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Written Answers to Questions
Thursday 9 February 1989
TRANSPORT
Airlines (Licences)
Mr. Cash : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport (1) how many United Kingdom airlines held licenses containing rights unused for five years on 1 January ; and what was the total number of rights thus unused ;
(2) how many United Kingdom airlines held route licences containing rights unused for three years on 1 January ; and what was the total number of rights thus unused ;
(3) what proportion of route licence rights deleted in the Civil Aviation Authority's 10/86 decision had been unused for five years or more ;
(4) how many route licence rights unused for at least three years remained in the hands of United Kingdom airlines immediately following the Civil Aviation Authority's 10/86 decision.
Mr. Peter Bottomeley : This is a matter for the Civil Aviation Authority. I understand that the information is not readily available in the form requested. I shall draw this to the attention of the chairman of the authority so that he can let my hon. Friend have such information as can be provided.
Channel Tunnel
Mr. David Shaw : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what criteria he will be using to determine whether British Rail's proposals for the construction of a new railway line in Kent establish a commercial case for the new line ; whether his Department will be taking independent economic and financial advice on such proposals ; and whether he will publish any reports prepared by his Department or by independent financial advisers.
Mr. Portillo : As with all British Rail's major commercial investment, if and when British Rail submits proposals for the construction of a new line in Kent, the Department will expect that investment to earn the required rate of return and will need to satisfy itself that the proposals are financially sound. Such Departmental appraisals are not published since they inevitably contain commercially sensitive information.
Mr. David Shaw : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what discount rate he proposes to use in establishing whether British Rail's proposals for a new Kent railway line offer a commercial return ; and whether he will revise the discount rate formula for this project to one requiring a rate of return equivalent to commercial rates of return for new private sector capital projects.
Mr. Portillo : I refer to my answer to the right hon. Member for Tonbridge and Malling (Sir J. Stanley) on 30 Janauary, Official Report, column 53.
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British Rail (Investment)
Mr. Steinberg : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will list the level of investment by British Rail for each year from 1978 to 1988 ; what percentage was invested in the east coast line during each of those years ; and what percentage of the east coast investment in each year was spent on (a) electrification and (b) existing stock and system improvement.
Mr. Portillo : The level of investment by British Rail for each year from 1978 to 1988 is as follows :
Year |£ million<1> --------------------------------------- 1978 |421 1979 |433 1980 |449 1981 |373 1982 |311 1983 |302 1984-85 |<2>448 1985-86 |427 1986-87 |414 1987-88 |517 <1> £ million at 1988-89 prices. <2> 15-month accounting period.
It is not possible to provide percentages for the level of investment in the east coast main line during each of those years. Examples of major investment projects on that line approved in recent years include :
|£ million<1>
---------------------------------------------------------
Electrification infrastructure |238.9
New traction and rolling stock |168.8
York area resignalling |20.9
Newcastle area resignalling |35.1
<1> £ million (Q1 1989 prices).
There have also been numerous small schemes.
Roads (Construction and Maintenance)
Mr. David Marshall : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many miles of trunk road will be renewed in 1988-89.
Mr. Peter Bottomley : The mileages of motorways and trunk roads renewed this year are likely to be about 52 and 106, respectively. These are lower than planned as a result of the rescheduling of capital maintenance announced on 20 June at column 455.
I am looking to competition between contractors to contain future price increases, so far as possible.
Subject to that, we shall aim to increase the mileages to be renewed each year over the next three years to averages of 84 miles of motorway and 233 miles of trunk road. The maintenance programme for 1988-90 has not been finalised. It will be announced in March as usual.
Carossino Report
Mr. Butler : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what progress has been made in implementing the findings of the Carossino report regarding fair competition between European Community ports.
Mr. Portillo : The Carossino report was adopted by the European Parliament on 16 November 1988 under cover
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of a resolution which instructed its president to forward it to the European Commission and Council. It is for the Commission to take any further action on the recommendations.A380
Mr. Allason : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will designate the A380 as a trunk road.
Mr. Peter Bottomley : We have no plans to do so.
London Regional Transport (Assaults)
Mr. Skinner : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport (1) how many physical assaults have taken place on (a) women and (b) men between the ages of 45 and 65 years on London Regional Transport buses in the last 12 months ; and what were the figures for 1985, 1986 and 1987 ;
(2) how many physical assaults have taken place on (a) women and (b) men between the ages of 65 and 80 years on London Regional Transport buses in the last 12 months ; and what were the figures for 1985, 1986 and 1987 ;
(3) how many physical assaults have taken place on (a) women and (b) men between the ages of 25 and 45 years on London Regional Transport buses in the last 12 months ; and what were the figures for 1985, 1986 and 1987 ;
(4) how many physical assaults have taken place on (a) women and (b) men between the ages of 16 and 25 years on London Regional Transport buses in the last 12 months ; and what were the figures for 1985, 1986 and 1987 ;
(5) how many children below the age of 14 years have been physically assaulted on London Regional Transport buses in the last 12 months ; and what were the figures for 1985, 1986 and 1987.
