Asked by: Steve Barclay (Conservative - North East Cambridgeshire)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 3 November 2014 to Question 212483, if he will direct the Chief Executive of Network Rail to respond to the letter from the hon. Member for North East Cambridgeshire of 4 November 2014 on collision protection beams at bridges.
Answered by Claire Perry
Network Rail operates at arm’s length from the Department and is not expected to involve Ministers in regular operational matters.
However, to have not responded by this date is unacceptable and Network Rail advises that a reply will be issued to my Hon Friend for North East Cambridgeshire by 13th February.
Asked by: Steve Barclay (Conservative - North East Cambridgeshire)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what funding the Highways Agency has allocated for improvement works to be carried out at the Broad End Road junction; and what criteria the Agency used in determining the level of that funding.
Answered by John Hayes
Funding for the improvements due to be carried out at the A47 Broadend Road Junction in early 2015 is approximately £123,200.
The criteria used in determining the level of funding required to complete this scheme includes consideration of all the potential costs compared against the projected benefits achieved. For the Broadend Road Junction scheme this includes the costs of the design work, materials, construction – including the provision of 2 vehicle activated signs on the approaches to the staggered junction plus improvements to the road markings - traffic management and pre- and post-construction safety audits.
Asked by: Steve Barclay (Conservative - North East Cambridgeshire)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, when he expects the safety works at Broad End Road junction, scheduled for completion before Christmas 2014, to be completed.
Answered by John Hayes
The safety works planned for the A47 at the Broadend Road Junction have been delayed due to further work being required on the scheme design. Work on the white lining and the erection of posts for the vehicle activated signs is now programmed to start in early January and, depending on the weather, to take approximately 3 weeks to complete. The vehicle activated signs will be installed in mid February.
Asked by: Steve Barclay (Conservative - North East Cambridgeshire)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will make an assessment of the potential saving to the public purse arising from placing collision protection beams at bridges which have a high incidence of strikes from lorries or other vehicles.
Answered by Claire Perry
This is an operational matter for Network Rail as the responsible authority for railway infrastructure. Network Rail does place collision protection beams on many susceptible bridges where there is a history of bridge strikes. The provision of collision protection beams is a matter jointly for the highways authority and Network Rail and subject to Highway Agency design standard BD65/97.
Asked by: Steve Barclay (Conservative - North East Cambridgeshire)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many collisions involving a vehicle hitting a bridge resulted in a delay to train services on the King's Cross to King's Lynn line in each of the last two years.
Answered by Claire Perry
This Department does not hold this detailed information as it is an operational matter for Network Rail. Full details can be obtained from Mark Carne Chief Executive of Network Rail at Kings Place, 90 York Way, London, N1 9AG.
Asked by: Steve Barclay (Conservative - North East Cambridgeshire)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 4 September 2014, to Question 207751, on repairs and maintenance, how many problems were identified at Stage 1 of the feasibility work undertaken into the A47, presented at the study reference group meeting on 19 May 2014; and if he will publish the detailed work into the economic benefits, capacity and safety issues that led the Highways Agency to choose the current 10 schemes for feasibility work.
Answered by John Hayes
Stage 1 of the A47/A12 corridor feasibility study identified 32 current and future challenges along the corridor. This was presented to the study reference group on 19th May 2014.
The study is not yet completed and no conclusions have yet been reached on investment proposals along the corridor. Government has committed to report back at Autumn Statement 2014 on progress on each of the six strategic road network feasibility studies, which will inform the first Road Investment Strategy. The Department is intending to make the work of the feasibility studies available following the completion of the study process.
Asked by: Steve Barclay (Conservative - North East Cambridgeshire)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, with reference to the National Rail framework agreement published on 1 September 2014, when the National Audit Office will have access to Network Rail's accounts.
Answered by Claire Perry
The Comptroller and Auditor General will audit Network Rail’s Annual Report and Accounts.
It is intended that the appointment of the Comptroller and Auditor General as external auditor to Network Rail will take effect from April 2015 to time with the start of the new financial year. Until then, Network Rail will continue to ensure that another appropriate auditor will carry out a statutory audit under the Companies Act 2006 and that its annual regulatory financial statement is also suitably audited.
Paragraph 5.5 of the Framework Agreement explains that to enable the Comptroller and Auditor General to exercise his or her function as the statutory auditor, Network Rail will make available relevant information, documents and access to staff as necessary, including in the period prior to appointment, to develop a sound understanding of the Network Rail business and accounts.
