Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what support his Department is giving to the West Midlands Combined Authority to improve rail and road links across the West Midlands.

The Department currently supports the West Midlands Combined Authority, and other industry partners in the West Midlands, to improve rail services in the area. For example, the current Franchise Agreement with London Midland requires the franchisee to work with industry partners, including Combined Authorities, in relation to the provision, maintenance and operation of smart ticketing. This gives passengers access to a wider range of products and tickets.

The Department is providing funding contribution to the West Midlands Combined Authority in respect of the construction of the new Bromsgrove station. This was completed in summer 2016 as part of a wider programme to extend electrification from Birmingham to Barnt Green to Bromsgrove.

More widely, the Department is working very closely with local stakeholders in the West Midlands in terms of how West Midlands Rail has been working with the Department to specify local rail services within the West Midlands region from October 2017, in line with the refranchising programme for the franchise. West Midlands Rail will be responsible for the management of local services when the new franchise commences.

The forthcoming franchise contains other initiatives such as the introduction of a West Midlands Railway brand and the creation of a separate Business Unit for the local and regional services in the West Midlands, whose management will be locally based.

The devolution agreement with the West Midlands Combined Authority at the end of 2015 devolved £36.5m per annum for 30 years which the West Midlands Combined Authority will control and invest to deliver projects to drive growth, in line with their strategic economic plan, giving the West Midlands Combined Authority powers and the freedom to prioritise transport schemes.

Highways England is also committed through the first Road Investment Strategy (2015/16 – 2019/20) to making improvements to the strategic roads across the Midlands area.

The Department has committed over £370m to major local authority schemes in the West Midlands Combined Authority area, subject to Business Cases, including tram and road schemes. Also, the 3 Local Enterprise Partnerships in the West Midlands Combined Authority area have been allocated over £780m in Local Growth Funding to support local projects that benefit the local area and economy, including a range of local road and rail projects. The Department has also just confirmed over £40m to the West Midlands Combined Authority for capital Highway works in 2017-18.