§ Mr. LewisTo ask the Secretary of State for Transport what investigations he has initiated(a) into the possibility of reducing freight traffic on the M62 by transferring a proportion of such to the railways and (b) into improving the rail network to facilitate the carriage of more goods.
§ Mr. FreemanThe practical opportunities for transferring goods to rail from the M62, as with all roads, are likely to be very limited. We are encouraging BR to build on its strengths in the freight market which are primarily for trainload movements. Where there are sound commercial prospects we are backing new investment.