Asked by: Gavin Williamson (Conservative - South Staffordshire)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what the estimated cost is of the proposed Manchester Metrolink infrastructure in the High Speed Rail (Crewe - Manchester) Bill.
Answered by Huw Merriman - Minister of State (Department for Transport)
The government is seeking to adapt the High Speed Rail (Crewe-Manchester) Bill to deliver Northern Powerhouse Rail (NPR) only, removing scope south of the Parish of Millington and Rostherne, which was included only for HS2. A motion to formalise the point of truncation will be brought to the House and a supplementary environmental statement will be produced.
As set out in the Network North Command paper, up to £12 billion in 2023 prices has been retained to deliver NPR scope between Manchester and the Parish of Millington and Rostherne. The funding has not been disagregated further.
Asked by: Navendu Mishra (Labour - Stockport)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether his Department has had discussions with the Mayor of Greater Manchester on the proposed Metrolink tram extension to Stockport.
Answered by Guy Opperman - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The Mayor has met with Ministers on several occasions this year to discuss various transport issues.
The Department is in regular discussions with Greater Manchester Combined Authority (GMCA) regarding the region’s City Region Sustainable Transport Settlement (CRSTS) programme. CRSTS includes funding for transformative local transport projects which Mayoral Combined Authorities can use to deliver Mass Transit schemes based on their own local priorities.
Indicative funding allocations have been published for the second round of the City Region Sustainable Transport Settlements (CRSTS) which covers the period 2027/28 to 2031/32. Greater Manchester Combined Authority’s Settlement is worth £2.47 billion which includes a Network North uplift of £928 million. GMCA could choose to use this funding to deliver Mass Transit connectivity to Stockport.
Asked by: Navendu Mishra (Labour - Stockport)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether his Department has made an assessment of the potential economic benefits of the extension of the Metrolink tram system into Stockport town centre.
Answered by Richard Holden - Minister without Portfolio (Cabinet Office)
Light rail is a devolved matter in England and it is for local authorities to develop proposals for potential new schemes, including cost estimates and appraisals of economic benefits.
Local authorities are best placed to assess place-based transport challenges and opportunities, and prioritise schemes accordingly while being accountable to the public.
The Department for Transport is providing £1.07 billion to Greater Manchester Combined Authority (GMCA) between 2022/23 and 2026/27 through Greater Manchester’s City Region Sustainable Transport Settlement. This includes funding for transformational local transport projects prioritised by GMCA.
Asked by: Navendu Mishra (Labour - Stockport)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent estimate his Department has made of the cost of the proposed extension of the Metrolink tram system into Stockport town centre.
Answered by Richard Holden - Minister without Portfolio (Cabinet Office)
Light rail is a devolved matter in England and it is for local authorities to develop proposals for potential new schemes, including cost estimates and appraisals of economic benefits.
Local authorities are best placed to assess place-based transport challenges and opportunities, and prioritise schemes accordingly while being accountable to the public.
The Department for Transport is providing £1.07 billion to Greater Manchester Combined Authority (GMCA) between 2022/23 and 2026/27 through Greater Manchester’s City Region Sustainable Transport Settlement. This includes funding for transformational local transport projects prioritised by GMCA.
Asked by: Rebecca Long Bailey (Labour - Salford and Eccles)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will make it his policy to support the expansion of the Manchester Metrolink to (a) other areas of Salford, (b) Eccles and (c) Greater Manchester.
Answered by Richard Holden - Minister without Portfolio (Cabinet Office)
Mass transit is largely devolved in England. Mass transit expansion in Greater Manchester is the responsibility of the Mayor of Greater Manchester and the Greater Manchester Combined Authority (GMCA).
Through Greater Manchester’s City Region Sustainable Transport Settlement (CRSTS) for 2022/23 to 2026/27, the Department for Transport has allocated £1.07 billion to the region for local transport schemes, which GMCA has brought forward.
GMCA can choose to develop mass transit proposals through CRSTS.
Asked by: Yasmin Qureshi (Labour - Bolton South East)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent estimate his Department has made of the level of (a) car ownership, (b) bus usage (iii) light rail usage, (d) train usage and (e) active travel usage in (i) Bolton South East constituency, (ii) the borough of Bolton and (iii) Greater Manchester.
