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Bus Regulation
Mr. Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what representations he has received from (a) industry and (b) passenger groups regarding the regulation of buses; and what changes he (i) has made and (ii) plans to make to regulation within the industry. [64137]
Mr. Jamieson: The bus industry is broadly content with the existing regulatory framework and advocates stability. As for passenger groups, the National Federation of Bus Users has made representations on the improvement of service provision and reliability, particularly through bus priorities, but has not specified regulation of the industry as a major concern.
We are always looking at ways of improving the details of regulation. On 1 March we extended the notice period for introducing or changing a local bus service registration to 56 days, and abolished the rule which allowed local service operators to alter timetables by up to 5 minutes from the registered time without changing the registration. We will soon be consulting on proposals to facilitate the registration of flexibly routed local bus services.
Quiet Lanes
Mr. Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport which local authorities included proposals for quiet lanes in their annual progress reports 2001 finance forms; and how many quiet lanes were proposed in each case. [63507]
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Mr. Spellar: The table shows the information provided within the local transport plan annual progress reports submitted in August 2001 of those English authorities outside London which included proposals for the designation of roads as quiet lanes.
| Authority | 2001–02 | 2002–03 | 2003–04 | 2004–05 | 2005–06 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bath and north-east Somerset | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 |
| Blackburn | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| Buckinghamshire | 0 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 |
| Cheshire | 2 | 3 | 3 | 6 | 4 |
| Cumbria | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Darlington | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Derbyshire | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| Devon | 1 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 7 |
| Dorset | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| East Riding | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| Halton | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| Isle of Wight | 1 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 |
| Kent | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 |
| Lancashire | 0 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Medway | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Milton Keynes | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Nottinghamshire | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| Oxfordshire | 0 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 |
| Poole | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Rutland | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| South Tyneside | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Sheffield | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Shropshire | 4 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 |
| Solihull | 0 | 0 | 2 | 3 | 4 |
| Somerset | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Suffolk | 0 | 10 | 20 | 20 | 20 |
| Surrey | 2 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 2 |
| Telford and Wrekin | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Thurrock | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2 |
| Wiltshire | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| York | 0 | 2 | 4 | 6 | 8 |
Source:
LTP Annual Progress Reports 2001
School Run
Mr. Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what research has been conducted (a) by and (b) for his Department on the impact of the school run on (i) congestion, (ii) traffic growth, (iii) pollution, (iv) children's health and (v) road casualties; and if he will make a statement. [64100]
Mr. Jamieson: My Department has commissioned an extensive programme of research, following advice from the School Travel Advisory Group. The results of completed projects can be found on the Department's school travel website at www.local-transport.dft.gov.uk/ schooltravel/.
Road Signage
Mr. Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what (a) guidance and (b) legislation exists with relation to road signage on (i) motorways, (ii) trunk roads, (iii) local authority roads and (iv) unadopted roads; what changes have (1) recently been made and (2) are planned in each case; and if he will make a statement. [64134]
Mr. Jamieson: The principal legislation specifying the design and use of traffic signs (as traffic signs are defined in section 64 of the Road Traffic Regulation Act 1984) to be placed on any road (as road is defined in section 142 of the 1984 Act), is the Traffic Signs Regulations and General Directions (TSRGD) 1994, SI 994/1519, as
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amended by SI 1995/2769 and SI 1995/3107. We consulted last year on draft revised and updated TSRGD and expect to publish the TSRGD 2002 later this year.
Guidance on the design and use of traffic signs is contained in the Traffic Signs Manual. Chapter 7, published in 1997, gives guidance on the design of sign faces. Revised Chapters 4 (design and use of warning signs) and 5 (road markings) will be published with the revised TSRGD. We have also consulted on proposals for publishing updated and revised guidance on the provision of directional signs to tourist destinations in England. Other relevant guidance is published in Local Transport Notes, including LTN 1/94 on the design and use of direction signs, Circulars (Roads), and Advisory Leaflets. Copies of the current Traffic Signs bibliography has been placed in the Libraries of the House.
Road Surfaces
Mr. Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport which local authorities included proposals for noise reducing road surfaces in their annual progress reports 2001 finance forms; and what the total km of quiet road surfacing proposed was in each case. [63499]
Mr. Spellar: The table shows the information provided within the local transport plan annual progress reports submitted in August 2001 by those English authorities outside London which included road maintenance proposals which use new noise-reducing surfaces.
Source:
LTP annual progress reports 2001
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Road Tolls
Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions (1) what assessment he has made of the potential impact of road tolls on (a) motorways and (b) trunk roads on the level of road usage on other roads; [59328]
- (2) what estimate he has made of the amounts that could be raised by the introduction of road tolls on motorways. [59327]
Mr. Jamieson: I have been asked to reply.
Various assessments of the impact of road user charging have been made in the background analysis document of the 10-year plan for transport and "Modernising the Taxation of the Haulage Industry Progress Report One", published by HM Treasury, HM Customs and Excise and the Department of Transport, Local Government and the Regions.
A number of multi-modal studies have also examined the impact of applying road user charges within their study areas. These papers are the work of study consultants. The Government have made no estimates of the revenues that might be generated.
Royal Prerogative
Mr. Carmichael: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what decisions have been made by his Department in the last year under authority from the Royal Prerogative. [63138]
Mr. Jamieson: Records are not kept of the individual occasions on which powers under the Royal Prerogative are exercised nor could it be practicable to do so.
Joint Working
Mr. Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will place in the Library a copy of the protocol on joint working between his Department and (a) the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs and (b) the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister. [63505]
Mr. Darling: My Department works closely with all Government Departments including DEFRA and ODPM.
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