Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what estimate he has made of the (a) number and (b) period of time of track possessions undertaken by Network Rail consequential to the reduced passenger timetable as a result of the covid-19 outbreak; and what assessment he has made of the effect that those track possessions have had on the (i) Public Performance Measure and (ii) volume of delay minutes in the most recent quarter for which those figures are available.

While no estimate had been made, as part of Network Rail’s business as usual monitoring of the progress of its engineering work, of the number and period of time of track possessions undertaken consequential to the reduced passenger timetable as a result of the COVID-19 outbreak prior to this point, Network Rail has so far undertaken 38 additional possessions of various lengths, from single nights to two-week blocks. Opportunities to extend possessions have also been taken advantage of, such as the cancellation of first or last trains, or where services were thinned. The independent rail regulator, the Office for Rail and Road, has assessed Network Rail as having shown a strong response to the pandemic and that it has responded well to its challenges, in particular re-planning work to ensure continued and effective delivery throughout the past 12 months.

We do not hold information on the effect of track possessions on performance. The latest national public performance measure for the period 7 February to 6 March 2021 is 92.6%, compared with 83.9% for the same period last year.