PARLIAMENTARY DEBATE
Rail and Road Connectivity: Northern Lincolnshire - 5 September 2024 (Commons/Commons Chamber)

I am delighted to welcome the Minister to her place, and I am pleased to be able to raise these important issues on behalf of my constituents in Great Grimsby and Cleethorpes and also the wider region.

The Minister will be aware that road and rail connectivity to Great Grimsby and Cleethorpes has been a long-standing issue, which many before us have tried and failed to resolve, but I am hopeful that we will be able to move things on substantially for the greater wellbeing and economic benefit of northern Lincolnshire and the Humber generally.

The Minister knows that despite being out on the coast, northern Lincolnshire plays a critical part in the nation’s energy and fuel generation, being the country’s centre of offshore wind operational management and repairs. We produce omega-3 rich food for the country’s dinner plates and eco-fibres for our clothes. We host the world’s largest port by tonnage. We are the hub for new vehicle distribution around the UK. We are the star coastal beachy getaway—someone in the Chamber may want to challenge me on that at some point—for hundreds of thousands of visitors each year, delivering excellent hospitality. We deliver national training in offshore wind and high-skill engineering. As a thriving and proud footballing town, we draw crowds weekly from all over the country, keen to support their team down at Blundell Park.

My point, in highlighting all these activities, is to demonstrate the economic importance of the Humber, and the south bank in particular, not only to those locals who benefit from the work and the products, but to the whole country. We know that being easily able to access places is key to securing additional inward investment, growing economic prosperity for and on behalf of the people who live there. It dispels some of the sense of being separate or isolated from the rest of the country.

Currently, despite the fact that we have a busy dual carriageway linking us to the central spine of the country; regular-ish direct rail services across to Liverpool in 3 hours 26 minutes via Doncaster, Sheffield and Manchester and to Leicester in 2 hours 36 minutes via Lincoln and Nottingham—the Minister will be pleased to know that—and a brilliant little airport in Kirmington that has flights direct to Schiphol and Aberdeen, we are still considered hard to access. Add in some roadworks or rail replacement services, and somewhere with better, faster transport links tips the balance and ends up getting the investment.

The current situation for an away fan driving to support their team at Blundell Park—let us say Bradford; there was a recent match that we were triumphant in—down the A180 on to Cleethorpe Road and then Grimsby Road is an inexplicably loud, juddering journey along a 50-year-old concrete road. The urban myth of the road is that an American firm were contracted to lay experimental surfacing and rolled it the wrong way, so the friction is higher and more pronounced as the cars drive the opposite way to how they do in the States, so it generates much more noise. But, whatever the history, the fact of the matter is that, today, despite some patchy resurfacing in short stretches, the noise for drivers is so loud that speaking at a normal volume to a passenger sat right next to them is impossible and hearing travel alerts on the radio is also impossible. I am convinced that it must be damaging to the hearing of people who regularly drive on that road for work, education or leisure purposes.

As for the trains, I absolutely defy anybody who says they have not experienced a delay at Doncaster. Usually they come later on, in the evening. For more regular travellers, perhaps that results in just a roll of the eyes and settling down in the waiting room for an hour or more to wait for the next connection, or, as the hon. Member for Brigg and Immingham (Martin Vickers) will know, heading outside to join a lengthy queue and eventually clamber into a shared taxi with other fed up and rather confused passengers. For those who do not use the trains often, the lack of information, the lack of updates and the paucity of any assistance with luggage or perhaps mobility struggles really puts them off using the railways, especially when they pay a premium for the privilege.

With most international business travellers flying into London airports, the route between Grimsby and Cleethorpes and London is an absolutely essential one. One of our refineries is owned by the Americans, the fabric company Lenzing is Austrian, Ørsted is Danish, RWE is German, Knauf is also German, and Sofina is Canadian. Companies from all over the world are basing themselves in Grimsby, Cleethorpes and the surrounding northern Lincolnshire area. Bringing senior executives to our richly experienced and active corner of the country is essential, but it is really embarrassing to send them on delayed trains or a two-coach, 50-year-old chugger with no modern amenities on it.

The hon. Member is making an extraordinarily powerful and important point. Lincolnshire has a huge footprint from the north, which she represents, to the south— I would suggest that it is not a corner but a massive footprint. The Government want to create growth and to build 1.5 million new homes over this Parliament. The key to that is infrastructure, because if we do not have a good road network to enable people to get across Lincolnshire and if they cannot get to new homes, the house builders will not build them. In my constituency, we have been talking about a bypass in Boston for about 20 years—so long that no one can remember. I therefore support her and say to the Minister that actually the whole of Lincolnshire—north and south—needs extra investment in road and rail infrastructure to secure the growth that the Government are rightly so keen to ensure for the nation.

