Asked by: Baroness McIntosh of Pickering (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they plan to take to improve pedestrian safety on pavements and zebra crossings, and to ensure that cyclists and riders of e-bikes and e-scooters respect traffic rules.
Answered by Lord Hendy of Richmond Hill - Minister of State (Department for Transport)
The Government recognises that it is essential that everyone using our roads is kept safe, including pedestrians. On 7 January 2026 we published our new Road Safety Strategy, setting out our vision for a safer future on our roads for all.
Local authorities are responsible for managing their roads, and have statutory duties placed on them to ensure safe movement for all road users, including pedestrians. The Department for Transport provides good practice guidance to support them in this on the design of the street environment and on the provision of zebra crossings. The Department has long advocated street design that puts consideration of the needs of people walking first, through the Manual for Streets.
Cycling on pavements, including the use of e-cycles, is already an offence and is enforceable by the police. E‑scooters are not legal for use on pavements or roads except as part of Government‑approved rental trials, where operators must promote responsible use.
Asked by: Jenny Riddell-Carpenter (Labour - Suffolk Coastal)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what funding is available to local authorities to deliver road safety measures around schools, including crossings, speed management and parking enforcement in 2026-27 in (a) England, (b) the East of England, (c) Suffolk and (d) Suffolk Coastal constituency.
Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
The Government provides a range of funding streams and national guidance to support local authorities in improving road safety around schools, including measures such as pedestrian crossings, traffic‑calming, speed management and School Streets schemes.
We have confirmed £7.3 billion of capital funding for local highway maintenance across England between 2026–27 and 2029–30, allocated to local authorities to maintain and improve their road networks. This includes the road infrastructure around schools.
The Consolidated Active Travel Fund (CATF) may be used to deliver safety improvements around schools as part of wider walking and cycling programmes. In the latest CATF allocation round, Suffolk County Council received £2,784,685, which can be used for schemes in any part of the county, including within the Suffolk Coastal constituency.
Local authorities are responsible for identifying risks around schools and selecting appropriate interventions, drawing on national guidance. This includes:
Setting Local Speed Limits, which advises on implementing permanent or time‑limited 20 mph limits outside schools and is being updated as part of the Government’s Road Safety Strategy.
Chapter 6 of the Traffic Signs Manual, which provides guidance on the design and use of pedestrian crossings.
Local Transport Note 1/07, which sets out advice on traffic‑calming measures.
Guidance from the Department for Transport and Active Travel England on establishing and managing School Streets schemes, which restrict vehicle access near schools at peak times.
It is for local authorities to determine what measures are appropriate in individual cases as they have the local knowledge and it is right that they focus on the areas of highest risk, which may be where tragic collisions have occurred - but there is nothing to stop them implementing road safety measures elsewhere. The Government expects local authorities to work with local schools, parents, and communities to address concerns about road safety in their local area.
Asked by: Jenny Riddell-Carpenter (Labour - Suffolk Coastal)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps she is taking to ensure local authorities publish the outcome of school gate road safety assessments and the measures implemented at each school where risk is identified.
Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
The Government provides a range of funding streams and national guidance to support local authorities in improving road safety around schools, including measures such as pedestrian crossings, traffic‑calming, speed management and School Streets schemes.
We have confirmed £7.3 billion of capital funding for local highway maintenance across England between 2026–27 and 2029–30, allocated to local authorities to maintain and improve their road networks. This includes the road infrastructure around schools.
The Consolidated Active Travel Fund (CATF) may be used to deliver safety improvements around schools as part of wider walking and cycling programmes. In the latest CATF allocation round, Suffolk County Council received £2,784,685, which can be used for schemes in any part of the county, including within the Suffolk Coastal constituency.
Local authorities are responsible for identifying risks around schools and selecting appropriate interventions, drawing on national guidance. This includes:
Setting Local Speed Limits, which advises on implementing permanent or time‑limited 20 mph limits outside schools and is being updated as part of the Government’s Road Safety Strategy.
Chapter 6 of the Traffic Signs Manual, which provides guidance on the design and use of pedestrian crossings.
Local Transport Note 1/07, which sets out advice on traffic‑calming measures.
Guidance from the Department for Transport and Active Travel England on establishing and managing School Streets schemes, which restrict vehicle access near schools at peak times.
