Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many bridges in the London region are substandard; and what assessment he has made of the economic effect of the reduced carrying capacity of those bridges.

Ownership of bridges in London is varied and owners include Transport for London, Network Rail and individual London Boroughs. Local transport infrastructure maintenance is a devolved matter. Therefore, it is the owners’ responsibility to ensure that their asset is maintained to the appropriate standard. The Department does not hold specific information on the condition of each individual structure. As such, the Department does not assess the economic effect of any reduced carrying capacity on London bridges.