I thank the hon. Gentleman for his intervention. He makes an important point. We cannot grow one area of—I will not say “corner” again—our patch, our kingdom of Lincolnshire without growing the other. The ability to travel across the county is incredibly important.

I support the subject of the hon. Lady’s debate. She mentioned the United Kingdom; it is important that we look at the connectivity of the entire United Kingdom. In the constituency that I represent, there has already been an all-Ireland rail review, in which both the Northern Ireland Executive and the Irish Government have looked at the opportunity of improving rail links. One of those links was from Antrim town through to Lisburn, and connecting Belfast international airport via rail. The hon. Lady is worried about the state of her rail link to the airport in her constituency; I have Belfast international airport in mine, and no rail link. Could the Government work with the Northern Ireland Executive on the all-Ireland rail review to look at how that could progress?

I admire the hon. Gentleman’s ability to get South Antrim into a debate about northern Lincolnshire, and I support his opportunity to do that.

It is totally unsuitable to have such antiquated amenities. It is no surprise that instead of coming to Grimsby, Cleethorpes or Immingham, businesspeople will instead go direct from London to Hull from King’s Cross. As Humber-based businesses, they stay in accommodation there, perhaps with a trip over the Humber bridge for half a day. That is not enough for us to be able showcase our whole northern Lincolnshire offering.

In June, my predecessor—and my successor, actually—announced on social media that a direct train would be up and running by Christmas. I wonder if the Minister could enlighten us on the background of that assertion? I have been unable to find much more than a hope from the previous Transport Minister. I am concerned that, perhaps, false hope has been provided to residents in my constituency.

I am conscious of time, and I want to let the hon. Member for Brigg and Immingham (Martin Vickers) speak for a few minutes because I know that he is keen to contribute, but I will finish by saying that back in 2003, the then MP for Cleethorpes, Shona McIsaac, had a debate on exactly the same issue relating to the A180. At that time, a 10-year resurfacing programme was in place, promising action between 2002 and 2005. Here we are again. Please, will the Minister assist me in making some progress for my constituents?

I congratulate my constituency neighbour, the hon. Member for Great Grimsby and Cleethorpes (Melanie Onn), on securing this debate. It is an important one and, as she knows, an issue that I have been campaigning on. Indeed, when she was previously in this House we held numerous meetings with Ministers and the like about it.

The new Brigg and Immingham constituency has 11 railways stations, the largest port in the country and an international airport, yet we are still struggling to get the A180 resurfaced and a direct train service to London. This afternoon I was looking at when I first raised this matter in the House—it was in 2011, on a debate about High Speed 2, ironically. My understanding is that the previous Secretary of State had approved the start of the direct service from Grimsby and had instructed LNER to incorporate it in its negotiations with Network Rail about the forthcoming winter timetable. As the hon. Lady said, it would be nice if the Minister could confirm that that is the case.

The A180 is an issue that has been rumbling on—no pun intended—for at least the 14 years that I have been a Member of the House. In 2018, I held a public meeting in Stallingborough village hall, and Highways England—as it was called at that time—said that resurfacing would commence and be completed during the 2020-21 financial year, which was subsequently confirmed in a letter from the Minister. The situation at the moment as I understand it is that a programme exists to spend £9 million in the current financial year to deal with particularly dangerous stretches, but I am told now that complete resurfacing from Barnetby Top to Grimsby, which is essential, is now in the £300 million-plus category, and will need authorising as a major capital project.

Very briefly, there are a couple of other points worth mentioning. The train service that runs through Brigg, the Sheffield-Gainsborough-Brigg-Cleethorpes train service, was until fairly recently a one day a week service, with three services on a Saturday. That has now changed to a five day a week service, but it gives only 90 minutes in either Grimsby—if people want, as they should, to stop there to do their shopping in Freshney Place—or Cleethorpes. It gives them a mere 90 minutes to explore the beach and all that Cleethorpes can offer. Let us get something sorted. A regular service on that stretch of line would be greatly appreciated.

My final comment is on the Cleethorpes to Barton service, which is a bit of a Cinderella service. There are so many cancellations and the timings are not good for commuters who want to use it. It needs to be fully restructured, so I urge the Minister to look at that.

