Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment he has made of the potential contribution of minibuses to the accessibility of transport in the UK.

The Government has funded 17 demand responsive transport (DRT) pilots in 15 local authorities under the Rural Mobility Fund to evaluate how smaller vehicles and DRT can be used to improve accessibility. The pilots seek to provide real-world experience and data about how different DRT models work and provide an opportunity to better understand the challenges associated with introducing DRT in rural and suburban settings.