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Bus Passengers (Nottingham)
Vernon Coaker: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions what
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discussions he has had with Nottingham City Transport on bus passenger numbers following the reorganisation of their bus services; and if he will make a statement. [17387]
Ms Keeble: I have had no discussions with Nottingham City Transport about bus passenger numbers since reorganisation of their bus services on 30 September. However, I would expect the city council to continue to monitor the use of public transport in the city as part of the annual reporting process for the Greater Nottingham local transport plan.
Mobile Phone Masts
Mr. Gibb: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions what plans he has to revise the Town and Country Planning (General Permitted Development) Order 1995, Schedule 2, Part 24 so far as the citing of mobile phone masts is concerned. [17411]
Ms Keeble: On 22 August this year we introduced changes that significantly improved the planning procedures and guidance for telecommunications mast development. The changes, which included, amendments to the 1995 Order:
- strengthened public consultation requirements on mast proposals of 15 metres and below so that they are the same as for planning applications;
increased the time for an authority to deal with prior approval applications to 56 days;
underlined that school governors must be consulted on all proposals for new masts on or near a school or college; and
increased fees to enable authorities to carry out full public consultation.
Speed Cameras
John Mann: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions what assessment he has made of the average reduction in road speed as a result of the introduction of speed cameras. [17442]
Mr. Jamieson: Monitoring of the eight pilot areas has shown that, on average, speed at the camera sites has reduced on average by 5.6mph. On average the percentage of drivers exceeding the speed limit at pilot camera sites reduced from 55 per cent. to 16 per cent.
John Mann: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions what assessment he has made of how many police constabularies are in favour of the use of speed cameras. [17444]
Mr. Jamieson: All police forces in the United Kingdom use technology to enforce speed limits. To date, 15 police force areas have been accepted into the new netting-off scheme and a number are preparing their case to join next year. It is envisaged that the scheme will be extended to all areas within two years. ACPO strongly support the netting-off scheme.
John Mann: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions what assessment he has made of the reduction in (a) fatalities and (b) serious accidents as a result of the introduction of speed cameras. [17440]
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Mr. Jamieson: The first year report of the netting-off scheme shows that, on average, at camera sites, the number of people killed and seriously injured fell by 47 per cent. compared to the average of the previous three years.
John Mann: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions how many requests he has received for additional funding for speed cameras since January. [17435]
Mr. Jamieson: Eight further bids have been received to join the netting-off scheme. Of these, seven have been approved.
John Mann: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions how many speed cameras there are in the United Kingdom. [17441]
Mr. Jamieson: The numbers of speed cameras in police force areas are not held centrally.
Traffic Calming Measures
John Mann: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions what was the cost of damage to emergency vehicles sustained from cushion-style road humps in the last year for which figures are available. [17438]
Mr. Jamieson: This information is not held centrally.
John Mann: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions how many 20 miles per hour zones have been adopted in England. [17445]
Mr. Jamieson: This information is not held centrally.
John Mann: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions what guidance his Department gives on the (a) height, (b) length and (c) width of cushion-style road humps. [17437]
Mr. Jamieson: The Highways (Road Humps) Regulations 1999 states that a road hump should be between 25 and 100mm in height, with no vertical face higher than 6mm and have a minimum width in the direction of traffic not be less than 900mm.
The Department has issued a range of Traffic Advisory Leaflets to all local authorities in England and Wales giving guidance on the installation of road humps. Within the scope offered by the Regulations, it is for highway authorities to decide the most appropriate design and dimension of road hump for each of their roads.
John Mann: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions what advice he gives on the introduction of traffic calming measures on (a) trunk and (b) residential roads. [17436]
Mr. Jamieson: Traffic calming has proved to be effective in reducing vehicle speeds and in reducing the number and severity of road accidents
The Department provides highway authorities with guidance and advice on traffic calming, through our Traffic Advisory Leaflet series of publications. We are also preparing a Local Transport Note on the design and effectiveness of traffic calming measures.
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The Highways Agency has issued "Trunk Road Traffic Calming Advice" (IAN28/00) to their staff which gives guidance on the use of traffic calming measures on trunk roads. This document is currently being updated to include best practice. It is envisaged that the updated version of the advice will be incorporated into the Highways Agency "Design Manual for Roads and Bridges".
Train Accidents (Farm Animals)
Mr. Gordon Prentice: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions how many trains hit farm animals straying on to the track in each year since 1997; and if he will make a statement. [17414]
Mr. Jamieson: The number of incidents where trains have struck animals are contained in the Chief Inspector of Railways' Annual Reports on Railway Safety, copies of which are in the House Library.
Airline Group (NATS)
Mr. Gordon Prentice: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions what approaches he has received from the Airline Group concerning its ability, following 11 September, to invest the projected £50 million profits from its first year operations back into NATS. [17452]
Mr. Jamieson: The Airline Group, in conjunction with NATS, is producing a business plan, for submission to Government by the end of November.
Fuel Prices
Mr. Cox: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions what recent representations he has received regarding the price of petrol and diesel in England and Wales. [17883]
Mr. Jamieson: This Department receives regular representations on the price of petrol and diesel from a range of bodies and individuals. The current higher price of diesel compared to petrol is the result of increased winter demand for heating oil, which is similar in composition to diesel, as compared to petrol for which demand is generally greater in summer. In Budget 2001 the duties on ultra low sulphur petrol and ultra low sulphur diesel, the two most commonly used road fuels, were reduced to 45.82 pence per litre.
Road Accidents
Ms Drown: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions how many people have been (a) killed and (b) injured on the roads as a result of accidents involving (i) bus, (ii) coach and (iii) lorry drivers in each of the last three years to which the figures are available [18067]
Mr. Jamieson: The following table shows the road casualty figures for accidents in Great Britain involving buses and coaches and for accidents involving a heavy goods vehicle (HGV) of over 3.5 tonnes gvw (maximum permissible gross vehicle weight). It is not possible to present separate figures for accidents involving buses and
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for accidents involving coaches. The figures include driver casualties in the specified vehicle type where these occurred.
| Road users killed in accidents involving | Road users injured in accidents involving | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| a bus or coach | an HGV | a bus or coach | an HGV | |
| 1998 | 152 | 576 | 16,081 | 18,122 |
| 1999 | 145 | 620 | 16,567 | 19,180 |
| 2000 | 149 | 560 | 16,412 | 19,233 |
Ms Drown: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions how many road accidents have involved (a) coach, and (b) bus and (c) lorry drivers in each of the last three years for which figures are available. [18091]
Mr. Jamieson: The following table shows the figures for road accidents in Great Britain involving buses and coaches and for accidents involving a heavy goods vehicle (HGV) of over 3.5 tonnes gvw (maximum permissible gross vehicle weight). The statistics relate only to accidents that resulted in personal injury. It is not possible to present separate figures for accidents involving buses and for accidents involving coaches.
These statistics do not indicate whether the driver of the specified vehicle type was the injured party.
| Personal injury accidents involving | ||
|---|---|---|
| a bus or coach | an HGV | |
| 1998 | 11,762 | 14,526 |
| 1999 | 11,888 | 15,191 |
| 2000 | 11,733 | 15,194 |
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