Mr. Portillo : Assaults on passengers on buses in London are dealt with by the Metropolitan police. London regional transport does not maintain a central statistical record of such assaults.
London Underground (Assaults)
Mr. Skinner : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport (1) how many children below the age of 14 years have been physically assaulted on the London underground in the last 12 months ; and what were the figures for 1985, 1986 and 1987 ;
(2) how many physical assaults have taken place on (a) women and (b) men between the ages of 16 and 25 years on the London underground in the last 12 months ; and what were the figures for 1985, 1986 and 1987 ;
(3) how many physical assaults have taken place on (a) women and (b) men between the ages of 25 and 45 years on the London underground in the last 12 months ; and what were the figures for (i) 1985, (ii) 1986 and (iii) 1987 ;
(4) how many physical assaults have taken place on (a) women and (b) men between the ages of 45 and 65 years on the London underground in the last 12 months ; and what were the figures for (i) 1985, (ii) 1986 and (iii) 1987 ;
(5) how many physical assaults have taken place on (a) women and (b) men between the ages of 65 and 80 years on the London underground in the last 12 months ; and what were the figures for (i) 1985, (ii) 1986 and (iii) 1987.
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Mr. Portillo : Available statistics distinguish the age of victims of crime on the London Underground only as between adults and juveniles (under 16). Assaults recorded on the years mentioned were as follows :
|1985 |1986 |1987 |1988
--------------------------------------------------------------
Violence against the person |837 |878 |929 |1,048
Per cent. Female (all ages) |14 |16 |16 |20
Per cent. Juvenile (both sexes) |4 |4 |3 |5
Illegal Parking
Mr. Warren : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will take action in collaboration with the appropriate authorities to introduce a scheme to remove promptly vehicles parked illegally on major traffic routes in London.
Mr. Peter Bottomley : Enforcement of parking controls in London rests primarily with the Metropolitan police who have powers to remove illegally parked vehicles throughout the Metropolitan police area.
A key objective is to keep traffic flowing on main routes. Officials maintain regular contact with the police and London borough councils over a range of parking and related matters.
Mr. Warren : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will review the effectiveness of the law relating to the illegal parking of vehicles on public footways, and publish such statistics as are available concerning the actions taken to implement the law.
Mr. Peter Bottomley : We are currently reviewing the need for changes to the law and shall make an announcement as soon as possible.
Statistics on the issue of fixed penalty notices and successful prosecutions for illegal parking on footways are not collected separately.
Fares
Mr. Tony Banks : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the reply to the hon. Member for Westminster, North (Mr. Wheeler), Official Report, 26 January, columns 738-39, if he has any plans to introduce differential pricing based on passenger contribution to new investment ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Portillo : No. It is for the operators to determine the level and distribution of fares.
Clamping
Mr. Harris : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what assessment he has made of the impact of clamping on traffic.
Mr. Peter Bottomley : Journey times in the wheel-clamping area improve considerably.
London Assessment Studies
Mr. Sedgemore : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport (1) what has been the cost to date of the four London assessment studies on roads ; and what is his estimate of the total cost of the studies by the time they are completed ;
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(2) what has been the cost to date of the east London assessment study on roads ; and what is his estimate of the total cost of the study by the time it is completed.Mr. Peter Bottomley : The total cost of stage 1 of the studies was about £3 million. It is estimated that stage 2, which began in December 1987, will cost £4 million to complete. The east London assessment study costs are estimated at being one quarter of the total.
In comparison, personal injury accidents on roads in the east London assessment study area alone cost in the region of £50 million each year.
Roads (Expenditure)
Mr. Sedgemore : To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what he estimates will be the cost to the Government of road building and road repairs in London for 1988-89 ; and what estimate he has for the next five years.
Mr. Peter Bottomley : The cost to the taxpayer of national road building and road repairs in London in 1988-89 is expected to amount to some £200 million. This includes expenditure on construction and maintenance by the Department of Transport and the London Docklands Development Corporation, and transport supplementary grant by the Department towards capital expenditure by London local authorities on their road schemes.
It does not include any element of the block grant allocations to the London local authorities. There is no specific grant for roads maintenance.
Comparable forecasts over the next five years are not possible. Over this period work is expected to begin on 21 trunk road schemes costing approximately £600 million.
Anticipated central Government spending on road building and roads maintenance in London in 1988-89 comprises :