§ Mr. Matthew Taylor (Truro and St. Austell)I very much welcome the opportunity to debate this subject. A serious and potentially fatal accident occurred on 8 May on the rail-road crossing at Goss moor, involving a car transporter and a local train to Newquay. The accident raises questions about level crossings without barriers, but I take this opportunity to raise the much wider—and in the long run, more serious—matter of the A30 at Goss moor, especially the low rail bridge, which was why that heavy car transporter was on a small country lane.
I know the lane well, and I can see the Goss moor section of the A30 from my kitchen window. I see the regular jams that occur on the road during the summer, which go from pretty terrible to absolutely awful when lorries manage to hit the low bridge, which happens fairly regularly. Last summer, when large numbers of cars started more or less coming past my cottage, I discovered that somebody, in the spirit of Cornish entrepreneurship, had found that a lot of money could be made by selling for £1 maps showing how to get round the A30 at Goss moor. I do not want to talk unduly about taking away the opportunity to increase Cornish incomes, as they are so low, but the sale of such maps is not the ideal way of making a living, not least because people in the surrounding villages become irate when they see not just tall heavy lorries but everybody else using the route as a rat run to avoid the problems on the Goss moor section of the A30.
I have spoken about the barrier issue many times in the past, not least when I was transport spokesman for the Liberal Democrats. We must all be anxious about railway crossings without gates, which are especially dangerous when there is substantial traffic. A hot and bothered lorry driver who is not in the best state of mind but who is forced to use minor routes might not take the sensible driving approach that is appropriate to small country lanes. People in Roche tell me that lorries often pass rather too quickly through their village. My experience on the lanes outside the villages is similar. I cycle on the route from time to time, when I have the opportunity to do so, and I see lorries that are using entirely inappropriate roads, either at the end of a long journey or just setting off on a long journey out of the county, which appear, from time to time at least, to be going rather too fast for the circumstances.
We do not know what happened in the accident, and I do not want to pre-empt the inquiries. It seems to me, however, that road and rail do not mix well and that the light barriers do not always work. We know about the record of accidents and fatalities that occur from time to time on unbarriered crossings throughout the country. The individual who lives in the house next door to the crossing in question moved there only six weeks ago. He says that he has seen many near misses in which people shot the lights but narrowly missed a collision. I hope that the Minister will take this opportunity to speak about policy on the matter. I am aware of the recommendations made by the previous inquiry into barriers. I know that they were broadly implemented, which was welcome, but, in this day and age, there remains a question mark over unbarriered rail crossings.
40WH The A30 at Goss moor is the spine route through Cornwall; the great majority of traffic coming in and out of the west of the county has to take it. Most of the route is either at dual-carriageway standard or near to it. With the exception of one minor section on Bodmin moor, all of it is dualled as far as Bodmin. That is due not least to the campaigning in which people in my part of the world have engaged over many years to ensure an adequate route into the county and out again, which is especially important for Cornish businesses. A further section of dualling runs from Indian Queens to the junction off to Truro, whose construction was welcome. That development was originally planned to include the Goss moor section, but, for a variety of reasons, Goss moor was not included in the Indian Queens-Summercourt bypass building process.
I have had many meeting over the years with Ministers and others to discuss Goss moor. In my judgment, it was always the case that the best solution for the A30 problem at Goss moor involved moving the rail link to Newquay from the Par junction to St. Austell. The rail track would have gone through St. Bernards, so removing the need for the iron bridge and the diversion of heavy lorries. The solution tackled the problems of improving the road across Goss moor which, as a site of special scientific interest, is an important environmental site that is likely to receive the highest European nature conservation status.
There would be two benefits from moving the railway. The first is that it would free up the rail track bed for road building. As it runs parallel to the A30, that would allow dualling to take place without encroaching too much on Goss moor. The second is that Goss moor could be extended into a sterilised area between the railway and the improved road. Diverting the branch line would more than make up for losses to Goss moor that result from road improvements.
The environmental impact fits in with Government policy to find solutions to transport problems that combine public transport and road transport. The branch line would be made more viable by linking Newquay with St. Austell, which is Cornwall's largest town, rather than with the small village of Par. Indeed, its station does not even serve most of its built-up community. More people would get out of their cars and on to trains, which would reduce the cost of subsiding the branch line in the long term. It would solve most of the problems of land take from Goss moor that would be caused by dualling or upgrading. It would also provide a solution to the low iron bridge problem without incurring the substantial costs that make alterations to the bridge unviable.
