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18 Mar 2008 : Column 956W—continued
M6: Heysham
Geraldine Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport whether the Heysham/M6 Link (Northern Route) has gained programme entry status for funding. [194028]
Ms Rosie Winterton: The proposed Heysham to M6 Link Road has yet to receive programme entry. In order to take a decision on programme entry, the Department requires confirmation that the North West region continues to support the scheme at the latest estimated cost of £140 million. In addition, Lancashire county council are currently revising their Major Scheme Business Case which will enable the Department to conclude its value for money assessment and appraisal of the scheme.
Motorways: Tolls
Mr. Greg Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport (1) how she plans to enforce the proposed pay as you go use of certain carriageways on motorways by (a) UK drivers and (b) those driving foreign registered vehicles; and if she will make a statement; [194464]
(2) whether she plans to charge the owners or drivers of vehicles displaying diplomatic plates for the use of the pay as you go carriageways on motorways. [194465]
Ms Rosie Winterton: In her written statement to Parliament of 4 March 2008, the Secretary of State said that Government would be exploring a range of options to manage traffic on motorways where extra capacity is being provided. One of these options is to charge a toll for using one of the lanes. The details of how this could work in practice are currently being developed.
Passenger Ships
Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many cruise ships operated from UK ports in each year since 1997; and under which countries' flags in each year. [192397]
Jim Fitzpatrick: The information requested is shown in the following table, for 1999 to 2006. This information was not collected in 1997 and 1998.
Public Transport: Concessions
Mr. Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what her latest estimate is of the cost to her Department of implementing the concessionary fares scheme nationally. [192255]
Ms Rosie Winterton: Following the introduction of the free off-peak local bus travel concession within local authority areas in April 2006, central Government provided an extra £350 million in 2006-07 and £367.5 million in 2007-08 (increasing annually) for statutory concessionary fares through the revenue support grant.
The Department is now paying an additional special grant of £212 million to travel concessionary authorities in 2008-09 (and rising thereafter) just to cover the cost of extending the statutory minimum bus concession to provide free off-peak local bus travel anywhere in England. This additional amount is based on our assessment of the likely cost impact of the new concession, which is based on generous assumptions about pass take-up, fares and increased patronage. It is enough to fund around an extra 200 million bus journeys across England.
The money will be distributed by a special grant, in line with the wishes of local government itself, using a formula to direct to funding to areas likely to experience increased costs such as urban and tourist centres and coastal towns. The formula used is based on the most popular option with local authorities from our recent consultation on the issue. We are confident that sufficient total funding will be distributed to cover the additional cost of the new concession.
Public Transport: Research
Mrs. Villiers: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what research she has undertaken on the reasons people choose not to use public transport (a) to travel to work, (b) to travel to school and (c) to take their children to school. [191758]
Ms Rosie Winterton: The Department has an ongoing programme of research to help improve its understanding of public attitudes and travel choices. This research continues to develop our understanding of the barriers and motivations to specific modal choices among different user groups and for different journey purposes including travel to work and school.
The findings from the Department's research are used to inform the development of Government policy and communications in addition to best practice guidance for use by both public and private sector stakeholders.
Examples of completed research studies are:
Understanding the travel aspirations, needs and behaviour of young adults
This study has explored in depth the attitudes of young people towards mode selection for a range of journey purposes including travel to work and travel for childcare. The final report is available at:
Understanding the travel needs, behaviour and aspirations of people in later life
This study has explored in depth the attitudes associated with the mode selection of older people for a range of journey purposes. The final report is available at:
Omnibus surveys of public attitudes
The Department has commissioned regular surveys of public attitudes to public transport modes. The latest reports on public attitudes to rail and bus travel are available:
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