Cycling: Motor Vehicles
Ian Austin: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what his estimate is of the proportion of cyclists that own cars. [53988]
Norman Baker: 83% of the cyclists participating in the National Travel Survey in 2008 and 2009 were resident in a household with access to a car or van.
The equivalent overall figure for all survey respondents in Great Britain was 82%.
Transport: Carbon Emissions
Mr Bain: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what support his Department plans to provide to local authorities for the development of low-carbon based transport systems in the form of (a) bus transport powered by electricity and (b) trams in each of the next four financial years. [52203]
Norman Baker: The Department has no plans to provide support to local authorities for the development of low-carbon based transport systems in the specific form of bus transport powered by electricity. However, the Department has paid £46.8 million to local authorities and bus operators to assist them in purchasing 526 hybrid-electric and 16 all-electric buses through the Green Bus Fund. More details are available on the DFT website at:
http://www.dft.gov.uk/pgr/regional/buses/greenbusfund/greenbusfundbusdetails/
On trams, since May 2010, we have supported a number of proposed extensions to existing light rail systems in operation. This includes confirming funding, with a Government contribution of over £120 million, for the Manchester metro link extensions to Ashton and East Didsbury which are currently under construction and expected to be in operation in 2013.
We announced on 4 February 2011 our intention to support the extension to Midland Metro Line One to Birmingham New Street station, with a Department for Transport contribution of £75.4 million towards the total scheme costs and in March 2011, we announced our continued support for the Nottingham Express Transit Phase 2 light rail PFI project. It is now for the promoters of these schemes to complete the procurement process and submit a final business case to the Department for final funding approval.
I have also initiated a study of light rail to see whether there are ways of making this mode of transport more cost-effective for the future. I am due to receive this study shortly.
Aviation: Conditions of Employment
Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport whether he has assessed the levels of (a) stress and (b) potential fatigue experienced by pilots on standby duty. [53934]
Mrs Villiers: The Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) has assessed the level of fatigue that could be accrued by pilots on standby duty and the extent to which hours spent on standby should count towards duty time limits. The effect on pilot fatigue of possible stress arising from standby duty was considered as part of the CAA’s assessment. The results of the assessment are reflected in the requirements of CAP 371: Avoidance of Fatigue in Air Crews.
Car Sharing
Caroline Dinenage: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what recent discussions he has had on the promotion of car sharing schemes. [54407]
Norman Baker: In October I held a roundtable discussion with car sharing operators to discuss how the Department for Transport and the industry could further the uptake of car sharing across England. In January, the Department published the ‘Creating Growth: Cutting Carbon’ White Paper, which made clear the Government’s commitment to sustainable travel, including car sharing. Departmental officials continue to work with local authorities and the car sharing industry to promote car sharing and support operators.
Invalid Vehicles
Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport with reference to his Department’s document, Carriage of Mobility Scooters on Public Transport: Feasibility Study, 2006, when he plans to publish his Department’s guidance on the dimensions and weight of mobility scooters suitable for use on public transport; whether he has had discussions with the train operating companies serving the Brighton and Hove area on the compatibility of their policies on the carriage of four wheel mobility scooters with the Disability Discrimination Act 2005; and if he will make a statement. [53003]
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Norman Baker: We are currently in discussion with representatives of transport operators (including the Association of Train Operating Companies), manufacturers and user groups, and will publish guidance on scooters on public transport as soon as possible. Any decision made on scooters being carried on public transport will aim to strike a balance between the needs of a user to maintain independence and the operating constraints of the industry.
Information on existing arrangements, in the meantime, is available through individual operators, whose decisions are based on their own risk assessments.
Motorways
Mr Darling: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many miles there are of managed motorways that allow the use of the hard shoulder at peak times; and where they are located. [54041]
Mike Penning: The Highways Agency has converted 42.6 miles of hard shoulder for use during the busiest periods. The locations of these sites are detailed in the following table.
