MPs on the newly constituted Transport Committee will look at issues including local transport as well as e-scooters and young and novice drivers under the spring agenda.

MPs will pursue progress updates on key recommendations from previous reports on potholes, buses and active travel

The priorities for the Committee’s immediate future programme have been unveiled following the first meeting of the Transport Committee, which has new members and a new chair for the 2019 Parliament.

Explaining some of the priorities for the new Committee, chair Huw Merriman said: “While we will set out to understand the successes and failures of the transport headlines, the vast majority of our travel is done locally. People ask questions like what’s happened to my bus route or why should my mobility limit my transport choices too? Why isn’t my city served better by transport links? Or why can’t I choose to walk or cycle to work without facing congestion, worrying about road safety or the quality of the air our children breathe?”

As well as looking at HS2, the Committee will explore the use of e-scooters; with the UK marked out as the last European economy where e-scooters are illegal to be used everywhere, except on private land (with the landowner’s permission), MPs will launch a short inquiry on this ahead of a Government consultation planned later this year.

The subject of young and novice drivers. Following an invitation to the public to share their concerns about road safety in the last Parliament, significant concern was raised about the high level of collisions for this group of drivers. The Transport Committee will resume this inquiry to consider why these drivers are more at risk and how the Government plans to reduce these numbers.

And following Committee Reports on potholes, buses and active travel that secured key commitments from the Department for Transport to boost the priority of local transport, MPs will pursue progress updates on key recommendations from each.