Asked by: Vicky Foxcroft (Labour - Lewisham, Deptford)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, with reference to Part One of the National Disability Strategy published 28 July 2021, what recent work his Department has carried out with Blue Badge users and local authorities in England to ensure its suitability for all users.
Answered by Wendy Morton
The Department conducts an ongoing programme to identify ways to improve the Blue Badge scheme application process for all users, including acting on feedback from local authority administrators and citizen users of the scheme. A project to test the application of advanced technological developments to the online application process is expected to report in Spring 2022.
Asked by: Vicky Foxcroft (Labour - Lewisham, Deptford)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, with reference to Part One of the National Disability Strategy published 28 July 2021, what progress his Department has made towards improving the online Blue Badge application process.
Answered by Wendy Morton
The Department conducts an ongoing programme to identify ways to improve the Blue Badge scheme application process for all users, including acting on feedback from local authority administrators and citizen users of the scheme. A project to test the application of advanced technological developments to the online application process is expected to report in Spring 2022.
Asked by: Vicky Foxcroft (Labour - Lewisham, Deptford)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, with reference to Part One of the National Disability Strategy published on 28 July 2021, how many additional Changing Places toilets have been made available since August 2021.
Answered by Wendy Morton
In October 2020, the government announced that it would provide £2.2 million of funding to 59 motorway service areas to support the installation of more Changing Places toilets on the motorway network in England.
Most of these will be installed through 2022, with all due to be in place by April 2023.
This will see us achieve the ambition set out in the 2018 Inclusive Transport Strategy to have Changing Places toilets at the majority of motorway service areas in England.
Asked by: Vicky Foxcroft (Labour - Lewisham, Deptford)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, with reference to Part One of the National Disability Strategy published on 28 July 2021, whether his Department consulted on an update to the Design Standards for Accessible Stations in 2021 as planned.
Answered by Wendy Morton
We are in the process of finalising a public consultation to revise the Design Standards for Accessible Stations: A Code of Practice. We will make a further announcement shortly.
Asked by: Vicky Foxcroft (Labour - Lewisham, Deptford)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, with reference to Part One of the National Disability Strategy published on 28 July 2021 and his Department's invitation to submit innovative project ideas to improve communication for disabled passengers and others with reduced mobility on rail services across Great Britain, (a) whether the contracts were awarded as planned by July 2021, (b) how many contracts were awarded and (c) to whom they were awarded.
Answered by Wendy Morton
Four projects aimed at making the railway easier to use for people with disabilities were awarded funding through the First of a Kind 2021 rail innovation competition. The contracts were awarded to Mission Room Ltd, GoMedia Services Ltd (two projects) and Transreport Ltd, working in partnership with other bodies. Each project commenced as scheduled on 1 July 2021, though contracts for the two projects led by GoMedia were finalised in August and October due to delays in completing pre-contract checks. The projects are all still in progress and are scheduled to complete by the end of March 2022.
Asked by: Vicky Foxcroft (Labour - Lewisham, Deptford)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, with reference to Part One of the National Disability Strategy published on 28 July 2021, what work his Department has carried out to date with Network Rail to develop proposals for the accelerated upgrade of rail station platforms with tactile paving.
Answered by Wendy Morton
Network Rail estimate that around 60 percent of British mainline station platforms are fitted with tactile surfaces. We are committed to making this 100 percent and Network Rail has received an initial £10 million to install tactile paving at priority stations not already funded. Tactiles have since been installed at a number of stations including Chiswick, Cosham and Whitchurch with more to come. I will make further announcements on future rounds of funding in due course.
Asked by: Vicky Foxcroft (Labour - Lewisham, Deptford)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how much printed material has been distributed to public transport providers operating in (a) the UK, (b) London and (c) Lewisham constituency in relation to the requirement to wear face coverings on public transport.
Answered by Rachel Maclean
The Department for Transport has created over 300 public information resources related to Covid-19. Many incorporate the message that passengers must wear face coverings on public transport and at indoor transport hubs.
There are a range of face covering materials, many of which include exemptions for age, health or disability reasons as well as consequences for those who are not exempt and do not comply. The department has not printed any of these materials itself, instead we have ensured that transport operators, local authorities and partners across England have had access to these materials allowing them to download, print and display these messages as appropriate.
Our materials have been downloaded over 3,700 times and sent to over 250 stakeholders since face coverings became mandatory. We also shared the materials on the department’s social media channels and amplified supporting content from stakeholders. We have worked with Cabinet Office and secured 6,700 digital displays for face coverings at bus stops and rail stations in England.
We do not have specific data for London or Lewisham. The London Borough of Lewisham and TfL are responsible for transport in Lewisham constituency and have access to DfT’s online resources.
Asked by: Vicky Foxcroft (Labour - Lewisham, Deptford)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what printed material his Department has produced to advise passengers that they must wear a face covering on public transport.
Answered by Chris Heaton-Harris - Secretary of State for Northern Ireland
The Department for Transport has created over 300 public information resources related to Covid-19. Many incorporate the message that passengers must wear face coverings on public transport and at indoor transport hubs. There are a range of face covering materials, many of which include exemptions for age, health or disability reasons as well as consequences for those who are not exempt and do not comply. The department has not printed any of these materials itself, instead we have ensured that transport operators, local authorities and partners across England have had access to these resources allowing them to download, print and display these messages as appropriate. Our materials have been downloaded over 3,700 times and sent to over 250 stakeholders since face coverings became mandatory. We also shared the materials on the department’s social media channels and amplified supporting content from stakeholders. We have worked with Cabinet Office and secured 6,700 digital displays for face coverings at bus stops and rail stations in England.
Asked by: Vicky Foxcroft (Labour - Lewisham, Deptford)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps he is taking to improve accessibility for disabled people using the rail network.
Answered by Chris Heaton-Harris - Secretary of State for Northern Ireland
The Access for All Programme has been extended across CP6 with an additional £350m of funding, making a total of £383m available to the programme up until 2024. This will deliver more than 100 accessible step free routes and smaller scale access improvements at another 124 stations.
This is in addition to access improvements delivered by major projects such as Crossrail and HS2 or when the industry installs, replaces or renews station infrastructure.
Asked by: Vicky Foxcroft (Labour - Lewisham, Deptford)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what representations he has received on extending the validity period for Disabled Persons Railcard holders to compensate them for lack of access to rail services during the covid-19 outbreak; and what steps he is taking to ensure that the Rail Delivery Group tackles that issue.
Answered by Chris Heaton-Harris - Secretary of State for Northern Ireland
The Disabled Persons Railcard is sold and managed by the Rail Delivery Group on behalf on the rail industry. Therefore, any proposals for amending existing Railcard policies are for the Rail Delivery Group to bring forward.
The Rail Delivery Group is working with train companies on a number of ways to assist Railcard holders, in light of the current COVID-19 related travel restrictions.
Departmental officials have been engaging regularly with the Rail Delivery Group as it considers possible changes to Railcard conditions.