Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment Network Rail has made of the costs and benefits of replacing level crossings with bridges on its England network.

This is an operational matter for Network Rail who have a policy of actively pursuing closure of level crossings at every opportunity.

The company has already closed nearly 1,000 level crossings since 2009 but, since the circumstances at each level crossing are unique, there are no firm rules about closure. Risk assessments are instead undertaken at every site which informs the identification and implementation of further risk controls.

The United Kingdom already has the best level crossing safety record in Europe but we are supporting Network Rail through a ring-fenced fund to ensure that risks can be reduced even further.