The project's history is long and sad. Governments have repeatedly started to advance the process only for it come to a halt, which is why my colleagues and I have had an infinite number of meetings with Ministers over the years. In the old days—I suspect that this was also the case in recent years—the barriers within the Department between the rail people and the road people created a fundamental problem. When rail and roads were in state hands at the Department of Transport, it was well known that the highways people did not want to pay for the rail re-routing. They hoped that the branch line would close and that they would get it for free. The rail people, however, could not justify the investment for re-routing the line, so no money changed 41WH hands. Although I was told that re-routing was the cheapest solution for the road builders, they did not want to pass the financial gains on to Railtrack.
§ Mr. Paul Tyler (North Cornwall)I endorse my hon. Friend's point about co-ordination. I had the same experience, albeit for a shorter time. When we went to see the present Minister, Lord Whitty, at the Department, it was a shock to discover that the Department had not realised the importance of the new factor—the creation of the Eden project. My hon. Friend will know that the Eden project opened—
§ Madam Deputy Speaker(Mrs. Gwyneth Dunwoody)Order. I am sure the hon. Gentleman has the permission of the hon. Member for Truro and St. Austell (Mr. Taylor) and the Minister to intervene, but his contribution should be brief.
§ Mr. TaylorI am sure my hon. Friend has made his point. The opening of the Eden project means that traffic pressure, especially at the junction of the Bodmin roundabout on the A30, will be increased. The traffic tailback at that junction is often severe.
Let me sum up the issues for the A30. First, a combined rail and road solution would quickly end once and for all the diversion of heavy traffic through inappropriate local lanes and villages. The rail diversion would allow the removal of the bridge while a road upgrade of whatever form was taking place. That is an immediate solution for villagers in the surrounding area and for firms that find that further unnecessary delays and difficulties are added to getting their goods in and out of the county.
Secondly, a combined solution would answer genuine environmental concerns—there would be a clear net environmental benefit for Goss moor and, crucially, in the use of public transport. The proposal would help to get more people on to trains and would serve much larger communities than the existing branch line does. People would be taken to where they wanted to go rather than to Par, which, frankly, the majority of people do not plan as their final destination or have as their starting point.
We would also be able to tackle congestion, the environmental issue and the loss of life on that section of the A30, which is perhaps the most important issue of all. The county council has done much work on the subject. The figures over the past five years show accidents across Goss moor at twice the national rate. In that period, there were five fatalities, 19 serious injuries and 201 injury accidents—high figures for a short section of road. As a local, I experience the problems of crossing the A30, especially when coming from Roche and heading for the Newquay side, where there is a nasty junction. The Minister nods; I understand from his office that he knows the section of road well. The problems that I am describing will be familiar to him.
The history of the matter has been sorry and the sorriest saga has come within the past 10 years. In February 1994, the so-called fast-track, round-table process for trying to find agreement on a solution within the community was trialled by the then Conservative Government. The move was welcomed in the community. Environmental, road and community 42WH interests were brought together successfully. Perhaps surprisingly, given that environmental concerns did not have the same priority then as now, there was overwhelming agreement that the section of road needed to be tackled and that the preferred solution was to link rail and road, as I have suggested. The planning process for the road ensued, with the county council taken on as the lead contractors.
Matters came to a grinding halt shortly afterwards because the then Government slashed the roads programme. They were not interested in rail investment, so there was no hope of help from them on that. With the abolition of the county contract, no work proceeded. There was an announcement, which held out hopes, that there might have been a resumption shortly before the general election, but I do not think that that was anything other than a political gesture. Perhaps I am just an old cynic.
Worse news came on the election of the Labour Government because they, understandably, put the road programme back under review. That led to a further delay of at least one year, despite the fact that the round table had shown overwhelming support in the community for a solution. Even interests such as English Nature bought into the principle that a solution needed to be found, even if those interests did not commit themselves to an option. English Nature itself was sympathetic to a link to rail improvement. Sadly, the outcome of the review was not building but further consultation and planning. That was welcome but there was frustration in my community. The people there say, "We do not know why there is consultation because we all agree that work needs doing. A great majority of people agree on the way in which to do it. For goodness sake, can't we just get on with it?"
§ The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions (Mr. Keith Hill)I congratulate the hon. Member for Truro and St. Austell on securing the debate so soon after the accident on 8 May. As the hon. Gentleman said, the accident took place close to the A30 trunk road on Goss moor where a project is currently being carried out to identify ways of improving that part of the A30. The A30 project is of great importance to the people of Cornwall.
