Asked by: Richard Holden (Conservative - Basildon and Billericay)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what milestone dates have been set for the introduction of AI-powered disruption updates on LNER services.
Answered by Keir Mather - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
In the coming months London North Eastern Railway will begin introducing advanced AI‑powered tools designed to keep passengers better informed and in control when travelling. This new capability will enable instant travel updates and make it easier for customers to manage their journeys during disruption.
These improvements will be supported by enhanced, data‑driven systems that aim to reduce delays and help deliver a more reliable railway for passengers.
Asked by: Richard Holden (Conservative - Basildon and Billericay)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether her Department has made an assessment of the adequacy of the the Greater Anglia timetable changes from 14 December 2025 for meeting peak-time passenger demand at Billericay station over the period of the local plan.
Answered by Keir Mather - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
Greater Anglia added extra carriages to a small number of Saturday services operating from Billericay as part of the December 2025 timetable change.
Greater Anglia monitors passenger demand and will make adjustments to train services and capacity where required, and where it is possible to do. I expect Greater Anglia to continue to work with local stakeholders to develop timetables for the future.
Asked by: Richard Holden (Conservative - Basildon and Billericay)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many Greater Anglia trains are expected to be fitted with physical advanced monitoring equipment by the end of 2026.
Answered by Keir Mather - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
Projects are still in development, but Greater Anglia estimates that between eight and twelve units in total will have physical monitoring equipment installed by the end of this year.
Asked by: Richard Holden (Conservative - Basildon and Billericay)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether she has considered (a) establishing an investigation mechanism and (b) commissioning an independent review into the safety performance of hybrid vehicles.
Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
As announced in the recently published Road Safety Strategy, the department will be establishing a data-led Road Safety Investigation Branch to learn lessons from road incidents, by taking a strategic, thematic approach, focusing on patterns of collisions, injury trends, and systemic safety issues.
There are currently no plans to commission an independent review into the safety performance of hybrid vehicles.
Asked by: Richard Holden (Conservative - Basildon and Billericay)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what the status is of the community rail programme; what changes have been made since 1 July 2024 to (a) the community rail recognition process, (b) guidance issued to train operating companies on community rail engagement and (c) the Department’s objectives for community rail; and if she will publish a summary of those changes.
Answered by Keir Mather - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The Department continues to support the accreditation process for Community Rail Partnerships (CRP). The Community Rail Network (CRN) reviews processes, accounts, and governance and recommends to the Department when a CRP has met a certain standard of operation to receive accreditation. The Department works with the CRN to continuously improve this process while maintaining the aims of accreditation.
The Department engages with train operating companies on Community Rail on a regular basis, and train operating companies continue to provide funding for the CRPs they support.
The Government is committed to supporting Community Rail in the longer term, and the establishment of Great British Railways provides the opportunity to improve how we support this important programme. The Department will provide an update if there are any changes to the way in which Community Rail is delivered.
Asked by: Richard Holden (Conservative - Basildon and Billericay)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the the Answer of 12 January 2026 to Question 101836 on Railways: Barnsley and Sheffield, what the revised launch date is for the GPS-based pay as you go trial between Sheffield and Barnsley.
Answered by Keir Mather - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
We are continuing to work closely with Northern and the supplier to address the problems that have caused Digital Pay As You Go Trial 4 to be delayed, and will launch the trial as soon as possible. Northern will provide an update to participants in the respective trial as soon as possible.
Asked by: Richard Holden (Conservative - Basildon and Billericay)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what funding her Department has provided to support community rail, including (a) community rail partnerships and (b) station adopter schemes, in each financial year since 2019-20; and what funding is planned for 2025-26.
Answered by Keir Mather - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
Community Rail Partnerships (CRP) are awarded funding from both the Community Rail Network (CRN) and train operating companies. CRPs then allocate funding to station adopter groups within their catchment. Funding has remained at a consistent level since 2019-20.
Asked by: Richard Holden (Conservative - Basildon and Billericay)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 12 January 2026 to Question 101854, how much funding is being provided over the Spending Review period in a) bus services, b) active travel infrastructure, and c) the Mode Shift Revenue Support grant; and over what years that funding will be allocated.
Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
Funding for Bus Services can be found on GOV.UK at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/local-authority-bus-grant-allocations/labg-revenue-allocations-2026-to-2029
Funding for Active Travel Infrastructure was published as part of the Spending Review 2025, and can be found on GOV.UK at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/spending-review-2025-document
Mode Shift Revenue Support grant: Up to £20 million provisional budget for 2026/27 – shared with Waterborne Freight Grant. Future funding arrangements subject to future departmental business planning.
Asked by: Richard Holden (Conservative - Basildon and Billericay)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether her Department has made an estimate of the fatality rate per vehicle mile travelled for hybrid, petrol, diesel and fully electric cars in each of the last five years.
Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
The Department does not hold data that would enable an estimate of fatality rates per vehicle mile travelled by propulsion type.
The STATS19 collection and DVLA records provide a breakdown of fatalities in reported road traffic collisions by vehicle and propulsion type. This information is published in data table RAS0507 available on the gov.uk website.
However, data on mileage driven by vehicles of different propulsion types is not available to the Department. Consequently, it is not possible to calculate fatality rates per mile travelled by propulsion type.
Asked by: Richard Holden (Conservative - Basildon and Billericay)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, when she expects construction works on the Lower Thames Crossing to commence.
Answered by Simon Lightwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
Construction enabling works have commenced north and south of the River Thames. These include ground works to create haul roads, construction of site compounds, utility works, ecological and archaeological works and extensive pre-construction surveys are ongoing.