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2 Apr 2009 : Column 1417W—continued
The Merchant Shipping (Life-Saving Appliances For Ships Other Than Ships Of Classes III To VI(A)) Regulations 1999;
The Merchant Shipping (Life-Saving Appliances For Passenger Ships Of Classes III To VI(A)) Regulations 1999.
On completion of surveys which take account of the above regulations, instructions to surveyors and other relevant departmental guidance, each ship is issued with a Passenger Certificate stipulating the maximum number of passengers and the total number of persons on board (including crew) that can be safely carried.
The Merchant Shipping (Counting and Registration of Persons on Board Passenger Ships) Regulations 1999 (SI 1999 No. 1869), supported by Merchant Shipping Notice 1794 describes practical methods for counting and registering passengers. For voyages of less than 20 miles, these regulations require a count of passengers and crew and for this information to be held ashore for the duration of the voyage;
Definition of a Class VI Passenger Vessel
A passenger ship engaged only on voyages with not more than 250 passengers on board, to sea, or in category A, B, C and D waters, in all cases in favourable weather and during restricted periods, in the course of which the ships are at no time more than 15 miles, exclusive of any category, A, B and C waters, from their point of departure nor more than three miles from land;
Definition of a Class VI(A) Passenger Vessel
A passenger ship carrying not more than 50 passengers for a distance of not more than six miles on voyages to or from isolated communities on the islands or coast of the United Kingdom and which do not proceed for a distance of more than three miles from land subject to any conditions which the Secretary of State for Transport may impose.
Gospel Oak-Barking Railway Line
Jeremy Corbyn: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what recent discussions he has had with Transport for London on the electrification of the Barking to Gospel Oak line. [267717]
Paul Clark: The Minister of State for Transport, Lord Adonis; has met Transport for London to discuss their interest in developing a proposal to electrify the Gospel Oak to Barking line.
Highways Agency
Mr. Winnick: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will ensure that before work is undertaken by the Highways Agency which adversely affects residents, information is provided directly to each affected household before work begins. [268395]
Paul Clark: I refer my hon. Friend to my answer of 23 March 2009 Official Report, columns 6-7W.
Mr. Winnick: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport when the contract of the Chief Executive of the Highways Agency is due to expire; and what procedures will be followed for the appointment of his successor. [268396]
Mr. Hoon: The current Chief Executive of the Highways Agency is a permanent civil servant who was appointed to the role on 30 June 2008.
The appointment of his successor will be considered at the appropriate time by the Senior Leadership Committee which is responsible for advising the Cabinet Secretary on appointments at Permanent Secretary and Director General levels and for recommending the mode of recruitment for these roles.
Mr. Winnick: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what meetings there have been between Ministers in his Department and the Chief Executive of the Highways Agency to discuss the workings of the Agency in the last 12 months. [268398]
Paul Clark: Monthly meetings are held between the Minister of State for Transport, Lord Adonis, and the Chief Executive of the Highways Agency, at which they discuss a variety of issues including the workings of the Highways Agency.
The former Chief Executive, Archie Robertson, also had regular meetings with previous Ministers on a regular basis.
Mr. Winnick: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many people are employed in the section of the Highways Agency that deals with the media and public relations; and what the salary of the person in charge of that section is. [268460]
Paul Clark: As at 1 April the Highways Agency employs 11 staff in the section responsible for media and public relations. This includes national and regional press officers. The Head of News is a Highways Agency Pay Band 7, for which the London salary range is £47,200 to £55,282. In addition, other Highways Agency staff will be involved in public information exercises in relation to specific projects they are working on.
M3
Mr. Redwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport when he expects the road works on the M3 between the M25 junction 4 to be completed; for what reasons the works were undertaken; and what estimate he has made of the cost of the works. [267084]
Paul Clark: The Highways Agency has two sets of roadworks currently on the M3 between junctions 4 and the M25.
The first of these is between the M25 junction 12 and the M3 junction 2, a new lane layout has been installed to reduce congestion for traffic movements from the M25 joining the M3 southbound. Work to make this new lane layout permanent will start in summer 2009 and is expected to complete in autumn 2009. The estimated cost of the work to make the scheme permanent is £2.9 million.