I cannot allow another speech, but interventions on the Minister, if the Minister chooses to accept them, are permitted.

I congratulate my hon. Friend the Member for Great Grimsby and Cleethorpes (Melanie Onn) on securing today’s debate and on returning to these Benches. I know she will represent her constituents wonderfully well, as she always did, and speak passionately, as we have just heard, about issues in her constituency and across northern Lincolnshire—an area she is rightly proud of and ambitious for. I am grateful for the opportunity to discuss transport in this region today.

There were certainly some attempts to broaden out the debate beyond north Lincolnshire. I understand the desire to talk about Lincolnshire, but I will perhaps stay clear of Northern Ireland, where transport is a devolved matter. Nevertheless, I am impressed with the determination of the hon. Member for South Antrim (Robin Swann) to speak for his constituents. Let me assure hon. Members that the Government understand the importance of transport to the people, communities and businesses powering local economies across the country, including on the south bank of the Humber.

I will begin with the A180. I am very aware that my hon. Friend and her Labour predecessor have previously raised the issue of road noise on this vital road for those travelling to and from her constituency. Assessments of road noise on the A180 have been undertaken by National Highways. Those assessments were carried out near Stallingborough—I hope I have pronounced that correctly—in May 2024, ahead of proposed concrete repairs. The noise levels recorded were between 65.9 and 82 dB, which I understand is reasonably loud for a driver over a sustained journey. However, I am afraid that they are also consistent with the expected amount of noise to be generated, given the volume of traffic the A180 supports. The age of the road is also an important consideration here, as wear and tear increases the level of noise generated. That being said, I fully understand the frustration that can be caused by sustained road noise for both drivers and those living near the road.

In the last year, National Highways has carried out three road surface improvements on the A180, with a fourth planned to commence this October—in just a few weeks’ time. Those works have and will reduce noise and improve road safety. Subject to confirmation of funding, additional surface treatment work is planned for the third roads investment strategy period and, when finished, it should substantially reduce noise levels along the route. The works will be of significant benefit to the lives of my hon. Friend’s constituents, and those of other hon. Members, both those living close to the A180 and those who regularly drive along the road. I completely understand my hon. Friend’s desire to make the journey to her coastal community as smooth and pleasant as possible, both for her constituents and for those making the important business journeys that she described.

Let me turn to the introduction of a direct train to London from Cleethorpes and Grimsby. The benefits of having direct links to the capital are clear: that is why we are working with industry to address the timetabling, financial, operational and infrastructure issues that need to be resolved before a service to Cleethorpes can be introduced—all of that once the east coast main line timetable change has been implemented. Assessments made by LNER and Network Rail have confirmed that LNER services can call at Cleethorpes and Grimsby, but in order for LNER trains to serve Market Rasen station, significant changes to platform length and height are required, as well as a new foot crossing to allow safe access to platforms.

My noble Friend Lord Hendy, the Minister for Rail, will consider the proposals that have been made, with final approval subject to funding and a thorough business case process. That was the case before the general election, and it is still the case now. The previous Rail Minister talked of an ambition to introduce the service, but I am sure that my hon. Friend and other Members understand that an ambition is not the same as a promise. In the meantime, addressing the performance of rail services in the region in advance of any decision on direct services between London and Cleethorpes and Grimsby will significantly improve journeys and reduce delays. My hon. Friend painted a picture, very effectively, of the impact on rail travellers when the integration between services is not working properly.

I am pleased that TransPennine has improved its service significantly over the last year, but it is clear that there is still room for improvement, and, as my hon. Friend knows, my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State has wasted no time in holding train operators to account for poor performance. In her first month in the job, she met the managing director of TransPennine Express and Network Rail representatives to demand action. Between 21 July and 17 August, only about 50% of all trains on the route ran to time, with fewer than 80% arriving within three minutes of timetable. During that period cancellations stood at 3.4%, with an increase attributed to problems with the Keadby swing bridge on 1 and 5 August, along with several Network Rail incidents. I will say more in a moment about how bringing track and train together under Great British Railways can help to drive improvements, because they are very much needed.

