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Greenaway Review

Mr. Grogan: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport when he expects to respond to the Greenaway review into the motor insurance industry. [177441]

Mr. Jamieson: We are currently studying Professor Greenaway's report on uninsured driving and his recommendations. We will be publishing the report together with the Government response as soon as possible.

Heavy Goods Vehicles

Mr. Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport (1) if he will make a statement on the Government's policy towards the implementation of UN/ECE 48 and UN/ECE 104 with regard to conspicuity marking on heavy goods vehicles; [178456]

(2) what discussions he has had with the heavy goods vehicle industry on the introduction of conspicuity marking. [178457]

Mr. Jamieson: Conspicuity markings conforming to UNECE Regulation 104 are now an optional requirement for vehicles approved to UNECE Regulation 48. Fitment is already permitted in the UK provided they comply with the colour requirements but, as they are optional in UNECE 48, the Government could not unilaterally mandate them.

A German proposal has been made to the UNECE working party on Lighting and Signalling to mandate UNECE 104 tape in UNECE 48 for all new vehicles over 12 tonnes. The Department of Transport will need to weigh up the road safety benefits and the costs before reaching a view on the proposal.

A current European Commission study is investigating the costs and benefits of fitting the tape to new and existing heavy vehicles. The Department will also be commissioning research to provide an updated cost-benefit analysis for the UK.

Representations have been received from both the Freight Transport Association and the Road Haulage Association.

Local Transport Plan

Mrs. Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how much public funding has been spent in Crosby from the Local Transport Plan. [177945]

Mr. McNulty: The borough of Sefton forms part of the Merseyside joint Local Transport Plan (LTP) area. £28 million of the total Merseyside LTP funding allocated since 2000 went directly to Sefton MBC. An unspecified proportion of the £82 million allocated to Merseytravel over the same period has been or will be spent on transport improvements in Sefton.

Decisions on how much of this funding is spent in Crosby are a matter for the authorities concerned.
 
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North London Line

Jon Cruddas: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will publish a copy of the joint Strategic Rail Authority/Transport for London/Docklands Light Railway study assessing options for future use of the North London Line between Canning Town and Stratford. [176287]

Mr. McNulty: This report was commissioned by the Strategic Rail Authority and Transport for London and remains incomplete. Some further work is being done and the joint sponsors will consider publication when this is complete.

Rail Services (Rochdale)

Mrs. Fitzsimons: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will make a statement on the effect of investment in railway improvements over the next 10 years upon residents of the parliamentary constituency of Rochdale. [178561]

Mr. McNulty: Residents of Rochdale will benefit from the new TransPennine Express franchise, which commenced in February. The franchise secures investment of around £260 million, which will include the introduction of a new fleet of 100 mph diesel trains leading to increased capacity, improved service quality and performance across the region. A new Northern franchise, which will include local and regional services through Rochdale, has been tendered competitively. Work continues on the West Coast Main Line upgrade, which will see a reduction in journey times on services to/from the North West and an increase in service frequency.

Railways (Investment)

John McDonnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what the total private sector investment in the rail industry that has been indirectly funded by the public sector through franchise payments and access charges has been in each financial year since 1996–97. [177210]

Mr. McNulty: Details of annual levels of rail investment and subsidy are set out in Tables 5.1 and 5.2 of the September 2003 edition of the Strategic Rail Authority's quarterly statistics bulletin "National Rail Trends", copies of which are available in the Libraries of the House.

All investment recorded in Table 5.2, for each year since 1996–97, is private sector investment, but the investment funded by direct grants to Railtrack, Network Rail and London and Continental Railways in 2001–02 and 2002–03 was directly funded by the public sector. The amount of investment funded indirectly by the public sector cannot be accurately assessed because, for example, some access charges are paid by unsubsidised train operators.

Rolling Stock

John McDonnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many new rail rolling stock vehicles have been ordered since 1997; and of these, how many have been (a) wholly manufactured in the UK and (b) wholly manufactured abroad. [177098]

 
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Mr. McNulty: It is rare for railway rolling stock to be built wholly in a single country using only components also manufactured wholly within that country. However, of the 4,433 passenger-carrying railway vehicles ordered since 1997, 3,332 (75 per cent.) have been or are being built by UK-based manufacturers. All the remaining 1,101 vehicles are likely to incorporate at least some UK-manufactured components.

Tractor Drivers

Tony Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what class of driving licence is required by tractor drivers who are (a) contractors or their employees and (b) farm workers. [178094]

Mr. Jamieson: The category of entitlement required of tractor drivers is determined by the nature of the work for which the vehicle is being used.

Category F entitlement covers farm workers driving tractors mainly off road and in connection with agricultural or forestry work. If tractors are driven solely off road on private farmland no driving licence is required.

If a tractor is used for any other purpose and is driven primarily on the road, depending on its weight, category B (car), category C1 (medium goods vehicle) or category C (large goods vehicle) entitlement is required. More detailed information is provided in leaflet D100, available from post offices and Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) local offices.

Transport (South-east Hampshire)

Mr. Hoban: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what studies are under way to identify transport problems and solutions in south east Hampshire; and what their completion dates are. [177282]

Mr. McNulty: Consultants have recently completed a scoping study to consider the strategic role of the A34 transport corridor from south Hampshire to the Midlands. The final report was published on 14 April and copies are available on the Government Office for the South East website www.go-se.gov.uk.

As part of the work associated with the development of the South East Plan local authorities have completed an initial piece of work aimed at identifying issues, including transport, that may need to be addressed on a sub-regional basis within south east Hampshire. This work was commissioned by the South East England Regional Assembly.

Hampshire county council, as the local highway authority, will be responsible for other more local transport studies.

West Coast Mainline

Ms Walley: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will give a commitment that full local services, of at least the same frequency as existed in the winter 2003–04 timetable, will be reinstated upon the West Coast mainline by May 2005. [177710]

Mr. McNulty: The Strategic Rail Authority (SRA) intends that the timetables for local services on the West Coast Main Line will be restored when the West Coast
 
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Route Modernisation works are completed and when driver training and rolling stock enhancements for Central Trains services are completed. This is currently estimated to be in May 2005. The level of service will be substantially that in the winter 2003–04 timetable but the SRA will be discussing with stakeholders changes to these timetables to reflect developments in travel patterns.

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