Every parliamentary written question tabled by Clive Jones this session, with the full answer and department. Back to the MP page.
Showing 1–20 of 31 · Department for Transport
Whether she has had any meetings with colleagues at Transport for London to discuss the availability of Network Railcard discounts at railway stations managed by Transport for London.
As transport in London is devolved, fares decisions, including any potential Network Rail discounts, are for the Mayor and Transport for London. Network Railcard discounts can be applied to fares on TfL Rail services. However, they cannot be applied to Oyster cards or other contactless tickets.
Pursuant to the Answer of 9 June 2025 to Question 55867 on Rolling stock, what her timetable is for making an estimate of the potential impact of the time taken to introduce Class 701 rolling stock on the Waterloo-Reading line on costs to the public purse.
My officials are currently considering the most appropriate way to approach this issue. Given the complexity of this task, we are unable to commit to a timetable of when this work will be completed.
Pursuant to the Answer of 2 June 2025 to Question 54187 on Electric Vehicles: Charging Points, how much of the £200 million allocated in the Autumn Budget 2024 has been spent in each month to date.
The £200m to accelerate EV chargepoint roll out announced at Autumn Budget 2024 will be invested in the financial year 2025/26 (April 2025 to March 2026) to support local, en-route and home and workplace charging. At the end of May 2025 no payments had yet been made.
If she will make an estimate of the potential impact of the time taken to introduce Class 701 rolling stock on the Waterloo–Reading line on costs to the public purse.
My Officials are keeping the position under active review and will look into overall costs of the delays to the Class 701 introduction programme at the appropriate time.
Whether her Department has set a revised timetable for the introduction of the full Class 701 fleet on the Waterloo–Reading line.
South Western Railway services transferred into public ownership on Sunday 25 May. This was a watershed moment in our work to return the railways to the service of passengers. The new Managing Director of SWR is now developing a detailed plan to get the new trains into service.
Whether her Department has imposed contractual penalties on South Western Railway in relation to the time taken to deploy the Class 701 trains.
My Department have not imposed contractual penalties on First MTR South Western Railway Trains Limited in relation to the time taken to deploy the Class 701 trains. I am extremely disappointed with how long the Class 701 introduction has taken and the Secretary of State and Rail Minister met with the former private sector owners to challenge them.
When her Department expected the Class 701 Arterio trains to be introduced on the Waterloo–Reading line at the time of procurement.
South Western Railway entered into the current rolling stock lease contracts in 2017, with the new Class 701 fleet due to be delivered 2019-2021. The Class 701 introduction has been significantly delayed and I am disappointed with how long it has taken.
When she expects the Class 701 Arterio rolling stock to be operational on the Waterloo to Reading line.
South Western Railway services transferred into public ownership on Sunday 25 May. This was a watershed moment in our work to return the railways to the service of passengers. The new Managing Director of SWR is now developing a detailed plan to get the new trains into service.
Pursuant to the Answer of 12 May 2025 to Question 49854 on Electric Vehicles: Charging Points, how much of the funding allocated for charging infrastructure in the Autumn Budget 2024 has been spent; and how that money has been spent.
The £200m to accelerate EV chargepoint roll out announced at Autumn Budget 2024 will be invested in the financial year 2025/26 (April 2025 to March 2026) to support local, en-route, and home and workplace charging.
What steps her Department plans to take to help tackle potential barriers to the (a) deployment and (b) commercial viability of electric vehicle charging stations.
The £381m Local Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Fund supports local authorities in England to work with industry and transform the availability of EV charging for drivers without off-street parking. The fund will support the commercialisation of, and investment in, the local charging infrastructure sector and is expected to leverage significant private investment to deliver over 100,000 chargepoints. Furthermore, the Government has announced changes to street works and planning permissions, making it easier, quicker and cheaper to install infrastructure.
What steps her Department plans to take to help increase the impact of (a) private sector investment and (b) public sector funding on levels of access to of (i) affordable and (ii) convenient electric vehicle charging points.
The Government is committed to making EV charging infrastructure more affordable and accessible. The £381m Local EV Infrastructure (LEVI) Fund supports local authorities in England to work with industry and transform the availability of EV charging for drivers without off-street parking. The funding, backed by substantial private investment, will support the installation of at least 100,000 local chargepoints.
