excise duty is due for renewal.
The DVLA regularly assesses the traceability of vehicle keepers from the information held on its records. From the latest available information, the DVLA is confident it can trace a vehicle in 92.1 per cent of its records.
Asked by: Derek Twigg (Labour - Halton)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 29 November 2021 to Question 80915 on Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency: Databases, how many drivers have been fined for not providing their correct address to the DVLA in each year since 2015.
Answered by Trudy Harrison
The data requested is not available. The police are responsible for prosecuting this offence and the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency is not routinely notified of convictions as the offence does not attract penalty points on a driving licence.
Asked by: Derek Twigg (Labour - Halton)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent assessment he has made of the accuracy of driver's address records held by the DVLA.
Answered by Trudy Harrison
All drivers have a legal responsibility to ensure that the address on their driving licence is correct. Not doing so is an offence which can be subject to a fine of up to £1000. It is important that drivers ensure that the address held on the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA)’s record is accurate so that they can receive important information, for example reminders when their licence is due for renewal. The DVLA relies on the public to provide accurate information and only becomes aware that an address on its records is inaccurate when it is notified of such.
To help ensure records are accurate, the DVLA maintains a database of suspect addresses which is updated regularly, and places markers on individual licence records where there is information to indicate that the address held is incorrect. No further licences are issued until any issues have been investigated.
Asked by: Derek Twigg (Labour - Halton)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment he has made of the time taken by the DVLA to process new driving licence applications in the last three months.
Answered by Rachel Maclean
The Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA)’s online services have been available throughout the pandemic and are the quickest and easiest way to renew a driving licence. There are no delays in online applications and customers should receive their driving licence within a few days.
However, many people still choose or have to make a paper application for a driving licence. The DVLA receives around 60,000 items of mail every day which must be dealt with in person. Fewer operational staff have been on site to allow for social distancing, in line with Welsh Government requirements. This, as well as ongoing industrial action by members of the Public and Commercial Services Union (PCS) has led to delays.
Currently, driving licence applications made on paper are likely to take six to ten weeks to process. More information on turnaround times is available online. There may be additional delays in processing more complex transactions, for example, if medical investigations are needed.
Asked by: Derek Twigg (Labour - Halton)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many applications for hedgehog road signage, warning motorists of animal hazards in the road, has he received from local authorities in the last three years; and how many of those applications have been approved by his Department.
Answered by Rachel Maclean
The Department has received six applications for the small wild mammal traffic sign in the last three years. None of these applications have been approved.
Asked by: Derek Twigg (Labour - Halton)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many driving licence applications had been received but not processed on 30 August 2020; and what estimate he has made of the average time taken to process those applications.
Answered by Rachel Maclean
The number of paper driving licence applications waiting to be processed fluctuates on a daily basis as licences are issued and new applications received. On 1 September, there were 127,870 paper driving licence applications where customers had applied directly to the DVLA, awaiting processing. As of 15 September, this had reduced to 94,920.
The average time taken to deal with driving licence applications received across online and paper channels is 5.26 days.
Asked by: Derek Twigg (Labour - Halton)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many and what proportion of the DVLA workforce are currently (a) working at DVLA premises and (b) processing driving licences.
Answered by Rachel Maclean
All Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) staff who can work from home continue to do so as office space has been prioritised for operational staff who have to be on-site to process paper applications. The DVLA’s online services have worked well throughout the pandemic and this remains the quickest and easiest way of making applications.
The DVLA is employing shift patterns, staggered start times, weekend working and other measures to ensure that social distancing can be maintained. Due to this, the number of staff who can be on-site at any one time is greatly reduced but the working day has been significantly extended. This means that almost all DVLA operational staff are now working on-site but not all at the same time.
Staff are allocated to different work streams at different times depending on where the need is greatest. All driving licences and driving entitlement expiring between 1 February 2020 and 31 December 2020 have been extended for 11 months. This means that no drivers currently need to apply to renew a driving licence or driving entitlement.