Asked by: Mark Pritchard (Conservative - The Wrekin)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what plans he has to keep passengers on public transport who have travelled to the UK from overseas separate from all other passengers on public transport as part of the Government's 14 day quarantine policy.
Answered by Kelly Tolhurst
The Government is encouraging passengers arriving into the UK to use their own private transport or to arrange with friends or family to collect them from the airport, port or station. If they have no other option, passengers are advised to follow the “Safer travel guidance for passengers” when taking public transport, which recommends wearing a face covering if they can, and keeping a 2m distance from others where possible.
The guidance is available at: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/coronavirus-covid-19-safer-travel-guidance-for-passengers
Asked by: Mark Pritchard (Conservative - The Wrekin)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps he is taking to improve the provision of bus services serving The Wrekin constituency.
Answered by Kelly Tolhurst
The bus market outside London is deregulated and decisions regarding service provision are primarily a commercial matter for bus operators. However, the Bus Services Act 2017 provides the tools local authorities need to improve local bus services and increase passenger numbers.
The Government provided £90,742 for Telford and Wrekin Council during 2018/19, to support vulnerable services.
In addition, we have announced a further £30 million for less commercial services. Telford and Wrekin Council has been allocated £77,984 which will be available from April 2020 if the funding requirements are met. This is from the £220 million Better Deal for Bus Users package to transform bus services. The Government’s ambition is to secure a long term, sustained improvement in bus services underpinned by a National Bus Strategy for England which will be accompanied by a long-term funding settlement.
On 11 February 2020, the Prime Minister announced there will be £5 billion of new funding to overhaul bus and cycle links for every region outside London which may benefit bus services serving The Wrekin.
Asked by: Mark Pritchard (Conservative - The Wrekin)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will make an assessment of the effectiveness of the Highways England road maintenance plan for the M54.
Answered by Jesse Norman
Highways England carry out a safety inspection of the M54 every 7 days to ensure the carriageway and physical infrastructure are in a safe condition for the travelling public. The condition of the road surface is inspected for safety defects at the same time and an additional comprehensive inspection is carried out annually. The results from these inspections are then reviewed by Highways England: if schemes are required for necessary improvements then these are designed and developed.
Highways England recently completed a resurfacing of the eastbound carriageway between junction 2 of the M54 and junction 10a of the M6 in May 2018. The westbound carriageway works for the same junctions were also completed in July.
Highways England have two schemes which are planned for the M54. M54 Junction 2 – Junction 3 barrier repairs are planned for later this year and M54 Junction 7, Wrong Way Driving Mitigation, is planned for early in 2019.
Highways England are currently developing their maintenance investment plan for the next financial year and any further improvements to the M54 will be announced in due course.
Asked by: Mark Pritchard (Conservative - The Wrekin)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will hold discussions with Arriva buses to ensure that its statutory obligations relating to access to public transport in rural areas are upheld.
Answered by Nusrat Ghani - Minister of State (Minister for Europe)
Outside of London, the bus market in England is deregulated. Bus operators have no statutory obligations to make public transport available in particular areas. Where there is not enough demand for a bus route to be commercially viable in its own right, all local authorities have powers to subsidise bus services where they are considered socially necessary. However, the Government understands how important public transport is for those living in rural areas. Ministers from the Department regularly hold discussions with a wide range of bus operators, including Arriva where rural bus service provision is a key focal point of discussion.
Asked by: Mark Pritchard (Conservative - The Wrekin)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will introduce a statutory maximum temperature on (a) stationary aircraft and (b) aircraft in flight.
Answered by John Hayes
The European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) has requirements in the aircraft certification specifications regarding the ventilation requirements of aircraft cabin, but no maximum temperature has been identified. It would be for EASA to introduce any changes to these safety requirements, based on robust evidence base.
Asked by: Mark Pritchard (Conservative - The Wrekin)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will introduce stronger key performance indicators to evaluate the performance of Highways England.
Answered by John Hayes
The Government will review Highways England’s existing performance indicators and targets when setting the next Road Investment Strategy. As part of this process the Government will consider whether existing indicators and targets should be strengthened, and whether new indicators should be introduced.
Asked by: Mark Pritchard (Conservative - The Wrekin)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will discuss with the European Aviation Safety Agency agreeing a minimum numbers of hours for airline pilots between each flight for EU and non-EU carriers entering EU airspace.
