§ 101. Mr. Irvineasked the Minister of Transport if, in view of the necessity of ensuring the safe running of the railways, he will ensure that track repairs and modernisation of signalling are not deferred or curtailed on British Railways to reduce working costs and capital expenditure; and to what extent this has already occurred.
§ Mr. BarnesExpenditure on track repairs to maintain safe running is not restricted under the Capital Investment Programme or as part of the railways' economy campaign. Some track renewals on secondary lines have been deferred owing to cuts in capital expenditure, and speed restrictions are imposed where 115W necessary for safety. Although signalling modernisation is not proceeding as rapidly as I or the British Transport Commission would wish, partly for the reasons which my hon. Friend suggests, safety has shown a progressive improvement in the last two years. No passenger was killed in a train accident in 1949.