The accident took place on Monday 8 May, just after midday. A Wales and West train service travelling from Par to Newquay collided with a car transporter at the Tregoss level crossing near the village of Roche. The transporter had left the A30 to avoid the low Goss moor railway bridge, it having activated the height warning system. The accident caused the transporter to be dragged along the track for thirty yards and several of the cars it was carrying were scattered into nearby hedges. The train and lorry drivers and two passengers were taken to hospital with minor injuries. Thankfully, the injuries were not more serious.
An inspector from Her Majesty's railway inspectorate visited the scene of the accident the same day and started an investigation into the causes of the accident with the British Transport police. Their initial findings show that the crossing was working correctly. Tests have been carried out to confirm their early findings and the results 43WH are awaited. The Crown Prosecution Service and the British Transport police will consider the investigation's conclusions to determine what action should be taken. The investigation will also assess whether that type of crossing is still appropriate for the road and rail traffic that use it. The level crossing is a locally monitored automatic open crossing controlled by a signal box.
An improvement notice was served on Railtrack in February 1997 relating to the road markings at the crossing. Remedial action was taken to restore the road markings and, at the time of the accident, they were in accordance with the relevant statutory order for the crossing.
Some press reports have suggested that this was the fifth accident involving trains at that location in the past 10 years. In fact, there have been no previous accidents involving trains over the past 10 years. I have noted the observation of the resident who lives close to the crossing about near accidents, which is important and interesting.
§ Mr. Taylorrose—
§ Mr. TaylorI think that the Western Morning News bears some responsibility for that statistic. I believe that it has confused a specific figure with a figure for the south-west on these crossings.
§ Mr. HillI thank the hon. Gentleman for that clarification. It is unusual for that excellent journal to make a mistake.
Rail safety is vital and the Government are determined to make the railways and rail travel safer. The opening last week of the public inquiry under Lord Cullen into the Ladbroke Grove crash reminds us in the starkest manner of what can happen when an accident occurs. The Government will work to improve safety systems and procedures and to ensure that safety has the highest priority in the rail industry. Lord Cullen has been asked to conduct a thorough investigation not only into the causes of the Ladbroke Grove crash, but also into the long-term implications for rail regulation. In the meantime, wherever possible, the Government are taking practical action to improve safety.
The A30 trunk road between Bodmin and Indian Queens, is a stretch of road that, as the hon. Member for Truro and St Austell says, I know well because of my annual pilgrimage to the Pentire peninsular for the surfing. As the hon. Gentleman knows, the Highways Agency and its consultants are working to find a solution that would overcome the safety and congestion problems on that section of the trunk road. An important element of the work is to understand the problems clearly and how they affect local people and the south-west region overall.
The Highways Agency has carried out the first stage of a two stage public consultation. The consultation has caused some impatience among interested parties because, they assert, the problems have been known for years and the answers are obvious. There was indeed, as 44WH the hon. Gentleman said, a local planning conference in 1994, but since then, progress on preparation has been subject to fits and starts, culminating in the announcement in 1998, when we published the report "A New Deal for Trunk Roads in England", that the scheme should progress without delay, subject to full appraisal and the views of the regional planning conference. However, I emphasise that the 1994 local planning conference was not a substitute for public consultation, as is required by law, so there has always been a need for the current stage. Moreover, given the four-year suspension of preparation between 1994 and 1998, and subsequent changes in transport policy, it is important that earlier work should be reviewed to assess its validity and that alternative solutions to problems should be considered. The best options, including traffic management and single and dual carriageway improvements will be presented at a second stage of public consultation early in 2001. A recommendation to the Secretary of State on the preferred option will follow.
Earlier this year, people in the mid-Cornwall area were invited to visit public exhibitions at Bodmin, Redruth and Roche. The A30 trunk road is a key transport corridor for Cornwall, and extending the exhibitions to Redruth and Roche enabled the Highways Agency to reach a wider audience than is usual for a road improvement project. More than 860 people visited the three exhibitions over six days, where they talked to staff representing the agency and their consultants. They were asked to describe their experiences of living, working and travelling in the area. They were also invited to suggest ideas or preferences for improving the situation. Visitors were also encouraged to illustrate their ideas on maps provided for them, and many did so.
Unsurprisingly, many visitors to the exhibitions told the Highways Agency's representatives that they wanted a dual carriageway road to link the bypasses at Indian Queens and Bodmin. Most of them expressed their continuing support for the route recommended after the planning conference in 1994. However, a fair number of visitors were happy to discuss options other than a dual-carriageway road. They believed that their ideas, based on long personal experience, would be significant improvements. The most regularly mentioned concerns were improvement of the main junctions at Victoria, Castle-an-Dinas and the Roche crossroads, and straightening of the Par-Newquay branch line to avoid the iron bridge. People living in Roche and Tregoss and other villages directly affected by the diversionary routes saw the low-level iron bridge as the main problem.
