Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, for what reasons the per head spend on rail services is less in the north of England compared with per head spent in (a) London and (b) the national average.

The Department focuses on delivering outcomes for transport users, not on how much is spent per head.

There are various problems with attempting to compare transport spending on a spend per head of regional resident population basis. The calculation for London for example doesn’t account for the substantial number of daily commuters and visitors, both domestically and internationally, who will be using and benefitting from the roads and public transport networks but who aren’t London residents. For example, two in every three rail journeys start or end in London and there are eighteen times more passengers arriving into London during a typical morning peak than at Manchester, the busiest northern city. In particular, as the main international gateway into and out of the country, London will be the location for transport investments which look to serve passengers well beyond the local resident population. The unique scale and urban density of London also means that large scale public transport networks are particularly important.

The Department for Transport does not allocate funding to transport on a ‘per head of population’ basis. Investment decisions are made based on a rigorous and fair appraisal process that ensures spending goes to the projects and programmes where it is most needed and delivers greatest value-for-money for both taxpayers and passengers.

We are increasing government infrastructure investment by 50% over the next four years, supporting growth and jobs across the country, and making sure it is spent on the projects prioritised by communities around Britain. As we emphasised in the Transport Investment Strategy, investment decisions should reflect a clear understanding of the particular needs of the country and that’s why we welcome the regional partnerships that are forming in different areas, like Transport for the North, which can speak with one voice on strategic transport planning to boost growth and economic development and who can help in deciding how best to invest in transport in their region.

We are delivering unprecedented investment in better transport across the north and delivering right now on dramatically improving journeys for passengers across the north, from phasing out the out-dated Pacer trains to delivering the Great North Rail Project to getting on with HS2 which will transform capacity and connections for millions, with stations in Manchester, Crewe, Leeds and Sheffield.