It is for local authorities to determine what measures are appropriate in individual cases as they have the local knowledge and it is right that they focus on the areas of highest risk, which may be where tragic collisions have occurred - but there is nothing to stop them implementing road safety measures elsewhere. The Government expects local authorities to work with local schools, parents, and communities to address concerns about road safety in their local area.
Asked by: Jenny Riddell-Carpenter (Labour - Suffolk Coastal)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what guidance her Department provides to local authorities on responding to road safety risks around schools, including time-limited 20 mph restrictions, crossings and school streets.
Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
The Government provides a range of funding streams and national guidance to support local authorities in improving road safety around schools, including measures such as pedestrian crossings, traffic‑calming, speed management and School Streets schemes.
We have confirmed £7.3 billion of capital funding for local highway maintenance across England between 2026–27 and 2029–30, allocated to local authorities to maintain and improve their road networks. This includes the road infrastructure around schools.
The Consolidated Active Travel Fund (CATF) may be used to deliver safety improvements around schools as part of wider walking and cycling programmes. In the latest CATF allocation round, Suffolk County Council received £2,784,685, which can be used for schemes in any part of the county, including within the Suffolk Coastal constituency.
Local authorities are responsible for identifying risks around schools and selecting appropriate interventions, drawing on national guidance. This includes:
Setting Local Speed Limits, which advises on implementing permanent or time‑limited 20 mph limits outside schools and is being updated as part of the Government’s Road Safety Strategy.
Chapter 6 of the Traffic Signs Manual, which provides guidance on the design and use of pedestrian crossings.
Local Transport Note 1/07, which sets out advice on traffic‑calming measures.
Guidance from the Department for Transport and Active Travel England on establishing and managing School Streets schemes, which restrict vehicle access near schools at peak times.
It is for local authorities to determine what measures are appropriate in individual cases as they have the local knowledge and it is right that they focus on the areas of highest risk, which may be where tragic collisions have occurred - but there is nothing to stop them implementing road safety measures elsewhere. The Government expects local authorities to work with local schools, parents, and communities to address concerns about road safety in their local area.
Asked by: Alex Brewer (Liberal Democrat - North East Hampshire)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what metrics her Department is using to assess whether the 2022 Highway Code Changes are understood and followed by the public; and what recent assessment she has made of compliance levels.
Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
Improving road safety is one of my Department’s highest priorities. Injuries and fatalities from road collisions caused by driving are unacceptable, and this Government will work hard to prevent these tragedies for all road users. That is why on 7 January 2026, we published our new Road Safety Strategy, setting out our vision for a safer future on our roads for all.
Following updates to the Highway Code in 2022, the department ran large-scale THINK! advertising campaigns to raise awareness of the changes.
Via the THINK! campaign, we are also running year-round radio filler adverts encouraging compliance with the guidance to improve safety for those walking, cycling and horse riding.
The Department has assessed public understanding of the 2022 Highway Code changes through survey research which tracks levels of awareness and self‑reported understanding and compliance over time.
The percentage of road users reporting to know either a little or a lot about the changes increased from 36% in January 2022 to over 50% in August 2022 and up to 70% in September 2023, with 86% of road users having heard of the changes by that time.
Understanding of pedestrian priority at junctions increased from 52% to 72%, and cyclists riding 2 abreast rising from 30% to 46%.
Following the second phase of the campaign in summer 2023, 81% of drivers claimed to leave a gap of 1.5M when passing a cyclist all or most of the time. 79% of drivers claimed to pass horse riders and horse drawn vehicles with at least 2M distance and at under 10mph all or most of the time.
Of the respondents that recognised the campaign advert, nine in ten said they had taken action as a result.
More recent figures show a sustained increase in those saying it is unacceptable to not leave enough space for cyclists and horse riders, from 60% in March 2024 to 68% in April 2025.
However, as set out in the strategy, more work is needed to continue embedding these changes and overall awareness of the Highway Code. We are considering options in this area, and further details will be shared in due course.
As our road environment and technologies evolve, providing education for all road users throughout their lifetime is vital to improving road safety.
Although failure to comply with the advisory rules of the Highway Code will not, in itself, cause a person to be prosecuted, contraventions of these rules may be used as evidence in court to establish liability for a road traffic offence. Advisory rules include those which begin ‘should/should not’ and ‘do/do not’.
