Towns and cities across the country are set to benefit from £3 billion worth of investment on improving roads in a boost for motorists.This investment will lead to quicker and safer journeys and help to build a stronger economy by linking people with jobs, businesses with customers, ensuring a country that works for everyone, not just the privileged few.
Chris Grayling outlined details of more than £1.3 billion of road improvements announced as part of the Autumn Statement. This includes:
- £925 million to tackle congestion and provide upgrades on local roads
- £175 million to improve the 50 most dangerous roads in the country
- £220 million to Highways England to combat congestion
- £27 million for the Cambridge to Oxford expressway
- Six local major schemes to better journeys
In addition, the Transport Secretary today:
- awarded £50 million to build the Lincoln Eastern Bypass
- announced development of six further local major schemes
- allocated £70 million for 2017/18 to fix potholes
Transport Secretary Chris Grayling said: “This is a government that steps up, not back which is why we are investing record amounts into improving our roads across the country. This investment is over and above the £23 billion we are spending to get motorists to their destinations quickly, more easily and safely.
“The schemes announced today are focused on relieving congestion and providing important upgrades to ensure our roads are fit for the future - removing the barriers to help make an economy that works for everyone.”
The A14 is the 33rd major scheme that the government has started since 2010. During that time more than £4 billion of schemes have been completed and are already providing drivers with better journeys.
Chris Grayling added:“The A14 is a vital road for Cambridgeshire and for the rest of the country, helping link people and businesses to jobs, opportunities and families. This new upgrade will see quicker journeys, which will also be more reliable and safe.”
As part of the £1.3 billion fund, the government is providing £925 million which highways authorities can bid for to upgrade and repair their roads. This is on top of the £6 billion councils are receiving up to 2021. This is an increase on the £4.7 billion spent between 2010 and 2015 and almost double the £3.7 million spent between 2005 and 2010.
A further £70 million from the Pothole Fund will be allocated next year. This will allow highway authorities to start repairs quickly.
Britain has some of the safest roads in the world, but the government is investing a further £175 million to make them even safer. The Department for Transport will work with councils to improve the 50 roads with the worst safety record, which includes the A588 in Lancashire, the A529 in Shropshire and the A18 in Lincolnshire. This is on top of the £1 million pledged this month to improve the A285 in West Sussex.
The Department for Transport today also published five strategic studies into the most complex issues on our road network:
- The A66 will be upgraded to create a new east to west dual carriageway, meaning a quicker link between Scotch Corner in North Yorkshire and Penrith, Cumbria. The department is enhancing junctions on the A69 to create 18 miles of dual carriageway between Newcastle and Hexham, to be complete by 2020. The A69 is a major part of Highways England’s £220 million to combat congestion at pinch points on motorways and major A roads
- Improvements to the North West quadrant of the M60, between junctions 8 to 18 - the A6144 to Liverpool and M66 to Accrington - will continue to be developed
- During the Autumn Statement, the Chancellor of the Exchequer also announced £27 million to develop the Cambridge to Oxford expressway, which includes a new road between the M1 and the M40
- The government will continue to examine the case for the A1 in the East of England and improving connectivity between Manchester and Sheffield
In addition to the six major schemes in the Autumn Statement which will help unlock economic and housing growth, Chris Grayling today revealed a further six schemes which will have financial backing from the Department for Transport to develop a business case. These are:
- A new Tees crossing
- Dualling the A500 in Cheshire
- Coventry South Link Road
- Melton Mowbray Eastern Distributor road
- Sheffield Innovation Corridor
- Manchester Metrolink Airport link
The six other local major schemes announced last Wednesday were:
- Tees Valley East West Connections
- East Riding: Jock’s Lodge Junction (A1079/A164)
- Sheffield Supertram renewals
- Shrewsbury North West Relief Road
- Warrington Waterfront Western Link
- Suffolk Energy Gateway New Road
The Transport Secretary also confirmed £50 million to build the Lincoln Eastern Bypass. The £96.4 million scheme will now start in January and be completed by December 2019.
In the coming months, the government will announce more local major transport schemes that are expected to be funded from the £1.8 billion Local Growth Fund allocations announced by the Chancellor in the Autumn Statement.
East
- Further analysis to examine the case for action for the A1 East of England Strategic Study. More work is needed to assess the full impact of any improvements before a firm conclusion can be reached.
- Investing £27m of capital development funding for the Oxford to Cambridge Expressway strategic study to identify and develop options in greater detail, including further analysis, stakeholder engagement, consultation and environmental analysis.
- Investing £1m to further develop the business case for Suffolk Energy Gateway New Road – the realignment of a section of the A12 on the route towards the proposed Sizewell C nuclear power station to ease congestion and improve reliability by bypassing villages
- Allocating over £9.7m to the East of England enough to fix around 183,000 potholes in 2017/18 or stop them forming in the first place. This funding is over and above £109m we are already committed to providing in 2017/18 to help repair our local highways.
- From the £175m being made available for road safety, we will be upgrading 2 of most dangerous local roads in the East of England where the risk of fatal and serious collisions is highest.
Potholes breakdown:
|
Local Highway Authority |
Pothole Fund allocation (£) |
Potholes filled (at £53 per pothole) |
Highways Maintenance Block allocation for 2017/18 (£) |
|
Bedford UA |
219,000 |
4,100 |
2,654,000 |
|
Central Bedfordshire UA |
356,000 |
6,700 |
3,962,000 |
|
Luton UA |
94,000 |
1,800 |
1,216,000 |
|
Peterborough UA |
240,000 |
4,500 |
3,078,000 |
|
Southend-on-Sea UA |
102,000 |
1,900 |
1,238,000 |
|
Thurrock UA |
153,000 |
2,900 |
1,772,000 |
|
Cambridgeshire |
1,155,000 |
21,800 |
13,342,000 |
|
Essex |
1,869,000 |
35,300 |
21,847,000 |
|
Hertfordshire |
1,293,000 |
24,400 |
15,828,000 |
|
Norfolk |
2,476,000 |
46,700 |
25,459,000 |
|
Suffolk |
1,763,000 |
33,300 |
19,393,000 |
Dangerous roads breakdown:
|
Road |
Length of section (km) |
LA (for longest part of link) |
|
A1303 |
6.6 |
Cambridgeshire CC |
|
A126 |
12.5 |
Thurrock BC |
Road schemes in the East of England:
|
Completed since 2010 |
Total investment (£m) |
DfT investment (£m) |
|
Luton Town Centre (Inner Ring Road) |
24.1 |
15.9 |
|
A11 Fiveways to Thetford |
102 |
102 |
|
Under construction |
|
|
|
Norwich Northern Distributor Road |
132.7 |
96.5 |
|
A5-M1 Link Road |
162 |
162 |
|
A14 Cambridge to Huntingdon |
1500 |
1500 |
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