What progress her Department has made on the implementation of the rapid charging fund.
There has been strong progress with installation of chargepoints on the Strategic Road Network. There are now over 5,250 open-access rapid and ultra-rapid chargers within one mile of the Strategic Road Network (Zapmap, January 2025), of which 1,180 are at motorway service areas (based on industry data). The latter is up around 165% over the last two years. The market had changed significantly since the Rapid Charging Fund was announced, including increased private sector investment in infrastructure, a changed regulatory environment, and improvements in battery technology.The Government will ensure taxpayers' money is used as efficiently as possible to make the transition to electric vehicles a success. The Rapid Charging Fund pilot was launched to better understand where best to target government support. We will apply learning from the pilot to continue working with industry to boost charging infrastructure on the Strategic Road Network.
How she plans to use the £200 million allocated for charging infrastructure in the Autumn Budget 2004.
We will be investing £200m to accelerate EV chargepoint roll out. This funding will include helping local authorities install charging infrastructure across England; supporting en-route charging infrastructure deployment; and providing targeted support for chargepoints for homes and workplaces.
What discussions she has had with the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero on steps to help increase levels of ownership of electric vehicles.
Ministers from across Government regularly meet to discuss the transition to zero emission vehicles (ZEVs), including policies to increase levels of ZEV ownership and the ZEV Mandate. The Office for Zero Emission Vehicles is a joint office between the Department for Transport and the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero and reports to Ministers in both departments in relation to the transition to zero emission vehicles.
What assessment she has made of the potential implications for her policies of recent trends in the residual value of second-hand electric vehicles.
The Government works closely with the automotive industry to monitor the health of the used electric vehicle (EV) market. The Office for Zero Emission Vehicles attends a used EV industry steering group. This includes stakeholders representing independent and franchised dealerships, vehicle auctioneers, rental and leasing companies, and the repair sector. This group actively follows the development of prices and residual values in the used EV market. Industry intelligence suggests the recent volatility in EV prices was caused by shifts in the supply and demand of used EVs. Such shifts are likely to be felt more strongly in the used EV market, as it is still at an early stage. The Government expects prices and residual values to stabilise as the market matures.
If she will make an assessment of the adequacy of the frequency of rail services for commuters between Wokingham and London.
Department officials are in regular conversation with South-Western Railway regarding its service provision in response to demand. When reviewing train services, the Department needs to assess business cases and balance demand with value for the taxpayer in its considerations. The Department believe this balance to be appropriate.
With reference to the oral contribution by the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Transport in response to the question from the hon. Member for Wokingham of 17 December 2024, Official Report, column 87WH, when she intends to write regarding Twyford car park.
Network Rail is intending to resurface the station car park at Twyford as part of its renewals programme. This will be done in accordance with current standards, which will likely result in fewer parking spaces in the car park. Great Western Railway is working with Network Rail and local stakeholders on options to provide additional car parking spaces at Twyford.
What steps she is taking to improve the reliability of signalling on the Great Western Main Line out of Twyford.
Ministers have met with both Great Western Railway and Network Rail on operational performance which is the Secretary of State’s key focus for improvement. Recent performance for Network Rail has improved including the infrastructure on the mainline around Twyford. Improving signalling is part of an ongoing project between Network Rail western region and Great Western Railway.
What her planned timetable is for publishing the Government's consultation on the zero emission vehicle mandate.
The consultation on Phasing out sales of new petrol and diesel cars from 2030 and supporting the ZEV transition launched on 24 December 2024 and is due to close on 18 February 2025. The Government is engaging intensively with interested stakeholders and a response will be published in due course.
Pursuant to the Answer of 5 September 2024 to Question 3112 on Motor Vehicles: Lighting, whether the independent research has begun; when the results of that research are expected; and whether she plans to introduce new regulations to limit glare from motor vehicle headlights.
The independent headlamp glare research commenced in October and is expected to deliver in summer 2025. The Government will consider carefully the outcome of that research to determine what action might be appropriate.