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Location |
Length in miles |
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M42 J3A-7—Earlswood, west midlands to Chelmsley Wood, Birmingham |
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M6 J4-J5—Birmingham to Castle Bromwich, Birmingham |
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M6 J8-J10a—Great Barr, Birmingham to Essington, west midlands |
Roads: Accidents
Ian Austin: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport (1) what estimate he has made of the likelihood of being (a) killed, (b) seriously injured and (c) injured as a result of a road traffic accident caused by (i) a car, (ii) a goods vehicle and (iii) a cyclist based on the number of accidents each has caused in each of the last 10 years and the extent to which they use the roads; [53983]
(2) what proportion of road traffic accidents that resulted in (a) death, (b) serious injury and (c) slight injury were caused by (i) a car, (ii) a goods vehicle and (iii) a cyclist in each of the last 10 years. [53984]
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Mike Penning: No estimates have been made regarding the likelihood of being killed or injured as a result of accidents caused by various vehicle types and the Department for Transport’s accident data do not assign blame or collect information on causes of accidents.
However, the information regarding the type of vehicles involved in reported personal injury accidents and their involvement rates by severity of accident per 100 million vehicle miles over last 10 years is published in table 10 of “Reported Road Casualties Great Britain—the annual report”. Copies of the said publication have been deposited in the Libraries of the House. The table can also be downloaded from the Department’s website at the following link:
http://www.dft.gov.uk/excel/173025/221412/221549/227755/503336/RCGB09tables1to20.xls
Ian Austin: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport (1) how many cyclists have been (a) killed
10 May 2011 : Column 1064W
and
(b)
seriously injured in a collision with (i) a car, (ii) a motorcycle, (iii) a goods vehicle, (iv) a bus or coach, (v) another cyclist and (vi) any other vehicle in each of the last 10 years; [53985]
(2) how many pedestrians have been (a) killed and (b) seriously injured in a collision with (i) a car, (ii) a motorcycle, (iii) a goods vehicle, (iv) a bus or coach, (v) a cyclist and (vi) any other vehicle in each of the last 10 years. [53986]
Mike Penning: The number of reported pedal cyclist casualties, in Great Britain 2000-09, who were (a) killed and (b) seriously injured in reported road accidents involving another vehicle is given as follows. Accidents involving more than one vehicle in addition to the pedal cycle are counted against each relevant vehicle type in this table. There will therefore be some double counting within the table. In multi-vehicle accidents, information on the type of collision between the vehicles involved can not be reliably determined.
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Pedal cyclists |
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Accidents involving at least one: |
Cyclist injury |
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2004 |
2005 |
2006 |
2007 |
2008 |
2009 |
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The number of reported pedestrian casualties, in Great Britain 2000-09, who were (a) killed and (b) seriously injured in reported road accidents by the vehicle they collided with is given as follows:
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Pedestrians |
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Vehicle |
Pedestrian injury |
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2004 |
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Roads: Safety
Jim Fitzpatrick: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what recent progress his Department has made in developing a new road safety framework; and when he expects that framework to be published. [54943]
Mike Penning: The Department has today published its Strategic Framework for Road Safety.
Jim Fitzpatrick: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what measures his Department plans to use to assess performance against its road safety strategy. [54949]
Mike Penning: The Department has today published a Road Safety Outcomes Framework, as a part of its Strategic Framework for Road Safety, that it will use to assess progress in this area.
Jim Fitzpatrick: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport whether his Department plans to set targets for reductions in deaths and serious injuries from road crashes following the expiry of the Road Safety Strategy in 2010; and if he will make a statement. [54950]
Mike Penning: The Government’s approach to road safety is set out in the Strategic Framework for Road Safety, published today.
Speed Limits
Bob Russell: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what discussions (a) he and (b) his Ministerial colleagues had with representatives of (i) road safety and (ii) other organisations before issuing the new police framework for dealing with drivers exceeding speed limits. [53780]
Mike Penning: I have not issued or developed the new police framework for dealing with drivers exceeding speed limits. The advice to police forces about the use of education as an alternative to prosecution in some cases has been developed and issued by the Association of Chief Police Officers.
Driving Tests
Mrs Moon: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will consider the merits of changes to the driving test so that the test is taken in two parts and includes a probationary period; and if he will make a statement. [52772]
Mike Penning: Our learning to drive arrangements already provide for people to train in a protected environment using a provisional licence. Also the driving test is already conducted in two parts, a computer-based theory test and a practical driving test. Research indicates that learner car drivers typically take around a year to qualify.
Our policy is to avoid additional regulation whenever possible, and we would be very concerned about imposing any regulation that reduced the mobility of young people who had acquired their full licence, because of the impact that it would have on their participation in the labour market and in further and higher education.
