Asked by: Fleur Anderson (Labour - Putney)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent assessment he has made of the adequacy of the safety of the railways.
Answered by Huw Merriman - Minister of State (Department for Transport)
The Office of Rail and Road (ORR), as the railway safety regulator, produces an annual health and safety report that assesses the safety of the railways in Great Britain. The latest report findings published in July 2023 confirms that our railways remain one of the safest in Europe. However, we cannot be complacent, so the Department continues to regularly monitor safety trends and statistics, working closely with the ORR, the Rail Safety and Standards Board and wider rail sector, to identify where safety can be improved.
Asked by: Fleur Anderson (Labour - Putney)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent assessment his Department has made of the potential impact of the brightness of car headlights on road safety.
Answered by Guy Opperman - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
Police recorded collision statistics do not suggest that there is an underlying road safety issue associated with the brightness of headlamps. All types of road vehicle headlamps are designed, tested and approved to internationally recognised standards to help prevent undue glare. However, the Government is aware of concerns raised by members of the public and we are examining options for addressing this.
Asked by: Fleur Anderson (Labour - Putney)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether he has had recent discussions with rail company operators on the reasons for which there are differences in the cost of (a) online and (b) ticket machine ticket purchases.
Answered by Huw Merriman - Minister of State (Department for Transport)
Ticket Vending Machines are typically used to purchase low price, short distance fares on the day of travel, rather than advanced fares. We are working closely with industry to improve the rail retailing offer and make it quicker and more convenient for passengers to buy tickets, including by rolling out pilots on simpler fares and pay-as-you-go technology.
Asked by: Fleur Anderson (Labour - Putney)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether his Department will make an assessment of the disparities in pricing between (a) online retailers of train tickets and (b) station based ticket machines.
Answered by Huw Merriman - Minister of State (Department for Transport)
Ticket Vending Machines are typically used to purchase low price, short distance fares on the day of travel, rather than advanced fares. We are working closely with industry to improve the rail retailing offer and make it quicker and more convenient for passengers to buy tickets, including by rolling out pilots on simpler fares and pay-as-you-go technology.
Asked by: Fleur Anderson (Labour - Putney)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will make it his policy to include (a) information on and (b) opt-in forms for (i) organ, (ii) stem cell and (iii) blood donation with DVLA application forms.
Answered by Guy Opperman - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
Following a request from the National Health Blood and Transplant Service (NHSBT), the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) introduced a process to enable driving licence applicants to register their details on the NHS Organ Donor Register. This can be done when applying for a driving licence using DVLA’s paper or online services. When an applicant notifies the DVLA that they wish to register as an organ donor, this is recorded on their driving licence and the NHS Organ Donor Register.
The Department remains happy to consider a similar process for stem cell and blood donation should such a request be received.
Asked by: Fleur Anderson (Labour - Putney)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether his Department has made an assessment of the potential impact of private jets on trends in the levels of (a) air pollution and (b) CO2 emissions.
Answered by Anthony Browne - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The Department for Transport has recently commissioned independent research to establish a baseline of carbon emissions by the General Aviation sector, which included private jets. Officials are considering next steps in how we can utilise the data from the report to support policy development and undertake measures to further support the decarbonisation of the sector.
In relation to local air quality, the impact of a standard aircraft’s emissions plume, at or above 3,000 ft, on nitrogen oxides (NOx) ground-level concentrations is very small even in a very conservative analysis, and 1,000 ft is the typical limiting altitude for ground-level NOx concerns.
We are taking active measures to reduce emissions from aviation whilst retaining our ability to fly. The aviation sector, including business aviation, is important for the whole of the UK economy, making an important contribution in terms of connectivity, direct economic activity, trade, investment and jobs.
The Jet Zero Strategy shows that the aviation sector can achieve net zero aviation by 2050 without government intervention limiting aviation growth. We will achieve our targets by focusing on new fuels and technology, which have economic and social benefits, without limiting demand.
Asked by: Fleur Anderson (Labour - Putney)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent steps his Department has taken to help increase the affordability of bus travel.
Answered by Guy Opperman - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
In the National Bus Strategy, the Government set out a bold vision to transform bus services around the country; a key part of this vision was making bus services more affordable. We therefore introduced a £2 cap on single bus fares in England outside London on 1 January 2023 to help passengers save on their regular travel costs. The Government is investing nearly £600 million to deliver the scheme, including additional funding redirected from HS2 to keep the cap in place until the end of 2024. There are currently over 140 bus operators and more than 5,000 routes in the scheme.
The Department’s statistics show that following the introduction of the £2 fare cap in January 2023, bus fares in England outside London dropped by 6.2% between September 2022 and September 2023, whereas in Scotland, Wales and London, where buses are devolved and not included in the £2 fare cap, fares increased by 9.8%, 6.2% and 6.0%, respectively.
In October 2023, the Prime Minister also announced that a further £1 billion would be redirected from HS2 to deliver better bus services in the North and the Midlands. This funding is in addition to the more than £1.2 billion the Government is already providing to Local Transport Authorities (LTAs) to deliver their Bus Service Improvement Plans (BSIPs). BSIP funding is intended to be used by LTAs to support the aims of the National Bus Strategy to make buses more frequent, more reliable, easier to understand and use, better co-ordinated and more affordable. It sets out the changes we want to see on fares, including for low flat fares (or maximum fares and daily price caps) to be the norm within cities and towns. Each LTAs BSIP sets out how they will achieve these objectives, including plans and costs for implementing new fares and ticketing policies, in addition to the Government’s £2 fare cap, to reduce costs for passengers.
Asked by: Fleur Anderson (Labour - Putney)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will make it his policy to allow people applying for driving licences on the DVLA website to sign up for (a) stem cell and (b) blood donation.
Answered by Guy Opperman - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
Following a request from the National Health Blood and Transplant Service, a process was introduced to enable driving licence applicants to register their details on the NHS Organ Donor Register. This includes those applying via DVLA’s online services. The Department hasn’t been asked to consider this with stem and blood donation, but it would be happy to consider.
Asked by: Fleur Anderson (Labour - Putney)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, when the Hammersmith Bridge Task Force last met; and when the next meeting will be.
Answered by Richard Holden - Minister without Portfolio (Cabinet Office)
The Hammersmith Bridge Taskforce last met in November 2021. The current priority for the Department for Transport, the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham, and Transport for London, is to deliver the stabilisation works and develop a business case for the second stage of works. A further meeting of the Taskforce may be considered when a discussion is required.
Asked by: Fleur Anderson (Labour - Putney)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent steps he has taken with (a) the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham and (b) Transport for London to help reopen Hammersmith Bridge to vehicles as quickly as possible.
Answered by Richard Holden - Minister without Portfolio (Cabinet Office)
The Department for Transport has engaged with the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham (LBHF) on the development of an Outline Business Case for the forthcoming strengthening works on Hammersmith Bridge. The Department has co-operated with Transport for London on the governance of this business case.
In addition to granting £2.93m to LBHF for the soon to be complete stabilisation works, the Department also recently granted £2.5m to LBHF for the geo-technical investigations required for the next stage of works.