Asked by: Harriett Baldwin (Conservative - West Worcestershire)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether he plans to sell an extension to the lease on the Motorway Service Area at Strensham Northbound on the M5.
Answered by Guy Opperman - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The Department for Transport is in discussions with the operator of Strensham Northbound motorway service area regarding the future of the lease at that site. The nature of these discussions means they are commercially confidential. A final decision is not required soon because the sites lease does not expire until 2042.
Asked by: Harriett Baldwin (Conservative - West Worcestershire)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what information his Department holds on the number of heavy goods vehicles that use the A4104 through Old Street, Upton-upon-Severn when (a) the B4211 Hanley Road is operating as normal and (b) when the B4211 Hanley Road is closed due to flooding from the River Severn.
Answered by Guy Opperman - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The Department for Transport does not hold data on the number of heavy goods vehicles that use the A4104 through Old Street, Upton-upon-Severn when (a) the B4211 Hanley Road is operating as normal and (b) when the B4211 Hanley Road is closed due to flooding from the River Severn.
Asked by: Harriett Baldwin (Conservative - West Worcestershire)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent assessment he has made of the ways in which the (a) walking and (b) cycling requirements of rural communities differ from those of major urban centres; and if he will make an assessment of the potential impact of producing a revised version of existing guidance on cycle infrastructure design (LTN 1/20) on the ability of rural authorities including Worcestershire County Council to take steps to promote a modal shift to walking and cycling in their areas.
Answered by Jesse Norman
The Department has established Active Travel England (ATE) to help local authorities to develop appropriate walking, wheeling and cycling schemes, and to use Departmental guidance such as the ‘Manual for Streets’ and ‘LTN 1/20 Cycle Infrastructure Design’.
ATE plans to develop specific additional guidance for rural settings by the end of the year. Officials of Active Travel England have recently met with officials at Worcestershire County Council to help them to support local priorities.
Asked by: Harriett Baldwin (Conservative - West Worcestershire)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what information he has received from Network Rail and train operating companies about the levels of usage of the ticket offices at (a) Great Malvern and (b) Malvern Link train stations.
Answered by Huw Merriman - Minister of State (Department for Transport)
The Secretary of State for Transport has not received any data from Network Rail or the train operating companies regarding the usage of ticket offices at Great Malvern and Malvern Link train stations.
Asked by: Harriett Baldwin (Conservative - West Worcestershire)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what service target his Department has in place for National Highways to install a speed-activated warning sign along dangerous parts of A-roads, including the A46.
Answered by Trudy Harrison
National Highways does not have a specific target to install speed activated warning signs along the Strategic Road Network. National Highways considers the case for these types of signs on different stretches of road according to the relevant safety data alongside other safety measures such as barriers and lighting.
Following engagement with local stakeholders, National Highways is exploring the possibility of introducing Vehicle Activated Signage (VAS) on the A46 in the Worcestershire area, which is specifically targeted at improving awareness of junctions which are not visible due to bends along the road.
Asked by: Harriett Baldwin (Conservative - West Worcestershire)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what information his Department has received from Highways England on plans for the A46 between Teddington Hands roundabout and Evesham; and what records his Department holds on the number of (a) crashes and (b) fatal accidents on that route in each of the last five years.
Answered by Trudy Harrison
National Highways is currently undertaking safety studies and speed surveys on the A46 between Junction 9 and Evesham to understand if any future improvements are needed. National Highways continues to engage with West Mercia Police about the possible review of the speed limit on this section of the A46 and will be able to provide a more comprehensive update in Spring next year.
The number of reported personal injury road accidents on the A46 between Teddington Hands roundabout and Evesham for the last 5 available years can be found in the table below.
Reported road accidents on the A46 between Teddington Hands roundabout and Evesham, 2016 to 2020 | |||||||||||
Year | Fatal | All | |||||||||
2016 | 0 | 6 | |||||||||
2017 | 0 | 6 | |||||||||
2018 | 0 | 9 | |||||||||
2019 | 1 | 10 | |||||||||
2020 | 0 | 4 | |||||||||
Source: DfT, STATS19 | |||||||||||
Asked by: Harriett Baldwin (Conservative - West Worcestershire)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what plans he has to progress plans to re-double the North Cotswold Line.
Answered by Chris Heaton-Harris - Secretary of State for Northern Ireland
The Department is currently considering the Strategic Outline Business Case resubmitted by the North Cotswold Line Task Force in February 2021, which sets out their proposals for transforming services on the route. A decision on whether the scheme can enter the Rail Network Enhancements Pipeline will be made shortly.
Asked by: Harriett Baldwin (Conservative - West Worcestershire)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what plans he has to reduce carbon emissions to zero from 2050 from the (a) aviation and (b) maritime sectors for UK (i) imports and (ii) exports.
Answered by Rachel Maclean
Our Transport Decarbonisation Plan will set out the measures we will take to reduce carbon emissions from the aviation and maritime sectors for both freight and leisure travel, in line with our commitment to deliver net zero emissions across the transport sector by 2050.
The aviation and maritime sectors are international by nature and, in addition to our domestic work to reduce emissions, we are continuing to drive ambition for global emissions reductions in international fora.
Asked by: Harriett Baldwin (Conservative - West Worcestershire)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 6 March 2020 to Question 21252 on Oxford-Hereford Railway Line, whether he has received the draft evaluation from Network Rail of the Strategic Business Case for the North Cotswold Line Option 5 improvements.
Answered by Chris Heaton-Harris - Secretary of State for Northern Ireland
The Department for Transport received Network Rail’s assessment on 26 August. A copy has been forwarded to North Cotswold Line Task Force representatives with an invitation to discuss the next steps for progressing the Business Case.
Asked by: Harriett Baldwin (Conservative - West Worcestershire)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what comparative assessment he has made of the frequency of serious accidents that close at least one lane in both directions from Junction 6 to Junction 4a of the M5 (i) before and (ii) since the M5 smart motorway was introduced.
Answered by Rachel Maclean
The J4a-6 M5 smart motorway scheme started construction in January 2016 and was opened for traffic in May 2017. The table below contains the number of reported traffic collisions reported by Highways England for this stretch of road, where a lane closure has been implemented:
Calendar Year | No. of recorded Traffic Collisions with a lane closure |
2015 | 97 |
2016 | 93 |
2017 | 121 |
2018 | 207 |
2019 | 136 |
The Department’s review of the safety of Smart Motorways across England, published in March 2020, showed that overall, the evidence shows that in most ways, smart motorways are as safe as, or safer than, the conventional ones. But not in every way. To ensure we are doing all we can do to improve safety, a package of 18 measures were published in March. This will allow us to retain the benefits of smart motorways while addressing the concerns that have been identified.