The second set of roadworks is between M3 Junctions 4 and 3 on the London-bound carriageway and is being carried out for the replacement of the drainage on the northwest side of the motorway. The works are required due to the instability of the ground in this area and the age of the drainage system. The filter drain has cracked over much of its length and running sand is now entering the drain. Without this work there is a high risk that the carriageway will be undermined and that the road will flood during heavy rain, compromising the safety of the
travelling public. The work is due to be completed in August 2009 and will cost approximately £4.6 million.
Mr. Redwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how much has been collected in speeding fines imposed for violations of the 50 miles per hour limit around the roadworks on the M3 in the last 12 months. [267087]
Paul Clark: In the last 12 months there have been two sites which have had average speed cameras. The Highways Agency does not hold information on speeding fines collected through cameras on the M3 roadworks because the safety cameras are operated by the Surrey Safety Camera Partnership.
M4: Greater London
Mr. Redwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many times the elevated section of the M4 in London is scheduled to be closed at night in 2009. [267085]
Paul Clark: Between January and March 2009 the M4 elevated section was closed at night 16 times eastbound and 20 times westbound.
The elevated section is scheduled to be closed at night 28 times westbound and 39 times eastbound between April and September 2009. These closures are to carry out routine maintenance and also to replace expansion joints.
From September 2009, a new design build finance operate (DBFO) contract will be in place. It is not
known if the contractor will maintain the current maintenance regime for the remainder of 2009, however the contract will incentivise efficient methods for scheduling roadworks.
When undertaking works on the M4 elevated section the restricted width necessitates the full closure of a carriageway, to ensure the safety of the work force and road users. To complete the works in an efficient manner while minimising disruption to residents businesses and road users, closures take place at night with diversions via the A4.
Mr. Redwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport when he expects works on the elevated section of the M4 in London to be completed. [267150]
Paul Clark: The current phase of work, to replace expansion joints, is expected to be completed in August 2009.
The structure carrying the elevated section of the M4 in London will require maintenance activity throughout its life to maintain it in a safe and serviceable condition.
Motorways: Repairs and Maintenance
Mrs. Villiers: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how much his Department spent on consultants in respect of proposals to widen motorways (a) in total and (b) in each region in each of the last 11 years. [266436]
Paul Clark [holding answer 25 March 2009]: The expenditure on consultants engaged on motorway widening schemes, by region and by year, is given in the following table.
| £ million | ||||||||||
| Region | Pre 2001-02 | 2001-02 | 2002-03 | 2003-04 | 2004-05 | 2005-06 | 2006-07 | 2007-08 | 2008-09 | Total |
Due to changes in the Highways Agency’s financial systems, all expenditure before 2001-02 is given as ‘pre 2001-02’ expenditure. Negative figures represent prior years’ accounting adjustments on specific schemes.
Public Transport: Disabled
Mike Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what steps his Department is taking to ensure that public transport in (a) Hemel Hempstead and (b) Hertfordshire is accessible to people with disabilities. [265790]
Paul Clark: The Department for Transport allocates integrated transport block and highways maintenance funding to local transport authorities for general capital investment in transport. This funding is not ring-fenced and local authorities have discretion to spend their allocations in line with their priorities. The total allocation provided to Hertfordshire (which covers Hemel Hempstead) in 2008-09 is £22.663 million.
The ‘Access for All’ Programme is part of the ‘Railways for All’ Strategy, and was launched by the department in 2006 to address the issues faced by disabled passengers using railway stations in Great Britain. The main schemes currently in the programme for Hertfordshire are at the following stations:
Berkhamstead
Hitchin
Letchworth
Elstree and Borehamwood
Harpenden
Hatfield
Hemel Hempstead
In addition, there are currently £1.3 million of small scheme awards, to projects worth £3.2 million at over 25 sites in Hertfordshire.
To ensure that disabled people are able to use public transport, by law all new trains, buses and coaches used on scheduled services now have to be physically accessible, including to wheelchair users. The Department has set deadlines for all trains to be accessible by 2020 and all buses used on local or scheduled services will be required to meet accessibility standards by 2017.
In addition, the Department is currently consulting on issues to improve the accessibility of taxis.
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