§ Mr. Don FosterTo ask the Secretary of State for Transport what research has(a) been conducted and (b) is planned by his Department; and what research has been assessed by his Department on the steps needed to reduce the cost of starting up new home to school transport. [81732]
§ Mr. JamiesonMy Department has recently commissioned independent consultants to evaluate the American-style yellow school bus pilots which First is running and other innovative school bus schemes. The objectives of the evaluation include comparing the daily cost per capita to local authorities of running a First pilot vehicle to that of running a traditional school contract vehicle. The study is expected to report in August 2003 and we expect to issue a statement on the interim findings next month.
§ Mr. Don FosterTo ask the Secretary of State for Transport what research(a) has been conducted and (b) is planned by his Department on the implications on (i) road safety, (ii) congestion and (iii) pollution of changes in home to school transport which (A) have taken place, and (B) could arise from additional improvements in home to school transport. [81736]
§ Mr. JamiesonIn March 2001 the then DTLR commissioned W. S. Atkins to assess what the effects would be of increasing the current provision of home-to-school transport. The study, which reported at the end of 2001, identified considerable interest in using home-to-school transport among households that were currently not entitled to free home to school transport. It concluded that relaxing the eligibility criteria would have a noticeable impact on car use. Copies of the report "Assessment of parental attitudes to and the potential take-up of additional home to school transport" are available in the Libraries of the House.
My Department has recently commissioned independent consultants to evaluate the American style yellow school bus pilots that First are running. The objectives of the evaluation include assessing how successful the pilots have been in reducing the number of journeys to school by car, comparing the safety 271W record of the First pilot vehicles with that of the vehicles traditionally used for school bus services and assessing their impact on other accident rates in the area. The study is expected to report in August 2003 and we expect to issue a statement on the interim findings next month.
§ Mr. Don FosterTo ask the Secretary of State (1) for Transport what funding mechanisms are available directly from his Department to(a)local authorities and (b) other education bodies for improving school transport in order to (i) improve road safety, (ii) tackle congestion and (iii) tackle pollution; [81737]
(2) what funding mechanisms have been available directly from his Department to (a) local authorities and (b) other education bodies for improving school transport in each year since 1992. [81738]
§ Mr. JamiesonMy Department does not provide specific funding for school transport. Responsibility for the provision of statutory home to school transport lies with the Department for Education and Skills.
However, as part of their Local Transport Plan strategies, whose objectives must include the improvement of safety, the promotion of accessibility and the protection of the environment, local authorities in England can propose strategies to provide support for and improve school transport provision. They may also take advantage of the Private Finance Initiative (PFI) funding route. An example of the latter is Surrey County Council's (Pegasus) School Bus Scheme for which my Department announced 16 million in PFI credits, which will be paid through supporting special grant, in December 2002.
Local authorities are able to fund bus services that would not otherwise be provided from their Revenue Support Grant; in some cases these will be on routes that serve schools. They may also bid for funding for innovative road passenger transport schemes, which may include school transport services, under the Rural and Urban Bus Challenge schemes.