Asked by: Rachael Maskell (Labour (Co-op) - York Central)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that transport for children to travel to school during the covid-19 outbreak is safe.
Answered by Nick Gibb
Parents and children should consider walking and cycling to school where possible or driving if necessary. They should avoid the use of public transport where possible. The Department for Transport has published guidance on safer travel for the public. Parents and children may wish to refer to the guidance when planning their journeys, and to help them minimise risk where the use of public transport is unavoidable. The guidance is available here: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/coronavirus-covid-19-safer-travel-guidance-for-passengers.
Some children have their home to school transport arranged by their local authority or school. Local authorities and schools should put in place arrangements which fit local circumstances and minimise the risk of transmission, as far as is possible. This should include ensuring transport providers follow hygiene rules. They may wish to refer to the Department for Transport’s guidance for transport operators, which is available here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/coronavirus-covid-19-safer-transport-guidance-for-operators.
The phased wider opening of schools will limit the number of children travelling on home to school transport in the initial phase. Where transport capacity allows, local authorities could consider substituting smaller vehicles with larger ones, or running 2 vehicles rather than one, to reduce the number of passengers per vehicle and help passengers keep their distance.
We are in contact with local authorities to help resolve issues as they arise.
Asked by: Luke Evans (Conservative - Bosworth)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps he is taking to work with road user groups to ensure that the sustainable transport strategy adopted by communities includes the increase in walking and cycling experienced during the covid-19 outbreak and is balanced with car use.
Answered by Chris Heaton-Harris - Secretary of State for Northern Ireland
On the 9th May the Government announced a £2bn package of funding for cycling and walking over the next five years. This includes £250m to be spent this financial year on measures to enable increased cycling and walking. Local authorities will be responsible for ensuring that they have considered the impact of these measures on other road users.
Asked by: Baroness Randerson (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what measures they intend to introduce to encourage children to walk or cycle to school following the COVID-19 pandemic to reduce the number of cars on the road.
Answered by Baroness Vere of Norbiton - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Government recognises that walking and cycling have great potential as a means of enabling people to move around safely while maintaining social distancing. Active travel can help to relieve pressures on public transport as well as delivering health benefits and reducing motor-vehicle congestion.
On 9 May, the Government announced a £2bn package of funding for cycling and walking. This includes £250m which will encourage cycling to work and school through the provision of pop-up bike lanes with protected space for cycling, safer junctions as well as vouchers for cycle repairs and greater provision for bike fixing facilities. Further details on the allocation of this funding will be announced in due course.
This will build on the Government’s investment of almost £3 million into the Walk to School programme since 2015 which aims to increase the number of children walking to school. For the schools involved in this programme in 2017-18, walking to school rates increased across all schools by 30 per cent, rising from 59.5 per cent at baseline to 77.2 per cent at follow up.
In addition, the Conservative Manifesto made the commitment to extend Bikeability cycling proficiency training to every child in the country.
Asked by: Luke Evans (Conservative - Bosworth)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what plans he has to (a) monitor increases in (i) walking and (ii) cycling during the covid 19 outbreak and (b) develop a post-covid-19 sustainable transport strategy.
Answered by Chris Heaton-Harris - Secretary of State for Northern Ireland
The Government recognises that walking and cycling have great potential as a means of enabling people to move around safely while maintaining social distancing, thus helping to relieve pressures on public transport as well as delivering other health benefits. We are already continually gathering evidence in order to monitor changes in cycling and walking levels.
The Government continues to keep its sustainable transport response under review. We recognise that reallocating road space to give pedestrians and cyclists more room can be a good way of enabling more people to use these modes safely. We support the steps many local authorities are taking to deliver this, but decisions on where and how to do it are a matter for local authorities who are responsible for managing their roads, and who already have the necessary powers. The Transport Secretary announced on 9 May a £250 million emergency active travel fund, to create new bike lanes, wider pavements and safer junctions in England.
Asked by: Lord Pendry (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to create more space for walking and cycling during the COVID-19-related lockdown.
Answered by Baroness Vere of Norbiton - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Government welcomes appropriate changes to roads to give cyclists and pedestrians more space to enable social distancing. The details are for local authorities as they are responsible for managing their roads, but the Government is pleased to see that some local authorities have already begun to consider such changes.
There is a well-established range of traffic management measures already available to local authorities. Some measures, such as road closures, require Traffic Regulation Orders (TROs) to make them legal and enforceable, and we are aware that parts of that process are difficult for local authorities to comply with during the current situation. To assist with this, the Department has published temporary guidance, which suggests ways in which authorities can continue to make TROs, whilst still complying with the intention of the legislation.
This guidance has been circulated to local authorities already and will be kept under review. It will be withdrawn when circumstances allow.
Asked by: Lloyd Russell-Moyle (Labour (Co-op) - Brighton, Kemptown)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what powers local authorities have been granted to close roads to create more cycling and pedestrian space during the covid-19 outbreak; and for how road closures can be in place for.
Answered by Rachel Maclean
Local traffic authorities already have powers to close roads and to make changes to their use, including making space for cyclists and pedestrians, through the use of Traffic Orders. My Department has recently published guidance for authorities on how to deal with some practical difficulties with publicising and making orders during current restrictions, for example, publication in local newspapers when these may have either closed or moved online and posting site notices. This guidance has been circulated to local authorities already and will be kept under review. It is temporary and will be withdrawn when circumstances allow. It is available on our website at
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/traffic-orders-advertising-during-coranavirus-covid-19
We will continue to consider other assistance and support that we can offer to authorities as part of our response to coronavirus and plans for restart and recovery.
Asked by: Dan Jarvis (Labour - Barnsley Central)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent assessment his Department has made of the potential merits of providing additional funding for (a) walking and (b) cycling routes to increase active travel capacity in response to the challenges of operating public transport networks during the covid-19 outbreak.
Answered by Chris Heaton-Harris - Secretary of State for Northern Ireland
The Government agrees that reallocating road space to give pedestrians and cyclists more room can be a good way of enabling more people to move around safely while maintaining social distancing, thus helping to relieve pressures on public transport as well as delivering other benefits. It supports the steps many local authorities are taking to deliver this, but decisions on where and how to do it are a matter for local authorities who are responsible for managing their roads, and who already have the necessary powers. The Government has provided over £3.2 billion of additional funding to local authorities to help them respond to coronavirus (COVID-19) pressures across all the services they deliver, and will continue to consider the case further support.