Written Answers to Questions
Wednesday 13 June 2007
Transport
Airports: Noise
Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what estimate he has made of the potential change in the number of people living within the 57dB Leq noise contour of each major UK airport arising as a result of the aviation expansion set out in the Aviation White Paper. [141855]
Gillian Merron: Detailed estimates were set out in “The Future Development of Air Transport” White Paper published in December 2003. These estimates were largely based on the modelling undertaken in a number of earlier detailed studies—SERAS (The South East and East of England Regional Air Services Study), RAS (The Regional Air Services Study), RASCO (The Regional Air Services Coordination Study) and the Part 3 Runway Studies.
Last December’s progress report reiterated the Government’s aim that the number of people in the UK significantly affected by aircraft noise should be limited and, where possible, reduced. The White Paper and the progress report, and documents relating to the main studies and the consultation can be viewed on the Department for Transport’s website:
Aviation: Exhaust Emissions
Mr. Clifton-Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what estimate he has made of the likely change in the levels of emissions as a result of expansion of aviation outlined in the Government’s Air Transport Strategy; and what provisions will be made to ensure that such emissions do not prevent the UK meeting its 2050 emissions targets. [141307]
Gillian Merron: The “Future of Air Transport” White Paper set out forecasts for carbon dioxide emissions. The technical paper underpinning these, “Aviation and Global Warming”, was published in January 2004 and is available at:
We announced in the “Future of Air Transport Progress Report” (December 2006) that updated emissions forecasts would be published in 2007.
The Government have made clear the importance it attaches to addressing the environmental impacts of air travel. However, international aviation is not included in the UK’s targets as there is no internationally agreed method for allocating such emissions between states.
Aviation: Ministers
Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what (a) the original and (b) the current estimated costs are for the royal and ministerial air travel project; and from what budgets resources are being drawn. [141860]
Gillian Merron: I refer the hon. Member to my answer of 12 June 2007, Official Report, column 908W. The service will be funded from existing travel budgets at no extra cost to the taxpayer.
Bus Lanes
Mr. Evennett: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many bus lanes are in operation in England. [142213]
Gillian Merron: The Department does not hold a comprehensive register or inventory of how many bus lanes are in operation in England.
English local authorities (outside London) do report the numbers and lengths of new bus lane schemes to the Department. They reported that a total of 953 schemes (bus lanes, showcase bus routes and high occupancy vehicle lanes), with a total length of just over 5,000km, had been implemented in the five years up to March 2006.
Bus Services: Concessions
Helen Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many students over 16-years-old in Warrington are eligible for concessionary bus travel; and what percentage of those students live in each of the parliamentary constituencies within the borough. [141015]
Gillian Merron: Information on take-up of the concession in Warrington is not held centrally. Local authorities hold details of their residents who applied for concessionary travel.
Jim Cousins: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what the rate of take-up of free bus fares for the over 60s has been in each local authority or metropolitan area since the introduction of the scheme. [142475]
Gillian Merron: Information on the take-up of bus passes for each travel concession authority is not held centrally. This information can be obtained from the individual authorities.
Departments: Carbon Emissions
Lynne Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what methodology is used by his Department to account for its carbon emissions. [140784]
Gillian Merron: The Department for Transport uses DEFRA conversion factors when measuring, and reporting on, its carbon emissions. These may be accessed at:
Departments: Property
Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what properties the Department (a) owned and (b) rented in each of the last five years. [139346]
Gillian Merron: The information requested can be provided only at disproportionate cost.
Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what recent estimate has been made of the value of his Department’s property portfolio. [139365]
Gillian Merron: The most recent estimate (as at 31 March 2007) valued the Department’s property portfolio at £558,082,556.
Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what the cost of leasing buildings and office space for (a) his Department and (b) its agencies was in each of the last five years. [139459]
Gillian Merron: The information requested can be provided only at disproportionate cost.