Asked by: Jerome Mayhew (Conservative - Broadland and Fakenham)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether she has made an assessment of the impact of the introduction on Rule H1 on the behaviour of pedestrians, cyclists and motorists since January 2022; what assessment she has made in trends in the level of defensive behaviour among vulnerable road users; and what the evidential basis is for concluding that the hierarchy improves safety outcomes for all road users, including motorists.
Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
The previous Government updated the Highway Code in 2022 to improve road safety for people walking, cycling and riding horses including the introduction of a hierarchy of road users.
New rule H1 set out that ‘those in charge of vehicles that can cause the greatest harm in the event of a collision bear the greatest responsibility to take care and reduce the danger they pose to others. This principle applies most strongly to drivers of large goods and passenger vehicles, vans/minibuses, cars/taxis and motorcycles. Cyclists, horse riders and drivers of horse drawn vehicles likewise have a responsibility to reduce danger to pedestrians. None of this detracts from the responsibility of ALL road users, including pedestrians, cyclists and horse riders, to have regard for their own and other road users’ safety.’
The previous Government did not initiate any assessment of their introduction of Rule H1.
Asked by: Mohammad Yasin (Labour - Bedford)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether the Department plans to improve guidance to schools on teaching road safety and safe cycling within PSHE or related curricula.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)
I refer my hon. Friend, the Member for Bedford to the answer of 14 October 2025 to Question 77400.
Asked by: Lord Truscott (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they will consider issuing on the spot fines for (1) cyclists and motorists jumping red lights, (2) cyclists riding in pedestrian-only areas of public parks, and (3) cyclists and scooter riders riding on public pavements.
Answered by Lord Hanson of Flint - Minister of State (Home Office)
The police can issue on-the-spot fines (which are formally referred to as fixed penalty notices) for a range of cycling and motoring offences. Decisions on when to issue fixed penalty notices are an operational matter for the police, using their professional judgement.
In addition to issuing fixed penalty notices on-the-spot, police may also issue motorists with three points on their driving licence for failure to comply with traffic signs.
Cycling in pedestrian-only areas of public parks may constitute an offence under local byelaws or Public Space Protection Orders resulting in a fixed penalty notice, which can be issued on-the-spot. In some circumstances, cycling on a footway is also prohibited, unless the footway is designated for shared use, and the offence may result in an on-the-spot fixed penalty notice. Cycling on a pavement and riding a powered e-scooter on a pavement are also offences and may result in on the spot fines.
Asked by: Vikki Slade (Liberal Democrat - Mid Dorset and North Poole)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether she has plans to make it a requirement for cyclists to wear high visibility attire when cycling on public roads.
Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
There are no plans to make it a requirement for cyclists to wear high visibility clothing when cycling. However, cyclists should ensure that they can be clearly seen by other road users, both for their own safety and for that of others.
This is in line with Rule 59 of The Highway Code which recommends that people who cycle should wear light-coloured or fluorescent clothing to help other road users to see them in daylight and poor light, with reflective clothing and/or accessories in the dark.
Asked by: Kate Osamor (Labour (Co-op) - Edmonton and Winchmore Hill)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps her Department is taking to help improve public awareness and understanding of the 2022 updates to the Highway Code; and whether she plans to introduce a national public information campaign to support the implementation of the new Road Safety Strategy.
Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
Improving road safety is one of my Department’s highest priorities. Injuries and fatalities from road collisions caused by driving are unacceptable, and this Government will work hard to prevent these tragedies for all road users.
That is why on 7 January 2026, we published our new Road Safety Strategy, setting out our vision for a safer future on our roads for all.
Following updates to the Highway Code in 2022, the department ran large-scale THINK! advertising campaigns to raise awareness of the changes.
Via the THINK! campaign, we are also running year-round radio filler adverts encouraging compliance with the guidance to improve safety for those walking, cycling and horse riding. We will also continue to promote the changes THINK! and Department for Transport social media channels, as well as through partner organisations.
However, as set out in the strategy, more work is needed to continue embedding these changes and overall awareness of the Highway Code. We are considering options in this area, and further details will be shared in due course.
As our road environment and technologies evolve, providing education for all road users throughout their lifetime is vital to improving road safety. As announced in the strategy to support a Lifelong Learning approach in the UK, the government will publish for the first time national guidance on the development and delivery of road safety education, training and publicity. Alongside this, the government will publish a manual to support the implementation of a Lifelong Learning approach for road safety.