§ Mr. Don FosterTo ask the Secretary of State for Transport what value for preventing a fatality is used by(a) his Department and (b) the Highways Agency when assessing cost benefit ratios on (i) the roads and (ii) the railways; and how these are calculated. [72943]
§ Mr. JamiesonThe Department and the Highways Agency use an appraisal figure of £1.14 million (in 2000 prices) per fatality prevented when assessing the costs and benefits of road investments. The Department uses the same appraisal figure of £1.14 million for valuing road and rail fatalities prevented through railway investments. The final decisions on all transport investments are not just based on cost benefit ratios, but a wide range of criteria, namely: environment, economy, safety, accessibility and integration.
The appraisal value was derived from research into individual's willingness to pay for reductions in highway risk. Full details of the road values used are published annually in Highway Agency's Economics Note No. 1, which is available in the Library of the House and on the Department's website. The value is updated annually for inflation and economic growth.
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