Oral Answers to Questions — Transport – in the House of Commons at 12:00 am on 10 February 1997.
David Lidington
, Aylesbury
12:00,
10 February 1997
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will meet the director of Chiltern Railway to discuss the quality of service provided to passengers. [13351]
Mr John Watts
, Slough
I would be delighted to meet representatives of Chiltern Railway to congratulate them on consistently beating the exacting punctuality and reliability standards required by their passengers charter. Chiltern's passengers are clearly enjoying the fruits of privatisation.
David Lidington
, Aylesbury
May I invite my hon. Friend to join me in the near future for a journey on the Chiltern line through my Constituency, which would enable him to appreciate at first hand both the success of Chiltern Railway in attracting ever more passengers to use its service and the need to encourage Railtrack to work with the company to provide a dual track on the stretch of line north of Princes Risborough in my constituency, which would both benefit commuters travelling from Buckinghamshire and allow for much faster journeys along the Chiltern line between London and Birmingham?
Mr John Watts
, Slough
I am happy to accept my hon. Friend's invitation to join him on a journey on the Chiltern line.
On track improvements, I understand that the franchising director is willing to consider the proposition of M40 Trains that the investment costs of doubling the track should be assimilated into track access charges and has invited Chiltern Railway to submit informally a draft business case.
Mr David Chidgey
Shadow Spokesperson (Business, Innovation and Skills), Shadow Spokesperson (Trade and Industry)
Is the Minister aware that the managing director of Chiltern Railway has stated that, because he has only a seven-year franchise, it is impossible for him to justify purchasing more than four new 100 mph trains, which means that he cannot provide an hourly service between London and Birmingham? Is it not time that the franchising director recognised the needs of the travelling public and stopped letting franchises so short that proper investment is impossible? For the benefit of us all, will he remind the franchising director that we had thought that the purpose of privatisation was to enable rational investment, not to create more constraints than existed before?
Mr John Watts
, Slough
I am surprised that the hon. Gentleman is so ill informed about the process of franchising and the substantial number of rolling stock orders that have been placed, in return not only for 10 or 15-year franchises but for franchises of seven years. Indeed, Chiltern Railway was the first private franchise operator to place an order for new trains. This morning, the franchise for Regional Railways North-East was awarded, with a commitment to replace the class 308 rolling stock that serves the area north-west of Leeds with 16 three-car electric multiple units. I am sure that Madam Speaker will not permit me the time to do so, but I could reel off other examples that prove the hollowness of the hon. Gentleman's case.
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