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Written Question
Motorcycles: Departmental Coordination
Wednesday 20th March 2024

Asked by: Peter Gibson (Conservative - Darlington)

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if he will establish a cross-departmental task force to tackle illegal motorcycling.

Answered by Chris Philp - Minister of State (Home Office)

The Home Office has no current plans to establish a cross-departmental task force to tackle illegal motorcycling. Enforcement of road traffic law and how available resources are deployed is the responsibility of individual Chief Officers and Police and Crime Commissioners, taking into account the specific local problems and demands with which they are faced.

The Government has established a joint Home Office, Department for Transport and National Police Chiefs’ Council Roads Policing Review to understand what can be done better to tackle road crime and improve road safety.

In addition, last year the Government launched the Anti-social Behaviour Action Plan (Anti-Social Behaviour Action Plan - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk) ensuring the police, local authorities and other relevant agencies have the powers they need to tackle the blight of anti-social behaviour, including motorcycle nuisance, facing communities across England and Wales.

The plan is backed by £160m of funding and includes supporting an increased police and other uniformed presence to target anti-social behaviour hotspots. Initially we worked with 10 police force areas, including Durham Constabulary, but from April we are providing funding of £66m to every police force in England and Wales to support a hotspot enforcement approach for both anti-social behaviour and serious violence. Hotspot patrols could be used in areas where anti-social behaviour involving motorcycles is an issue.

The Government will continue to support the police to ensure they have the tools needed to enforce road traffic legislation, including in relation to offences involving motorcycles.


Written Question
Motorcycles: Coronavirus
Tuesday 2nd June 2020

Asked by: Margaret Ferrier (Independent - Rutherglen and Hamilton West)

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent assessment he has made of the safety of motorcycling as an alternative method of transport during the covid-19 outbreak.

Answered by Rachel Maclean

We assessed the safety of motorcycling as part of the recent update of the Department’s Road Safety Statement, published on 19 July 2019, which provides steps to improve motorcycle safety.

The Department’s guidance issued on 12 May refers to “Private cars and other vehicles” as an alternative to using public transport, and encourages the public to “consider all other forms of transport before using public transport”. This would include private vehicles such as motorcycles and mopeds where the journey to be made is appropriate.


Written Question
Motorcycles: Coronavirus
Monday 18th May 2020

Asked by: Chris Law (Scottish National Party - Dundee West)

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will include commuter motorcycling within his transport policy response to covid-19 announced on 9 May 2020; and if he will make a statement.

Answered by Rachel Maclean

We recognise the social distancing benefits of using motorcycles at this time. However, the Department is keen to encourage cycling and walking as healthy and environmentally friendly forms of travel that support social distancing as well. More people have been cycling and walking during lockdown and it is the right time to encourage people to continue with this travel behaviour.


Written Question
Motorcycles: Exhaust Emissions
Monday 4th November 2019

Asked by: Chris Law (Scottish National Party - Dundee West)

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent assessment he has made of the sustainability of motorcycling as a form of transport; and if he will make a statement.

Answered by George Freeman

The Government has not made any recent assessment on the sustainability of motorcycling as a form of transport.


Written Question
Motorcycles: Exhaust Emissions
Friday 8th February 2019

Asked by: Chris Law (Scottish National Party - Dundee West)

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will meet with representatives of the motorcycling community to discuss exemptions to emissions charges and the potential contribution motorcycles can make to reducing net emissions.

Answered by Jesse Norman

Emissions charges for motorcycles are proposed in London only, as part of the Ultra Low Emission Zone (ULEZ). Decisions about the level of charges and which categories of vehicles are charged, are a matter for the Mayor of London. Representatives of the motorcycling community should contact the Mayor to discuss exemptions to the charges.


Written Question
Motorcycles: Accidents
Tuesday 22nd May 2018

Asked by: Paul Girvan (Democratic Unionist Party - South Antrim)

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many motorcyclists were (a) injured and (b) killed on roads in 2017.

Answered by Jesse Norman

Figures for 2017 will be published later this year. Figures on motorcycling casualties in reported road accidents involving personal injury in Great Britain in 2016 can be found in table RAS30001 here: https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/665201/ras30001.ods


Written Question
Cycling: Safety
Tuesday 19th September 2017

Asked by: Theresa Villiers (Conservative - Chipping Barnet)

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will include, as part of the Think public information campaign on road safety, messages which highlights the risks of harm to cyclists and motorbike riders when people open car doors without looking to see who is coming up behind them.

Answered by Jesse Norman

We are committed to improving safety for all vulnerable road users. We will continue to deliver safety advice to motorcyclists, cyclists, motorists and pedestrians through the THINK! and THINK BIKER social media channels, and work with partners to develop cycling/motorcycling campaign messages that raise awareness of specific dangers, including those mentioned.

The purpose of THINK! is to reduce the number of people killed and seriously injured on our roads. Campaign priorities are determined on this basis. They are thoroughly researched and evidenced using casualty data, road safety literature and audience insight.


Written Question
Motorcycles: Safety
Tuesday 24th May 2016

Asked by: Lilian Greenwood (Labour - Nottingham South)

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what funding is allocated to motorcycling safety in his Department's budget for the current year.

Answered by Andrew Jones

Motorcycling safety is embedded within different areas including wider road safety policy, international vehicle standards and the THINK! road safety campaigns. As such there is not a separate budget allocation.

A significant role is also played by the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency, which oversees the training and testing of motorcyclists.


Written Question
Motorcycles
Thursday 20th November 2014

Asked by: Steve Baker (Conservative - Wycombe)

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what proportion of passenger journeys in the UK were made by powered two wheelers in each of the last five years; and what share of his Department's spending related to motorcycling in each period.

Answered by Robert Goodwill

The Department holds data collected in the National Travel Survey (NTS) on the percentage of all trips made by motorcycle.

The table below shows the percentage of all trips made by motorcycle between 2009 and 2013:

Average number of motorcycle trips per person per year by main mode:
England, 2009 to 2013

2009

2010

2011

2012

2013

Motorcycle

3

3

4

4

3

All modes

974

961

950

950

923

Percentage of all trips

0.3%

0.3%

0.4%

0.4%

0.3%

Source: National Travel Survey

During the five financial years 2009/10 to 2013/14, departmental spending on motorcycling is detailed in the table below:

£ thousands

2009/10

2010/11

2011/12

2012/13

2013/14

Total 09/10-13/14

Spend on motorcycling

2,390

536

2,298

706

929

6,859

Percentage of Department's spend

0.016%

0.004%

0.019%

0.006%

0.008%

0.011%

The £6.859 million motorcycling spend represents 0.011% of the total departmental spend for those years.