10. Jamie Hepburn (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Government when Transport Scotland expects to publish the results of its developing rail freight in Scotland consultation. (S3O-9340)
The Minister for Transport, Infrastructure and Climate Change (Stewart Stevenson):
Responses to the consultation will be published on Transport Scotland's website in March 2010.
Jamie Hepburn: The minister will be aware of the existing heavy freight traffic on the Cumbernauld to Falkirk Grahamston line. Given the plans to electrify that line, the long-standing hopes of local people to see an increased and improved passenger service, and the campaigns to create Abronhill and Grangemouth railway stations, will the minister guarantee that increasing freight traffic on the line will not impinge on any possibility of future improvements to passenger services?
Stewart Stevenson: We will be electrifying 350km of track in Scotland's rail network as we take forward our plans. That is an ambition for railway infrastructure development that has not been seen in my lifetime.
As we increase freight traffic on the Cumbernauld line, there will be issues about timetabling, but there is capacity on the line to allow us to continue to develop passenger services as well as freight. The slots are provided through the usual mechanisms involving Network Rail and all the rail companies in semi-annual discussions.
Dr Richard Simpson (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Lab): Did the consultation include consideration of the disruption and disturbance due to noise and vibration, particularly in the night running of freight, which has started in the past few years and affected my constituents along the Stirling to Alloa and Kincardine line?
Stewart Stevenson: A wide range of issues was covered by the rail freight consultation. The member and I have discussed the issue of night running for freight, which is likely to continue to be an important part of the services that run on that line. The important things are that we protect communities from the effects of that, that mitigation is in place, and that we work with rail freight companies to ensure that appropriate and up-to-date wagons are used that cause little or no disruption. We will continue to do all that.
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About Stewart Stevenson
Born in 1946 and brought up in Cupar, Fife, I was educated at the local school - Bell Baxter - and studied Mathematics at the University of Aberdeen, graduating with a modest degree in 1969. That's also the year Sandra & I married. Her family comes from the North East.Thirty years later I retired from Bank of Scotland as Director of Technology Innovation and was elected to the Scottish Parliament in 2001 as member for Banff & Buchan having first joined the SNP in 1961.
I then represented the new constituency of Banffshire & Buchan Coast Constituency in our Parliament. I retired as an MSP on 5th May 2021
I was also previously (2007-2010), Minister for Transport, Infrastructure and Climate Change and (2011-2012), Minister for Environment and Climate Change.
I hold the honorary posts of President of the Scottish Association for Public Transport
and Vice-President of Railfuture UK.I am a Fellow of The Royal Society for Arts, Manufactures and Commerce, a Member at The Institution of Engineering and Technology, a Professional Member of the Association for Computing Machinery, a Member of the Institute of Advanced Motorists and an Associate Member of the Highland Reserve Forces' and Cadets' Association.
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