HC Deb 24 July 2002 vol 389 c1243W
Mr. Flook

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what recent assessment he has made of the reliability of rail services to Taunton. [73268]

Mr. Jamieson

Performance figures for each of the train operating companies are published by the Strategic Rail Authority in their quarterly publication, "National Rail Trends", and in more detail in their six-monthly publication, "On Track". Copies of these publications are available in the Libraries of the House. The most recent editions of both documents were published on 6 June.

Mr. Flook

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what plans he has to encourage the greater use of bus travel(a) within Taunton, (b) within Wellington and (c) in and around Wiveliscombe in Somerset. [73267]

Mr. Jamieson

Our policies are aimed at encouraging the greater use of buses in all parts of the country. Implementation at local level is a matter for the local transport authority, in this case, Somerset county council, through its local transport plan. The Department is providing local authorities, including Somerset, with substantially increased capital funding and on-going increases in revenue funding to enable them to plan and implement a range of measures to improve bus services in their areas.

In addition. Somerset county council has been allocated £1.49 million for the support of rural bus services in the current financial year. Since 1998, the council has also been successful with nine bids under the Department's Rural Bus Challenge scheme, including an award last year of £100,000 towards a community transport service for the areas around Wiveliscombe.