The Department for Transport (DfT) has announced that an extra 900 miles of motorway and ‘A’ roads are to be built by 2021.
The government has revealed that it intends to add an extra 900 miles of motorway and ‘A’ roads in the England by 2021, which is a third more than was provided during the last ten years.
A huge investment – worth £24 billion – has enabled the Department for Transport (DfT) to start this ambitious project. The cash injection will see annual funding for road enhancements to motorways and A roads triple in the coming seven years.
The funding includes £9 billion for the maintenance of the England’s strategic highway network, £6 billion of which has been reserved for the resurfacing of 3,000 miles of road. The east of the country will benefit from the biggest portion of the pot, with £1.54 billion assigned to six new schemes, including two on the M25.
In addition, the south east will be given £1.41 billion for projects involving the M25, M3 and A3 near the Hindhead tunnel. Furthermore, two different junctions of the M1 will be assigned a portion of the £24 billion funding pot.
John Hayes, road minister, said: “As a crucial part of our long-term economic plan to secure a brighter future for Britain, we are fixing problems that have been created by governments of the past by delivering around 35 per cent more capacity on our roads than was delivered in the nine years up to 2010.
“It is because of the difficult decisions that this government has taken that we are able to triple investment in our major roads to over £3 billion a year up to 2021.”
He added that the extra capacity will come from the use of smart motorways and “selective widening”, which will both work to minimise the impact the project will have on the surrounding environment.
According to Mr Hayes, the investment will be beneficial to “hard-working people” and businesses alike, as well as working to ease congestion and create a modern road network that suits the needs of today’s motorists as well as those in the future.
Posted by Bob Fletcher