§ Mrs. Anne CampbellTo ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to his answer of 21 November 1995,Official Report, column 53, on prosecution for noise and air pollution, what was the nature of (a) the successful prosecution against British Rail and (b) the two abatement notices. [3337]
§ Mr. WattsAbatement notices were served on British Rail requiring a reduction in excessive noise at Paddington station, London and at Trafford Park Euro-terminal, Manchester.
The notice served at Paddington required a reduction in the noise created by the engineering work involved in the remodelling of the track layout on the approaches to the station. The use of a tamping machine on one particular night, close to residential premises, led to a prosecution. BR was unable to prove that it had done all that it possibly could to avoid the use of the machine on the night in question and a plea of guilty was entered.
The notice served at Trafford Park related to a new road-rail terminal constructed for channel tunnel freight traffic. The terminal is adjacent to residential properties, the owners of which complained of excessive night time noise after the terminal opened in 1994. In the hearing before the stipendiary magistrate at which the board's appeal against the notice was heard, the board suggested a number of measures to reduce the level of noise received by residents. The board has taken the steps necessary to implement these measures.