Highways England have announced details of a £27.4 billion investment strategic road network. The project aims to improve the quality, capacity and safety of the motorways and major A roads, as well as supporting 64,000 construction jobs.
The funding was first announced by Chancellor Rishi Sunak in March, detailing their plans to improve everyday journeys. This will include an £11 billion splurge to repair and replace parts of the network, many of which were first built over 60 years ago.
The announced plans set out how Highways England will also include
- £1 billion will be spent on “broader projects” to improve the impact of roads on local communities, such as improving access for walkers, cyclist and horse riders.
- Open more than 50 upgrades and save millions of hours by improving journey times
- Make 7,500 households quieter by tackling noise from roads
- Help stop the loss of biodiversity
- Develop a pipeline of around 30 schemes for potential construction post-2025
In total Highways England plans to
- Resurface almost 5,000 lane miles of road
- Install or renew more than 1,000 miles of safety barriers on motorways and dual carriageways
- Renew more than 170 bridges and other structures
- Invest £300-400 million replacing ageing concrete sections on the A14, M5, M18, M20, M42, M54 and M56
“Protect and create jobs”
Jim O’Sullivan, Chief executive of Highways England said “Our network is a vital part of everyone’s life. It has served the country well during the pandemic, keeping supermarket shelves stocked and enabling key workers to get to where they need to be.
“Over the next five years we will increase the capacity where it is most needed and continue to upgrade more of the network which has suffered from decades of underinvestment.
“We now have a strong track record of delivering new schemes and operating the network for the benefit of our customers and the communities we serve.
“The plan we’re launching today will protect and create jobs to aid the nation’s recovery and make journeys faster and more reliable for freight and road users.”
