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11W<br />
Written Answers<br />
26 OCTOBER 2009<br />
Written Answers<br />
12W<br />
Motorcycles: Driving Tests<br />
Mr. Cox: To ask the Minister of State, Department<br />
for Transport what steps he is taking to ensure that<br />
adequate numbers of motorcycle practical test centres<br />
are available to those living in rural areas in the South<br />
West. [294591]<br />
Paul Clark: The Driving Standards Agency (DSA)<br />
plans to offer the off-road practical motorcycling test<br />
from five Multi-Purpose Test Centres (MPTCs) in the<br />
south west: in Redruth, Taunton, Plymouth, Exeter,<br />
and Bristol. MPTCs are already fully operational in<br />
three of these areas, at Plymouth, Exeter and Bristol<br />
and DSA is in negotiation with private developers and<br />
local planning authorities regarding the provision at<br />
Taunton and Redruth.<br />
In the meantime temporary Module 1 facilities have<br />
been provided at existing Vehicle and Operator Services<br />
Agency (VOSA) test stations in Camborne and Taunton.<br />
The operational requirements of VOSA and the need to<br />
avoid any conflict between motorcycle candidates and<br />
lorries mean that these two facilities are open for Module<br />
1 testing only at weekends.<br />
Damage to the tarmac at the VOSA site in Taunton<br />
has resulted in the temporary suspension of Module 1<br />
testing there but we expect that testing will resume in<br />
mid-November 2009.<br />
DSA offers the practical on-road part of the motorcycling<br />
test from eight driving test centres in addition to the<br />
three operational MPTCs. These are at Barnstaple,<br />
Bodmin, Camborne, Launceston, Penzance, Taunton,<br />
Yeovil and Weston-Super-Mare.<br />
Official Cars: Working Hours<br />
Mr. Mullin: To ask the Minister of State, Department<br />
for Transport what assessment he has made of the effect<br />
of the operation of the European Working Time Directive<br />
on the Government Car Service; and if he will make a<br />
statement. [294268]<br />
Paul Clark: Changes to the Government Car Service<br />
which came into effect on 12 October 2009, will reduce<br />
the cost to the taxpayer. Under the new system, drivers<br />
work a single daily shift of 10 hours. Ministers continue<br />
to have one dedicated driver (apart from those in the<br />
high security category), but any out-of-hours ministerial<br />
driving is met, on demand, by the Government Car and<br />
Despatch Agency’s low carbon taxi service. This is a<br />
better deal for taxpayers than the previous arrangements.<br />
Railways: Bournemouth<br />
Mr. Ellwood: To ask the Minister of State,<br />
Department for Transport what funding is available for<br />
Bournemouth borough council to apply for in order to<br />
develop a light railway system. [295168]<br />
Mr. Khan: If Bournemouth borough council decided<br />
to promote a light rail scheme, it would need to obtain<br />
the South West region’s agreement to prioritise the<br />
scheme for funding within its Regional Funding Allocation.<br />
If the Region decided to prioritise the proposed<br />
scheme for funding then the council would then need to<br />
submit, at the appropriate time, a detailed Major Scheme<br />
Business Case for the proposed scheme, in line with<br />
current guidance, for consideration and assessment by<br />
the Department for Transport.<br />
Alternatively, the council could seek funding from its<br />
own or through third party sources.<br />
Roads: Accidents<br />
Dr. Iddon: To ask the Minister of State, Department<br />
for Transport what estimate he has made of the average<br />
annual cost to the economy of (a) road traffic<br />
accidents, (b) road traffic accidents resulting in a<br />
casualty and (c) road traffic accidents resulting in a<br />
fatality in the last five years. [293685]<br />
Paul Clark: The latest figures on the annual value of<br />
prevention of (a) road traffic accidents, (b) road traffic<br />
accidents resulting in a casualty and (c) road traffic<br />
accidents resulting in a fatality are published in Reported<br />
Road Casualties Great Britain (RRCGB): 2008 Annual<br />
Report on page 28, Table 2c. Copies of the Report have<br />
been deposited in the House Library and are also<br />
available at:<br />
http://www.dft.gov.uk/pgr/statistics/datatablespublications/<br />
accidents/casualtiesgbar/<br />
Annual cost figures for previous years are available in<br />
Road Casualties Great Britain (RCGB) annual reports<br />
for the corresponding years, available from the same<br />
sources.<br />
Mrs. Villiers: To ask the Minister of State, Department<br />
for Transport how many road traffic collisions involved<br />
vehicles diverted on rural A-roads as a result of motorway<br />
closures in the latest period for which figures are available.<br />
[294713]<br />
Chris Mole: The information requested is not held by<br />
the Department for Transport. The responsibility for<br />
rural A roads lies with the relevant local authorities.<br />
Roads: Freight<br />
Mr. Heald: To ask the Minister of State, Department<br />
for Transport (1) what his policy is on the use of road<br />
haulage in place of rail haulage for movement of bulk<br />
materials for rail infrastructure works; [294746]<br />
(2) what recent assessment he has made of the<br />
environmental impact of (a) road and (b) rail haulage<br />
for movement of bulk materials for rail infrastructure<br />
works; [294747]<br />
(3) what discussions his Department has had with<br />
Network Rail on the merits of (a) road and (b) rail<br />
haulage for movement of bulk materials for rail<br />
infrastructure works. [294748]<br />
Chris Mole: The movement of bulk materials for rail<br />
infrastructure works is an operational matter for Network<br />
Rail.<br />
Rolling Stock: Procurement<br />
Norman Baker: To ask the Minister of State,<br />
Department for Transport how many new diesel trains<br />
the Secretary of State intends to procure; and when the<br />
(a) first and (b) last of these orders are likely to be (i)<br />
placed and (ii) delivered. [295252]