Skip to main content

Funding boost for West Midlands transport links

The UK Department for Transport has agreed to fund a new bridge which will improve links to three of the West Midlands' economic powerhouses, Baroness Kramer has announced. Building work on the new A45 South Bridge in Solihull can start after the government agreed to provide US$13.8 million in funding towards the full project cost of US$20 million. The new bridge will significantly improve a transport link that carries 50,000 vehicles a day and will directly serve Birmingham International Airport, the
August 19, 2014 Read time: 2 mins

The UK 1837 Department for Transport has agreed to fund a new bridge which will improve links to three of the West Midlands' economic powerhouses, Baroness Kramer has announced.

Building work on the new A45 South Bridge in Solihull can start after the government agreed to provide US$13.8 million in funding towards the full project cost of US$20 million.

The new bridge will significantly improve a transport link that carries 50,000 vehicles a day and will directly serve Birmingham International Airport, the National Exhibition Centre, 3883 Jaguar Land Rover and other businesses which generate over US$4 per year and support over 80,000 jobs.

Baroness Kramer said: “The A45 serves important sites including Birmingham International Airport, the NEC, and employers such as Jaguar Land Rover. This new bridge will reduce congestion and improve safety, and include new pedestrian and cyclist facilities.

The US$13.8 million the government is putting into this project is part of our wider economic plan of investment in our local and national infrastructure to help drive economic growth.”

The new bridge will replace the existing 150 year old structure carrying the westbound carriageway of the A45 over the West Coast Main Line. It will create an extra westbound running lane and an improved access slip road to Birmingham International Airport. A temporary bridge will be created during the work, allowing the route to remain open throughout.

The main works are due to start in January 2015 with completion in August 2016.

For more information on companies in this article

Related Content

  • National funding cuts cause fragmentation of US ITS market
    February 1, 2012
    Paul Everett, Research Director with IMS Research, looks at how ITS deployment varies across the US and what this means in terms of market potential for systems manufacturers and suppliers At the end of 2010, the US will have a total resident population of close to 310 million, rising to an estimated 439 million by 2050.
  • Mexico improves road safety with speed enforcement programme
    June 7, 2012
    A programme of road safety education and enforcement in the State of Jalisco in Mexico has reduced speed related fatalities by 40% in nine months Speed enforcement equipment will appear in greater number and visibility around the city of Guadalajara over coming months, as the Mexican State of Jalisco expands its road safety campaign. This comes hot on the heels of an initial programme of traffic speed education and enforcement in Guadalajara, which has yielded remarkable results, reducing speed related fata
  • EU to fund large-scale transport infrastructure
    November 6, 2015
    The European Commission is taking further action to stimulate investment in Europe by launching the second call for proposals of the Connecting Europe Facility (CEF) with more than US$8.2 billion to finance key transport projects. US$7 billion is earmarked for projects in member states eligible for the EU Cohesion Fund, in order to better integrate these countries into the internal market. Along with the Investment Plan presented by the Commission in November 2014, and in particular the new European Fund
  • UK plans fully integrated transport network to high tech hot spots
    December 9, 2013
    The UK government’s plans to support the country’s burgeoning high-tech industry, centred on London, Cambridge and Oxford, are being facilitated by the Department for Transport (DfT) and its plans for a fully integrated transport network linking each of the three core technical clusters, as well as the wider technical community. The DfT is developing proposals for the construction of a new railway line from Bedford to Cambridge. This would build on the ongoing work on the east-west rail project and compl