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8 Feb 2005 : Column 1449W—continued
Disabled Access to Transport
Mr. Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what funding has been made available to improve disabled access transport services in Coventry, South. [214079]
Charlotte Atkins: Coventry city council and Centro receive funding for transport schemes through the joint West Midlands Local Transport Plan (LTP). The most up to date information we have is taken from the LTP Annual Progress Report for 2003–04. Excluding maintenance, the allocation to the West Midlands LTP for that year was £51 million of which Coventry's share was £5.251 million.
The Annual Progress Report does not specify spending in particular areas but it shows that £70,000 was spent specifically on miscellaneous facilities for the disabled across the city. Most of this would have involved the provision of facilities such as dropped kerbing. However, many other highway improvement and bus corridor schemes would routinely include provision for the disabled. For instance improvements to traffic signals, where these include works to pedestrian facilities, would also involve measures such as tactile paving and audible warnings.
Last year we gave approval to a £28.8 million funding contribution to the Coventry Primelines major scheme, which aims to improve bus services throughout the city. Three corridors in your constituency will be upgraded as part of the scheme. Works will include the provision of level boarding and improved shelters at 170 stops at a total cost of about £800,000 over the next three years.
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In addition, the West Midlands Special Needs Transport charity provides a Ring and Ride service throughout the metropolitan area. Centro provide an annual grant in the region of £8.5 million to the charity.
Driving Offences
Mr. Wilshire: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport (1) which Minister in his Department approved for publication the document Review of Road Traffic Offences involving Bad Driving; [215182]
(2) on what date and at what time copies of the published version of the Review of Road Traffic Offences involving Bad Driving were received in his Department; [215183]
(3) on what date (a) he and (b) each Minister in his Department first saw a copy of the published version of the document, Review of Road Traffic Offences involving Bad Driving. [215184]
Mr. Jamieson: The Secretary of State agreed to its publication through the relevant Cabinet Committee in the usual manner. Ministers were therefore fully aware of its contents prior to publication.
Thereafter, the document was published by the Home Office at 9.30 am on Thursday 3 February. Copies were collected from the Home Office by Department for Transport officials at 9.15 am on Thursday 3 February 2005 and taken direct to the House of Commons where my hon. Friend the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State and I received them at the same time as members of the Standing Committee. The final document was provided to the offices of the Secretary of State and Minister of State subsequently.
Noise Pollution (Maidenhead)
Mrs. May: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what studies his Department has conducted of the effect at different times of day of noise pollution from Heathrow airport in Maidenhead and the surrounding area. [213495]
Charlotte Atkins: Noise is continually monitored by BAA at 12 sites around the airport, including Dorney, to the south east of Maidenhead. Annual noise contours at Heathrow, which provide noise maps for a 16 hour day time period, are calibrated from mobile noise monitors and produced by the Civil Aviation Authority's Environmental Research Consultancy Department on behalf of the Department. These are published annually on the Department's website. They show that Maidenhead lies beyond the 57dBA contour area normally considered to represent the onset of significant community annoyance.
The Department and its predecessors have commissioned a range of studies over the years about the effects of noise on annoyance and sleep disturbance at various times of day and night. These include the large-scale Aircraft Noise Index Study" (CAA DR Report 8402) in the early 1980s, which included fieldwork at Slough.
On behalf of the Department, a consortium led by The MVA Consultancy is currently engaged in a major study of Attitudes to Noise from Aircraft Sources in England" (ANASE). As part of the extended pilot phase
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of this project, questionnaires about attitudes to noise at different times of day were trialled at a number of sites to the west of Heathrow, though not in Maidenhead itself. If this project proceeds to its second (major fieldwork and analysis) phase, sites will be sampled from a wide range of possible areas around Heathrow and other airports.
Publicity
Mr. Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what the total expenditure by his Department on (a) advertising and (b) advertising and publicity was in (i) 1996–97, (ii) 1997–98 and (iii) 2003–04; and what the estimate of cost of each will be in (A) 2004–05, (B)2005–06, (C) 2006–07 and (D) 2007–08. [211670]
Charlotte Atkins: Following departmental reorganisations, my Department no longer has responsibility for campaigns such as fire safety and the environment run by predecessor Departments. Therefore total advertising and publicity figures for 1996–98 could only be provided at disproportionate cost.
On road safety advertising however, we have increased our commitment substantially from £4.76 million and £4.48 million in 1996–97 and 1997–98 respectively to £10.1 million in 2003–04 in support of the THINK! road safety campaign.
Expenditure by the Department for fiscal year 2003–04 and estimates for the current and future years' expenditure on advertising and advertising and publicity are set out in the following table, where currently available.
n/a=Not available.
The majority of Executive Agency advertising spend above is attributable to DVLA. The Agencies' publicity spend figure however includes a component of advertising, given some agencies, who do not advertise much, charge advertising and publicity to the same accounting code.
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Rural Transport
Helen Southworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport pursuant to the Answer of 3 February 2005, Official Report, column 1038W, on rural transport, if he will set out with statistical information that relates as closely as possible to (a) Warrington South constituency, (b) Warrington and (c) Cheshire, what initiatives his Department has introduced since 2001 to support transport provision in rural areas. [215138]
Charlotte Atkins: In the period since 2001 we have made available awards to both Warrington borough council and Cheshire county council under the Rural Bus Subsidy Grant (RBSG) and the Rural Bus Challenge (RBC) schemes. The totals for the period 2000–01 to 2004–05 are shown in the following table.
| Authority | RBSG | RBC |
|---|---|---|
| Warrington borough council | 419,859 | 0 |
| Cheshire county council | 4,153,367 | 2,118,000 |
The initiatives which I mentioned in my previous answer on support for community transport, steps to make it easier to provide demand responsive bus services and the introduction of accessibility planning of course apply in these areas as elsewhere.
Solent Secondary Surveillance Radar
Lembit Öpik: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what measures his Department has taken to ensure that the Solent Secondary Surveillance Radar is repaired; when he expects it to be functioning again; and if he will make a statement. [214482]
Charlotte Atkins: This is a matter for the equipment owners, National Air Traffic Services Limited and the Civil Aviation Authority, the independent aviation regulator.
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