HC Deb 13 January 1992 vol 201 cc493-4W
25. Mr. Butler

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what is his latest estimate of the commercial potential of the channel tunnel to the north-west.

Mr. Freeman

The Government have made no specific assessment, but I believe that the opportunities created by the channel tunnel for new rail links with the continent will be very beneficial to the north-west and to other parts of the country.

28. Mr. Dykes

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what discussions he has had with the Eurotunnel consortium management since the beginning of the new year on progress in completing the project and related matters.

Mr. Freeman

I hold discussions with Eurotunnel's management from time to time, but have not done so yet in 1992.

Ms. Ruddock

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport (1) what plans exist for the Waterloo international terminal after the channel tunnel rail link has been completed;

(2) if he will estimate the amount of rail traffic using the Brockley-Nunhead line after the completion of the alternative route for the channel tunnel rail link;

(3) whether any householders living along the Brockley-Nunhead line have been contacted by British Rail about compensation or compulsory purchase;

(4) what plans there are to create additional tracks cutting into the embankment or gardens on the Brockley-Nunhead line.

Mr. Freeman

The Waterloo international passenger station will continue to take some international passenger trains after the channel tunnel rail link has been completed. One aspect of the current studies to refine the proposals for the new line is to consider how best to provide access from it to Waterloo. No conclusions have as yet been reached. There are no plans for widening the Brockley-Nunhead line and therefore the question of compensation or compulsory purchase does not arise.

Mrs. Ruddock

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what plans have been made to develop public transport systems which will serve the new Stratford terminal for the channel tunnel rail link.

Mr. Freeman

There are extensive plans for improvements to public transport infrastructure that will benefit Stratford: the docklands light railway extension, the refurbishment of the Central line, the Jubilee line extension—Stratford to Green Park and beyond via Canary Wharf, London Bridge, Waterloo and Westminster—and the east-west crossrail from Stratford via Farringdon and Paddington to important towns west of London such as Aylesbury and Reading.

Mr. Morgan

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what consultation he has had with the chairman of British Rail regarding the future of the channel tunnel rail freight terminal at Old Oak Common following the decision to route the main flow of channel tunnel rail traffic into central London via Stratford and Barking.

Mr. Freeman

Willesden—not Old Oak Common—and Stratford will be the two freight terminals serving London and the south-east when the channel tunnel opens. British Rail is currently considering, in close consultation with the Government, whether the proposed rail link between London and the tunnel should be used for freight. No decision has yet been made.