Departments: Publicity
Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how much was spent on advertising by (a) the Department and (b) its non-departmental agencies in each of the last five years. [139527]
Gillian Merron: The majority of advertising investment by the central Department is in support of the THINK! Road Safety and Act on C02 campaigns. DVLA’s main advertising expenditure has been to support the introduction of continuous registration.
| Total (£) | |
Figures for non-departmental agencies are not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
Fares Technology
Mr. Spellar: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport pursuant to the answer of 24 May, Official Report, column 1459W, on fares technology, whether the proposed timetable would allow for smartcards to be used in time for the start of the national concessionary fares scheme in April 2008. [142072]
Gillian Merron: The Department is currently consulting on the proposed concessionary bus travel pass specification. The consultation paper considers all options such as whether the pass should be specified in ITSO smartcard form.
Our discussions to date with potential suppliers suggests that smartcards can be produced in time for the start of the national concessionary travel scheme.
Passes would be used as smartcards in areas which had smart-readers on buses, and used as flash passes (i.e. shown to bus drivers) in other areas. We would not require all buses to install smart-readers by April 2008.
A final decision on whether we will require smartcards from April 2008 will be made in light of consultation responses and our further discussions with potential suppliers.
Parking: Accidents
John Barrett: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many accidents occurred in car parks in each of the last five years in (a) Scotland and (b) the UK; and how many (i) deaths and (ii) injuries resulted from those accidents in each category. [142725]
Dr. Ladyman: The information requested is not available.
Public Transport: Concessions
Mr. Spellar: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport whether passes for the new national concessionary fares scheme in England will be valid in Wales and Scotland. [142080]
Gillian Merron: The Concessionary Bus Travel Bill, currently before Parliament, contains a power to allow, via future regulations, for mutual recognition of bus passes across the UK. The Department has had initial discussions with the devolved administrations about the proposal and all indicated support for including the power in the Bill. However they also acknowledged that we would need to discuss it further and work together to resolve the various technical and resource issues before mutual recognition could be pursued in practice.
In the mean time, local authorities in England already have the flexibility—which the Bill does not change—to offer more than the statutory concession to their residents, taking into account local circumstances, for example, free travel in the vicinity of the local authority, which could include, across borders.
Railways: Death
Dr. Gibson: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many fatalities there were in the last (a) five years and (b) six months on the Norwich to London ‘One' Railway. [142778]
Mr. Tom Harris: This information is not held by the Department for Transport but by the British Transport Police who can be contacted at: British Transport Police, 25 Camden Road, London NW1 9LN, E-mail:
general.enquiries@btp.pnn.police.uk.
Railways: Eastbourne
Mr. Waterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what the average travel times were by rail between Eastbourne and London stations in each year since 1997. [141894]
Mr. Tom Harris: The average travel time between Eastbourne and London is outlined in the following table.
| Journey time in minutes | ||
| From London to Eastbourne | From Eastbourne to London | |
Railways: Noise
Mr. Scott: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport whether the recent rules changes on train horn noise which mean that train drivers should no longer routinely sound their horns at night and use a lower tone during the day when able to will apply to the operations of London Underground and their contractors. [141650]
Gillian Merron: The whistles on London Underground trains are quite different from the horns on over-ground trains, as are the regulations for their use. The use of whistles on London Underground is an operational matter for them.
Shipping: Foreign Workers
Mr. MacNeil: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what checks are made on (a) the qualifications and (b) the on-the-job experience of applicants prior to the award of certificates of equivalent competency to foreign officers on UK-flagged ships. [142343]
Dr. Ladyman: In all cases an applicant's certificate of competency is verified prior to the issue of a certificate of equivalent competency. A seafarer is required to spend a prescribed amount of time at sea in order to qualify for a certificate of competency.
Mr. MacNeil: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what his most recent estimate is of the number of certificates of equivalent competence which will be awarded to foreign officers on UK-flagged ships in the next two years. [142345]
Dr. Ladyman: As a demand led activity it is not possible to forecast how many certificates of equivalent competency will be issued in the next two years.
Mr. MacNeil: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport for what reasons the Certificate of Equivalent Competence was introduced for foreign officers on UK-flagged ships. [142346]
Dr. Ladyman: Under the 1978 Standards of Training, Certification and Watchkeeping Convention (STCW) (as amended), flag states are required to endorse third party Certificates of Competency (CoC) of officers serving onboard their ships.
The United Kingdom does this by issuing Certificates of Equivalent Competency (CEC) to those officers whose certificates are issued by administrations that have been inspected and approved by the UK.
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