Northern’s performance over the last few months has been unacceptable. Between 17 July and 21 August, trains on the Doncaster-Scunthorpe route arrived on time only 78% of the time. The proportion of total cancellations was about 4%, although, depending on the day and conditions of travel, passengers may have experienced a better or worse service than that. In July, the Rail North Partnership, through which my Department and Transport for the North jointly manage Northern’s contract, served it with a breach notice which compels it to produce a formal recovery plan. It will be required to explain how it will tackle the underlying issues that are holding back performance, resulting in the current unreliable service. The plan will be scrutinised by my Department and by Northern leaders through Transport for the North’s Rail North Committee. We will ensure that the needs and expectations of passengers, including those in north and north-east Lincolnshire, are put at the heart of Northern’s recovery and development.

Let me now address the daily—well, five days a week—Sheffield-Cleethorpes service. I remember when the Brigg line service ran only on Saturdays, and I am probably among a select group who have actually travelled on the service; but the hon. Member for Brigg and Immingham (Martin Vickers) already knows that, because we took the trip together and stopped for a cuppa in Cleethorpes. The service is primarily intended to maintain route knowledge on the Brigg line in case of diversions. Although I appreciate the appetite for services to spend more time in Grimsby and Cleethorpes, Northern’s turnaround at Cleethorpes is necessitated by other demands on the network, including from freight services, and by crew rostering. Adding an additional service on the route could create clashes and would cost between £400,000 and £900,000 a year, depending on staff and rolling stock demands.

Naturally, the Department requires operators to match their services to demand. Demand remains low on the existing services from Sheffield to Cleethorpes, which reach only about 30% of their capacity even during the busiest times. Most of the demand on the service is driven by passengers joining at Worksop and Retford for Sheffield, or by Northern’s competitive leisure pricing between Sheffield and Cleethorpes, although TransPennine trains also offer services over a similar route. Demand on the route is also very seasonal; I know from my Nottingham constituency how much city residents enjoy a trip to the east coast in the heights of summer, but they find it less appealing on wet and windy days in the winter.

I take the Minister’s point about the small number of passengers on the route, but that is partly because there is only one service a day. If there were a regular service that people knew was there—even every three hours, shall we say—they could spend the day in Cleethorpes. It would encourage more passengers on to the route.

The hon. Member makes an important point that we will certainly look at, but I am sure he understands that, given the capacity and given the other ways in which people can travel, it is challenging.

Indicative modelling of an additional service suggests an industry revenue uplift of approximately £35,000 a year, although most of that is achieved by improving the service between Worksop and Retford and Sheffield. It would increase Northern’s subsidy requirement and would therefore raise costs significantly. This money is not available in Northern’s current budget.

This Government have been clear that performance on the railways must improve, and we are committed to delivering a unified and simplified rail system that focuses on improved services for passengers and better value for taxpayers. As my hon. Friend the Member for Great Grimsby and Cleethorpes knows, just this week the House of Commons passed a Bill to bring passenger services back into public ownership. By ending years of fragmentation and waste, we will ensure that the railway serves the needs of passengers and the taxpayer, rather than lining the pockets of private sector operators.

Bringing train operations into public ownership is just the first step in the Government’s plan to improve the railways for passengers and taxpayers. We will bring forward further legislation to create Great British Railways, a new arm’s length body that will act as a directing mind for the railways. This will ensure the highest standards of customer service and operational performance, with a relentless focus on delivering for passengers and freight customers. To achieve our goals, rail must become part of a reliable and efficient integrated transport network, including in the region that hon. Members here represent.

Improving bus services is also a top priority. My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State has been clear that buses are the lifeblood of our communities. We have not discussed them much today, but they can improve access to education, jobs and leisure opportunities, as well as connect us with our friends and family. As the Government strive to kick-start the economy, buses will be central in addressing regional inequalities and delivering growth. That is why we have set out an action plan to deliver better bus services, grow passenger numbers and drive opportunity to underserved regions. A core part of the plan is passing the better buses Bill, which will be introduced in this Session.

Am I running short of time?

I will cut to the chase. The Bill will give local leaders the tools to deliver better bus services and will ensure that networks meet the needs of the communities who rely on them. However, I need to say that this Government, as the Chancellor has clearly set out, have inherited an extremely challenging financial situation, with a £22 billion public spending gap left by the previous Administration in this year alone. The gap between promised schemes and the money available to deliver them has been abundantly clear.

I know that this is not the first time that these issues have been raised. My hon. Friend the Member for Great Grimsby and Cleethorpes has made a strong argument on behalf of her constituents. I reassure her that this Government have heard clearly the case that she and other hon. Members have made, and that we will continue taking action to address the issues that have been debated today.

Question put and agreed to.