Asked by: Shaun Davies (Labour - Telford)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps her Department is taking to improve rail infrastructure using dormant rail lines.
Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The Government believes that local transport authorities are best placed to advocate for projects which will most benefit their local areas. The ultimate aim is to encourage strong business cases, which effectively identify the optimal transport solution, which support growth, more homes and increased job opportunities.
Asked by: Shaun Davies (Labour - Telford)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment she has made of the potential merits of initiatives to bring dormant rail lines into use.
Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The Government believes that local transport authorities are best placed to advocate for projects which will most benefit their local areas. The ultimate aim is to encourage strong business cases, which effectively identify the optimal transport solution, which support growth, more homes and increased job opportunities.
Asked by: Shaun Davies (Labour - Telford)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment she has made of the economic contribution of light railways.
Answered by Simon Lightwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
Responsibility for light rail is devolved in England, where each local authority owns and is responsible for the operations and financial sustainability of its system.
The economic contribution of each scheme can vary significantly based on numerous factors, including specific project conditions and requirements, geography, urban density, and land values.
The Department will continue to work alongside local authorities to assess the economic contribution of light rail schemes.
Asked by: Shaun Davies (Labour - Telford)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps her Department is taking to support light railway projects.
Answered by Simon Lightwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
Responsibility for light rail is devolved in England, where each local authority owns and is responsible for the operations and financial sustainability of its system.
Future local transport funding is subject to the outcome of the upcoming Spending Review.
Asked by: Shaun Davies (Labour - Telford)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of a direct train services from Shropshire (via Telford) to London on economic growth; and what her planned timetable is for announcing a decision on the application for the new line between Wrexham General and London Euston (via Telford).
Answered by Simon Lightwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The Department for Transport provided a response to the Office of Rail and road regarding the live Open Access application from Wrexham, Shropshire & Midlands Railway to operate services between Wrexham General and London Euston on 4 February 2025. This letter set out our broad support for the proposal. We note the benefits of improved connectivity that these services would bring to a number of communities, but access to the rail network is ultimately a decision for the regulator, who will weigh stakeholder views against statutory duties and publish its decision in due course.
Asked by: Shaun Davies (Labour - Telford)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what the (a) average, (b) shortest and (c) longest wait was for determination of an application for a new rail line by a private operator for each year that records are available.
Answered by Simon Lightwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
Access to the rail network is a matter for the Office of Rail and Road (ORR) in its capacity as independent regulator for the rail industry.
ORR have advised that since 2020, it has determined four applications for wholly new open access services. ORR rejected one and approved three. The time taken to go through the industry processes and reach a decision on these applications was as follows:
- Grand Union Trains (London – Stirling): 126 days
- Grand Union Trains Application 1 (London – Carmarthen): 281 days
- Grand Union Trains Application 2 (London – Carmarthen): 163 days
- Go-op: 783 days
The Go-op process involved significant changes to the application from the applicant over the course of two years. For all of these applications, ORR took decisions within 6 weeks of receiving all relevant information from the parties.
Asked by: Shaun Davies (Labour - Telford)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether she has had recent discussions with the Office of Road and Rail on reducing decision making times on the introduction of new rail routes (a) to and from London, (b) between London and Wales and (c) between Shropshire and London.
Answered by Simon Lightwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
Access to the rail network is a matter for the Office of Rail and Road (ORR) in its capacity as independent regulator for the rail industry. The Department works closely with both ORR and Network Rail to ensure that information to inform access decisions is provided in as timely a manner as possible, however it is important that decisions are fully considered and potential impacts to taxpayers, the efficient operation of the network, and to other operators are properly assessed.
Asked by: Shaun Davies (Labour - Telford)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if she will publish a timetable for a decision on the funding of the M54-M6 North link.
Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
Funding for the M54 to M6 Link Road is subject to the multi-year Spending Review, and assurances cannot be provided on individual projects until the conclusion of the Spending Review.
Asked by: Shaun Davies (Labour - Telford)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps her Department is taking to help improve the safety of platform train interfaces at train stations.
Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
Working with the industry, the Rail Safety and Standards Board (RSSB) has developed a comprehensive strategy to improve safety at the platform train interface (PTI) on the mainline railway. The strategy adopts a whole-system, safety by design, risk-based approach; which includes using human factors and data modelling to inform the design of infrastructure and rolling stock, launching safety campaigns such as ‘Respect the Edge’ to influence passenger behaviour and improve awareness of risks, and enhancing the skills and competence of dispatchers and guards by working with operators and the Office of Rail and Road (ORR) to improve the quality of training and guidance available to staff. This approach has seen PTI incidences decreasing year on year since 2020/2021.
Asked by: Shaun Davies (Labour - Telford)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if she will publish the performance of Transport for Wales trains from Aberystwyth to Birmingham International via Telford in both directions; and what steps she plans to take to help improve performance.
Answered by Simon Lightwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
Contracting of Transport for Wales services is devolved to the Welsh Government. Performance information from across the rail network in Great Britain is published by the Office for Road and Rail (https://dataportal.orr.gov.uk/statistics/performance/passenger-rail-performance/); further details are available on operators' websites.