Motor Vehicles: Registration
Simon Hart: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport (1) what assessment has been made of the effects of the issuing of new vehicle registration documents to stretched limousines which have not passed the single vehicle approval test; [52779]
(2) how many stretched limousines have been issued with a new vehicle registration document that have not previously passed the single vehicle approval test; [52780]
(3) how many stretched limousines issued with a new vehicle registration document have subsequently failed the single vehicle approval test. [52781]
Mike Penning: There are around 7,500 limousines currently on the road. Of these, 175 appear not to have had the evidence required to demonstrate they fully meet the standard provided at the time of their registration. There is no information held on how many of these have since failed a single vehicle approval test.
The Vehicle and Operator Services Agency and local authorities have responsibility for enforcing the standards on construction and use of these vehicles on the road. This includes periodic roadworthiness testing, on-road spot checks, operator licensing compliance and local authority licensing standards where the vehicles are used for hire and reward. These arrangements are considered sufficient to mitigate any road safety risks that may be associated with the use of these 175 vehicles.
12 May 2011 : Column 1301W
Simon Hart: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what steps his Department has taken to inform the owners of stretched limousines about the requirement to pass the single vehicle approval test. [52782]
Mike Penning: The Department for Transport does not routinely notify owners of the technical construction requirements to be met prior to registering a vehicle in Great Britain. The relevant regulations are publicly available and manufacturers and importers, or their appointed representatives, usually deal with compliance issues before the owner takes delivery of the vehicle.
In the case of stretched limousines, the Department identified a general lack of awareness by importers and issued Guidance for Operators in early 2008. This is available from the Vehicle and Operator Services Agency (VOSA) and the Department’s website at:
http://www.dft.gov.uk/pgr/regional/taxis/
Motor Vehicles: Testing
Simon Hart: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what consideration he has given to requiring motorists to display proof of a valid MOT on their vehicles. [52783]
Mike Penning: The benefits of such a requirement would be outweighed by the costs that it would impose. The Police and Vehicle Operator and Services Agency (VOSA) can already determine whether a vehicle has a valid MOT by checking against the MOT database. In addition, a vehicle must have a valid MOT (if required) for its keeper to be issued with a vehicle excise duty disc.
12 May 2011 : Column 1302W
Roads: Accidents
Bob Russell: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what estimate he has made of the average cost to the public purse of a (a) fatality, (b) serious injury and (c) slight injury caused through an accident involving a vehicle in the last year for which figures are available. [53783]
Mike Penning: The values for preventing fatalities and injuries used by the Department for Transport are published in unit 3.4.1. of its transport appraisal guidance (WebTAG), available at:
http://www.dft.gov.uk/webtag/documents/expert/unit3.4.1.php
Table 3, as follows, presents the components that make up these values. The direct costs to the public purse comprise medical and ambulance costs, and police costs.
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Table 3: Average value of prevention of road accidents by severity and element of cost—June 2009 |
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Casualty related costs |
Accident related costs |
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Accident severity |
Lost output |
Medical and ambulance |
Human costs |
Police cost |
Insurance and admin |
Damage to property |
Total |
Roads: Lighting
Duncan Hames: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport whether he has made an assessment of the potential (a) financial and (b) carbon savings of (i) a reduction in the density of lighting on main road and motorway routes and (ii) switching off lighting on sections of main road and motorway routes where there is a good safety record and traffic flows during the night are low. [53578]
Mike Penning: The Highways Agency has no plans to reduce the density of lighting (such as turning off every other lamp) on all purpose trunk roads (main roads) or motorways as this can cause patchy lighting and could compromise safety. This can be tiring for motorists and may conceal hazards in the darker patches.
The agency have assessed and implemented switching lighting off between midnight and 5.00am on motorways where there is a good safety record and traffic flows during the night are low. This is delivering up to 40% savings in energy costs and carbon at these locations.
There are no plans to switch off lighting during parts of the night on all purpose trunk roads.
Roads: Safety
Mr Evennett: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what recent assessment he has made of the level of road safety in (a) the London borough of Bexley, (b) Greater London and (c) Kent. [54850]
Mike Penning: The Department has made no such assessments. However, local authorities do have a duty
12 May 2011 : Column 1303W
under section 39 of the Road Traffic Act 1988 to carry out studies into accidents within their area and to take such measures as appear appropriate to prevent such accidents.
