Asked by: Laura Kyrke-Smith (Labour - Aylesbury)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps her Department is taking to improve collaboration across local authority borders on bus routes.
Answered by Simon Lightwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
Local Transport Authorities (LTAs) already work closely together when tendering bus routes that cross shared boundaries, and in delivering their Bus Service Improvement Plans. There are also requirements set out in the Transport Act 2000 for LTAs to take account of the effect of an Enhanced Partnership on neighbouring areas, and for policies on bus services in neighbouring LTA areas to be considered when developing any franchising arrangements.
The Government has updated its bus franchising guidance to LTAs to make clear that they should consider cross-boundary services during any franchising assessment process. This includes as part of the commercial case, where they should set out how they intend to facilitate cross-boundary services to deliver relevant targets in both authorities’ areas.
In addition, the Government’s Bus Services Act 2025 puts the power over local bus services back in the hands of local leaders. This Bill is intended to ensure bus services reflect the needs of the communities that rely on them right across England, including services that cross local authority boundaries.
The Act gives franchising authorities greater scope to grant service permits to operators wishing to provide non-franchised services which enter a franchising area from another area. Franchising authorities will be able to take account of these proposed cross-boundary services’ benefits in all the areas where the service would run, not just the franchising area as before. This will enable franchising authorities to better harness the additionality the market can provide in delivering these important services and take a more holistic approach to cross-boundary bus provision.
Asked by: Laura Kyrke-Smith (Labour - Aylesbury)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether her Department plans to respond to findings of the consultation on Managing Pavement Parking which closed on 22 November 2020; and what assessment she has made of the potential merits of granting local authorities outside London more enforcement powers to manage pavement parking.
Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
The Department has been considering all the views expressed in response to the 2020 consultation and is currently working through the policy options and the appropriate means of delivering them. As soon as the Government has decided its preferred way forward, we will announce the next steps and publish our formal response. In the meantime, local authorities can make use of existing powers to restrict and enforce pavement parking.
Asked by: Laura Kyrke-Smith (Labour - Aylesbury)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps she is taking to ensure HS2 Ltd delivers value for money.
Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
We are carefully reviewing the position the government has inherited on rail infrastructure, including how to best support economic growth as well as addressing delivery and capacity challenges. We are looking at ways to improve HS2 Ltd's delivery and HMG oversight, whilst working with the incoming HS2 Ltd CEO to ensure HS2 is delivered to schedule and at the lowest reasonable cost, and we will set out detailed plans in due course.
Asked by: Laura Kyrke-Smith (Labour - Aylesbury)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment she has made of the potential implications for her policies of Chiltern Railways' proposals to bring in (a) replacement and (b) additional carriages to improve capacity on their existing routes.
Answered by Simon Lightwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The Department continues to work closely with Chiltern Railways to support the delivery of its long-term fleet strategy and has recently approved Chiltern Railways’ Mk3 fleet replacement Outline Business Case (OBC). Chiltern now needs to produce the Final Business Case.
Chiltern also continues to review opportunities to maximise its passenger capacity within its current train fleet. In June 2024, Chiltern introduced an additional morning and evening peak service on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays, between London Marylebone and Princes Risborough, which operated pre-COVID-19. This provides additional seating capacity in response to customer demand and crowding.
Asked by: Laura Kyrke-Smith (Labour - Aylesbury)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if she will have discussions with HS2 Ltd to ensure that HS2 works in Aylesbury constituency result in minimal disruption.
Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
The Department and I are working closely with HS2 Ltd to ensure that, as we deliver the railway, local communities are involved, informed, and treated with the respect they deserve. Construction of a project on the scale of HS2 will inevitably affect many people, including residents of Aylesbury, but a wide range of controls are in place, including a comprehensive Code of Construction Practice, and independent Commissioners, to minimise disruption as far as possible and to respond to any concerns raised. In recognition of those impacts that remain, however, local people may be interested in applying to the HS2 Community and Environment Fund, which provides grant funding for beneficial projects along the line of the route, and to mitigate the impact of HS2 works.