Through the public exhibitions, the Highways Agency gained a clear understanding of local people's concerns and experiences, as well as a long list of suggested improvements. In addition to the public exhibitions, the agency distributed more than 16,000 questionnaires throughout the area and placed questionnaires at post offices and public libraries in the area bounded by Bodmin, Newquay, Redruth, Camborne, Truro and St. Austell. By the end of the consultation period, nearly 1,700 questionnaires had been returned to the Highways Agency at Bristol. The answers tended to confirm the general findings of the exhibitions, but also provided the agency with much 45WH more detailed information. The agency has now started to build up a detailed picture of local travel patterns, turning movements at junctions and crossing movements over the A30. Information from the questionnaires has augmented the travel survey work carried out towards the end of last year.
An important finding of the consultation is the local perception of traffic congestion. While an overwhelming number of questionnaire respondents—97 per cent.—considered that the relevant section of the A30 was congested, there was no agreement about whether traffic congestion occured just on some summer weekends and at peak travel hours, or throughout the year. It is important to establish the true level, and the Highways Agency will undertake a further series of traffic surveys later this year.
Although much of the talk at the public exhibitions was about delays in journey times, or the various routes that local people used to avoid the main road at certain times, almost 50 per cent. of all questionnaire respondents placed safety issues first when asked to rank a series of important factors that need to be considered when improvements are planned. That important finding from the consultation process will help to inform the assessment and appraisal stage of the project. Many people also considered that the low-height iron bridge was the biggest single problem on that section of the A30.
In April, the Highways Agency published a full report of the first public consultation, which it placed on deposit at 40 locations in mid-Cornwall, including 20 parish councils. At the same time, the agency distributed a free newsletter to the same places, providing details of all the key findings from the consultation, as well as the list of options that the agency is now considering.
During the remainder of this year, the agency will consider the feasibility of the options suggested to it and identify those that are most likely to address the problems on the A30. The options will include consideration of measures to remove the obstacle of the iron bridge. One option, as the hon. Gentleman said, is to divert the Par to Newquay branch line, which will make the low bridge redundant. The Highways Agency is working with Cornwall county council, Railtrack and others to determine the feasibility of that. The options will be examined in greater detail and appraised in line with the Government's new approach to appraisal. Next January, the agency will return to mid-Cornwall for the second public consultation and ask local people to indicate their preferred option.
One cannot disguise the difficulties of delivering quickly the improvements that we all agree are necessary, namely reducing the incidence of road 46WH accidents, improving the free flow of traffic and improving the reliability of journey times, especially in the summer months. It is also important to find a way to reduce the impact of large lorries on village communities. However, if the problems were easy to overcome, we might not be having this debate today. Goss moor is a site of special scientific interest and a national nature reserve. There are other sites of conservation importance nearby, as well as several scheduled ancient monuments. In developing solutions, the Highways Agency must have due regard to the environmental sensitivity of the area. A central tenet of the Government's planning policy is to minimise the impact of any development on both the built and the natural environment. The benefits of any proposed solution must be weighed carefully against any disbenefits.
The Highways Agency is working towards recommending a preferred solution to the Secretary of State in the summer of 2001. In doing so, the agency will need to be confident that the preferred solution will deliver the maximum benefit to the local and regional communities while minimising the impact on the natural environment.
§ Mr. TylerWill the Minister write to my hon. Friend the Member for Truro and St. Austell (Mr. Taylor) and to me with an up-to-date assessment of the road safety issues on that stretch of road? Will he also say how many accidents have occurred on the branch line that runs through our constituencies, because there have been several?
§ Mr. HillI am sure that I can provide that information.
The Government acknowledge the extreme importance attached to the project by the people of Cornwall. The issue was raised with my right hon. Friend the Deputy Prime Minister when he met representatives from Cornwall county council last September. I shall meet Cornwall county councillors later today, and my noble Friend Lord Whitty, the Minister for Roads, has agreed to meet representatives from Cornwall county council soon to discuss progress on the A30 scheme. Meanwhile, the Highways Agency will continue to work with the council and with other interested parties to find an acceptable solution to the problem as quickly as possible. I hope that that information and the general contents of my response will assure the hon. Member for Truro and St. Austell and his constituents of the seriousness of the Government's approach to the matter.
§ Question put and agreed to.
§ Adjourned accordingly at two minutes to One o'clock.