Answered by Richard Holden - Minister without Portfolio (Cabinet Office)
The information requested regarding (a) car ownership, (b) bus usage (c) light rail usage, (d) train usage and (e) active travel usage in (i) Bolton South East constituency, (ii) the borough of Bolton and (iii) Greater Manchester is given below, where available. In several cases, data are not available specifically for Bolton South East constituency or the Borough of Bolton.
A) Car ownership
According to the Department’s vehicle statistics, there were 1,393,157 registered cars as at end-September 2022 in Greater Manchester, 127,329 in Bolton Borough and 42,868 in Bolton South East Constituency.
B) Bus usage
According to the Department’s annual bus statistics, in the financial year 2021/22 there were 121.0 million local bus journeys taken in Greater Manchester. Data for (i) Bolton South East constituency and (ii) the borough of Bolton are not available
C) Light rail usage
According to the Department’s light rail statistics, in the financial year 2021/22 there were 26.0 million journeys taken on Manchester Metrolink. Data for (i) Bolton South East constituency and (ii) the borough of Bolton are not available
D) Train usage
According to Office of Rail and Road statistics in 2021/22 there were 39.2 million passenger rail journeys within the North West that started or ended in Greater Manchester. There were also 13.9 million journeys that started or ended in Greater Manchester that ended or started from regions other than the North West. Data for (i) Bolton South East constituency and (ii) the borough of Bolton are not available
E) Active travel usage
According to the Department’s annual walking and cycling statistics, between November 2020 and November 2021, 61.4% of adults walked or cycled at least once a week in Bolton (Local authority) and 66.6% of adults walked or cycled at least once a week in Greater Manchester. Data for (i) Bolton South East constituency are not available
F) Personal travel patterns in Greater Manchester
Additionally, information from the Department’s National Travel Survey shows that, on average each year between 2010 and 2019 there were 244 walking trips per person, 11 pedal cycle trips per person, 81 bus trips per person, 12 surface rail trips per person and 11 light rail trips per person by residents of Greater Manchester. 76% of adults in Greater Manchester had access to a car in 2021. National Travel Survey data is not available at constituency or borough level.
Asked by: Yasmin Qureshi (Labour - Bolton South East)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, with reference to the Answer given on 24 March 2021 to Question 172052, on Trams: Greater Manchester, and the Answer given on 21 February 2022 to Question 122629, on Manchester Metrolink: Bolton, what progress has been made on the progress of the Bolton-Bury tramline.
Answered by Wendy Morton
In November 2020, the Government awarded £50,000 of Restoring Your Railway Ideas funding to Transport for Greater Manchester to develop a Strategic Outline Business Case to reinstate passenger services on the Bolton-Radcliffe/Bolton-Bury line. The SOBC was submitted to the Department on 21st June 2022 and will be assessed in the coming months.
Asked by: Lord Berkeley (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what estimate they have made of the (1) development, (2) construction, and (3) commissioning (a) times, and (b) costs, for the proposed underground Manchester HS2 station project; and what closures of the tram services in Manchester will be required during the construction.
Answered by Baroness Vere of Norbiton - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Manchester HS2 station project is for a surface station located on the same level as the existing Piccadilly Network Rail station. The HS2 surface station is based on a 6-platform surface station and will be accessed by a tunnelled route until the station approach. The Government is intent on working with HS2 Ltd to limit the level of disruption throughout construction.
HS2 Ltd expect the disruption to the Metrolink Ashton Line to last for around two years during which a bus replacement service will be provided between Ashton Cole and Manchester Piccadilly.
Asked by: Yasmin Qureshi (Labour - Bolton South East)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, when the feasibility study into the connection of Bolton to the Greater Manchester Metrolink network will be (a) completed and (b) published.
Answered by Wendy Morton
In November 2020, this Government awarded up to £50,000 of Restoring Your Railway Ideas funding to develop a Strategic Outline Business Case to reinstate passenger services on the Bolton-Radcliffe/Bolton-Bury line. The Department has been working with the promoter and we expect the SOBC to be submitted in March.
Asked by: Yasmin Qureshi (Labour - Bolton South East)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps he has taken to progress the feasibility study for the Bolton-Bury tramline.
Answered by Rachel Maclean
Through the Restoring Your Railway Ideas Fund, the Department has announced funding of up to £50,000 to develop plans to extend the Metrolink to Bolton and Bury. The Department and Network Rail are providing support to Transport for Greater Manchester to conduct a feasibility study.