§ Mr. JenkinTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what the cost-benefit ratio is for the A259 Hastings bypass recommended by the Steer Davies Cleave multi-modal study, according to the same methodology used by his Department appraising other schemes. [150901]
§ Mr. HillGuidance on the methodology for multi-modal Studies (GOMMMs), published by DETR in March 2000, provided a framework for applying the Government's new approach to appraisal (NATA) as part of the multi-modal study process GOMMMs was followed by the Access to Hastings study which was completed in November 2000. The final report for this study provides a table of impacts which contains all the significant costs and benefits of the strategies. The balance of this information gives an 'overall net value' of the strategies. This includes an assessment of the affordability of the strategies, represented in more conventional terms of a cost benefit analysis.
An error was made by the consultants in their cost-benefit analysis for their two preferred strategies within the final report. Revised figures have been circulated and provide a benefit-cost ratio (BCR) of 0.5 for Strategy 12 ("without bypasses") and of 1.0 for strategy 13 ("with bypasses"). An assessment of the A259 Hastings bypass schemes provided a BCR of 1.7. These figures relate only to the economic assessment and not to other aspects of the appraisal, for example the environmental assessment.