§ Dr. David ClarkTo ask the Secretary of State for Defence (1) how many "A" vehicles will be stored at his Department's centralised vehicle storage depot at Ashchurch; [3862]
(2) what assessment he has made of the impact on the local road network of centralising his Department's vehicle storage depot at Ashchurch; what is the maximum weight of Army vehicles using the local roads; and what assessment he has made of the consequences of transport of such vehicles over the Ashchurch road bridge; [3863]
(3) what discussions he has had with the local authority responsible for Newbury on the implications of transporting Army vehicles on the A34 through the centre of the town. [3864]
§ Mr. SoamesThese matters are for the Army Base Storage and Distribution Agency, ABSDA, under its framework document. I have asked the chief executive to write to the hon. Member.
Letter from Brigadier K. J. W. Goad to Dr. David Clark, dated 5 December 1995:
The Secretary of State for Defence has asked me, as Chief Executive of the Army Base Storage and Distribution Agency, to respond to your recent Parliamentary Questions regarding the storage and movement of Army vehicles. My responses are detailed below:To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what discussions he has had with the local authority responsible for Newbury on the implications of transporting Army Vehicles on the A34 through the centre of town".When large vehicles are to be transported by road, the military authorities, where appropriate, clear the route in advance, with the respective authorities, such as Police, County Highway, British Water Board, British Rail, British Gas, etc. Such arrangements have been in operation, throughout the country, for many years.As a general policy, we are seeking to increase the use of rail to move 'A' Vehicles but not all are within guage (for example Main Battle Tanks) and are therefore too large for rail movement. These must continue to be transported by road.163WTo ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many `A'vehicles will be stored at his Department's centralised vehicle storage depot at Ashchurch.The current planning figure for the number of vehicles to be stored at Ashchurch is 10106. 'A' vehicles make up a small but important part of this total. The majority of these vehicles will be placed in high density, long-term storage adopting a "leave it alone" policy.To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what assessment he has made of the impact on the local road network of centralising his Department's vehicle storage depot at Ashchurch; what is the maximum weight of Army vehicles using the roads; and what assessment has he made of the consequences of transport of such vehicles across the Ashchurch road bridge.Ashchurch has close and easy access to the M5 motorway and transportation of vehicles into and out of the depot will have little effect on the surrounding local road network. The largest vehicles that will be using the depot will be Main Battle Tanks. These vehicles with their transporters weigh 102 tonnes. The local authority are aware of this requirement and we do not anticipate any problems in the use of the Ashchurch road bridge.I trust that my reply has fully answered your questions. If you have any further questions or require further clarification on any of the answers I have given, please contact me.