Answered by Robert Goodwill
Under the Convention on International Civil Aviation the responsibility for establishing minimum rest periods for airline pilots rests with the state in which an airline is based. The EU cannot therefore impose requirements for rest periods on non EU airlines. Minimum rest periods for the crew of EU airlines are already established by Commission Regulation 83/2014.
Asked by: Mark Pritchard (Conservative - The Wrekin)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will take steps to ensure that (a) Shropshire Council, (b) Telford and Wrekin Council and (c) Highways England put in place road safety improvements to reduce the number of road deaths and injuries on roads in (i) Shropshire and (ii) Telford and Wrekin.
Answered by Andrew Jones
Local authorities are responsible for road safety on the local road network. Section 39 of the Road Traffic Act 1988 puts a 'statutory duty' on the local authorities to deliver an appropriate road safety education service and for the provision of a safe local road network.
It is up to individual authorities to determine how they meet their “statutory duty”. However, following the 2015 Spending Review the Government will continue to provide funding through the Integrated Transport block for local highway authorities to support small-scale initiatives, including road safety schemes. This funding is not ring-fenced and gives local authorities the freedom to develop and implement solutions which best suit their localities.
More widely, from within the record £6.1 billion to be allocated to local highways authorities between 2015 and 2021 for road maintenance, Shropshire has been allocated £86million and Telford and Wrekin £18million (including indicative allocations from 2018/19 to 2020/21) plus Telford has also been allocated £10.3million from the Highways Maintenance Challenge Fund. This compares to £79million allocated to Shropshire and £15.6million to Telford and Wrekin covering the period 2010 to 2015.
Highways England has made a commitment to review routes in Shropshire, Telford and Wrekin over the next five years.
Safety improvements are proposed on the A5/B5070 at Gledrid Roundabout in the 2016/17 financial year. Potential safety schemes have also been identified in Shropshire, and in Telford & Wrekin, and these will be considered over the 5-year Roads Investment Strategy. These are detailed below.
All of these works will be subject to available funding and are not, as yet, programmed for delivery.
An A5 corridor study has also been commissioned to identify a long term strategy for addressing the changing needs and function of the A5 trunk road corridor between Chirk and Preston Boats. This study will consider current issues with the existing corridor, summarising the implications of growth and providing a set of highway options to address congestion and safety, for consideration within future financial years.
Asked by: Mark Pritchard (Conservative - The Wrekin)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will discuss with the Highways Agency the time taken to (a) programme and (b) complete highway works on the M54 in Shropshire.
Answered by Andrew Jones
(a) With regard to current and future works on the M54 in Shropshire, there are currently no delays to the programme of works for the current financial year, 2015/16.
(b) For the forthcoming financial year, 2016/17, Highways England is in the process of finalising the programme of works. This will be completed by the middle of February. The proposed works are:
Scheme | Nature of work |
M54 WB J3 Exit Slip Resurfacing | Pavement |
M54 J7-6 Fence & Barrier | Fences and Barriers |
M54 J2-M6 J10A WB | Pavement |
M54 J10a-J1 Drainage | Drainage |
M54-M6 J10a-J1 WB Drainage | Drainage |
M54-M6 J10a-J1 EB Drainage | Drainage |
M54 J4 Traffic Signals Refurbishment | Traffic Signals |
There have recently been problems with the concrete carriageway on the eastbound side of the M54 between junctions 3 and 2. Highways England has carried out a significant number of temporary repairs and is likely to undertake some more substantial repairs by the end of April 2016, whilst we investigate a longer term solution.
Asked by: Mark Pritchard (Conservative - The Wrekin)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what plans he has to improve telecoms connectivity onboard Eurostar trains travelling in tunnels in England.
Answered by Claire Perry
Neither the Secretary of State, nor HS1 Ltd, which operates the HS1 network on a 30 year government-let concession basis is able to oblige Eurostar to provide wi-fi on its services. This would be a commercial decision for the train operating company concerned.
HS1 Ltd already provides free wi-fi at St Pancras, Stratford and Ebbsfleet International stations.
HS1 Ltd has also entered into exploratory conversations with a telecoms supplier to provide a 4G service at all HS1 stations and along the HS1 route, including the tunnels and open route areas. The exploratory work will assess the proposed financing of additional infrastructure required with a decision expected later this year. The Secretary of State has no part to play in this decision-making process.