Asked by: Steve Barclay (Conservative - North East Cambridgeshire)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will publish the benefit-cost ratios for each of the schemes funded in the £1.5 billion works commissioned to improve the A14.
Answered by John Hayes
The Highways Agency published the benefit cost ratios of options for the A14 Cambridge to Huntingdon improvement scheme in September 2013 in the ‘Technical Review of Options’ report to support the public consultation.
Following the decision not to toll in December 2013, a re-evaluation was carried out, on the proposed scheme without tolling and to compare its performance with other feasible non-tolled options. The proposed non-tolled option resulted in a BCR of 2.3 (published in the Public Consultation report in April 2014).
Both the ‘Technical Review of Options’ and the ‘Public Consultation’ reports are available on the Highways Agency website
http://www.highways.gov.uk/roads/road-projects/a14-cambridge-to-huntingdon-improvement-scheme/
The methodology for the appraisal of Environmental Impacts is prescribed in Web-based Transport Analysis Guidance (WebTAG) and is dependent upon the scheme’s stage of development. WebTAG is the Department for Transport’s guidance on the transport appraisal process which supports the development of investment decisions and the assessment of potential benefits or disbenefits of a scheme. The most up to date WebTAG guidance has been used.
The appraisal of the environmental impacts of the proposed scheme has and continues to consider both the built and natural environments and people. The environmental impacts that are considered are noise, air quality, greenhouse gases, landscape, townscape, the historic environment, biodiversity and the water environment.
Asked by: Steve Barclay (Conservative - North East Cambridgeshire)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what weighting was given to environmental benefits when calculating the benefit-cost ratio for each of the schemes funded in the £1.5 billion works commissioned to improve the A14.
Answered by John Hayes
The Highways Agency published the benefit cost ratios of options for the A14 Cambridge to Huntingdon improvement scheme in September 2013 in the ‘Technical Review of Options’ report to support the public consultation.
Following the decision not to toll in December 2013, a re-evaluation was carried out, on the proposed scheme without tolling and to compare its performance with other feasible non-tolled options. The proposed non-tolled option resulted in a BCR of 2.3 (published in the Public Consultation report in April 2014).
Both the ‘Technical Review of Options’ and the ‘Public Consultation’ reports are available on the Highways Agency website
http://www.highways.gov.uk/roads/road-projects/a14-cambridge-to-huntingdon-improvement-scheme/
The methodology for the appraisal of Environmental Impacts is prescribed in Web-based Transport Analysis Guidance (WebTAG) and is dependent upon the scheme’s stage of development. WebTAG is the Department for Transport’s guidance on the transport appraisal process which supports the development of investment decisions and the assessment of potential benefits or disbenefits of a scheme. The most up to date WebTAG guidance has been used.
The appraisal of the environmental impacts of the proposed scheme has and continues to consider both the built and natural environments and people. The environmental impacts that are considered are noise, air quality, greenhouse gases, landscape, townscape, the historic environment, biodiversity and the water environment.
Asked by: Steve Barclay (Conservative - North East Cambridgeshire)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will publish the methodology behind the benefit-cost ratios calculated for each of the schemes funded in the £1.5 billion works commissioned to improve the A14.
Answered by John Hayes
The Highways Agency published the benefit cost ratios of options for the A14 Cambridge to Huntingdon improvement scheme in September 2013 in the ‘Technical Review of Options’ report to support the public consultation.
Following the decision not to toll in December 2013, a re-evaluation was carried out, on the proposed scheme without tolling and to compare its performance with other feasible non-tolled options. The proposed non-tolled option resulted in a BCR of 2.3 (published in the Public Consultation report in April 2014).
Both the ‘Technical Review of Options’ and the ‘Public Consultation’ reports are available on the Highways Agency website
http://www.highways.gov.uk/roads/road-projects/a14-cambridge-to-huntingdon-improvement-scheme/
The methodology for the appraisal of Environmental Impacts is prescribed in Web-based Transport Analysis Guidance (WebTAG) and is dependent upon the scheme’s stage of development. WebTAG is the Department for Transport’s guidance on the transport appraisal process which supports the development of investment decisions and the assessment of potential benefits or disbenefits of a scheme. The most up to date WebTAG guidance has been used.
The appraisal of the environmental impacts of the proposed scheme has and continues to consider both the built and natural environments and people. The environmental impacts that are considered are noise, air quality, greenhouse gases, landscape, townscape, the historic environment, biodiversity and the water environment.