Roads revolution adds 900 miles of extra capacity

Road users in the UK will see around 900 extra lane miles of road capacity added to England’s strategic highway network by 2021, a third more than was provided in the previous decade. The boost is thanks to a huge US£39.7 billion investment, the biggest since the 1970s, which will see annual funding for enhancements to motorways and major A roads triple over the next six years. Investment includes more than US$15 billion on maintenance, US$10 billion of which will be spent on resurfacing 3,000 miles of t
August 27, 2014 Read time: 2 mins

Road users in the UK will see around 900 extra lane miles of road capacity added to England’s strategic highway network by 2021, a third more than was provided in the previous decade.

The boost is thanks to a huge US£39.7 billion investment, the biggest since the 1970s, which will see annual funding for enhancements to motorways and major A roads triple over the next six years. Investment includes more than US$15 billion on maintenance, US$10 billion of which will be spent on resurfacing 3,000 miles of the strategic road network.

Roads minister John Hayes 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 US$5 billion a year up to 2021.”

The period 2001 to 2010 saw construction of 574 lane miles. This government has committed to 60 new road schemes, the majority of which will be completed by 2021, subject to value for money and deliverability. This will provide 962 miles of new road, 35% more miles of road per year than under the previous government.

More road schemes are expected to be added to the programme following the 2014 Autumn Statement, which could include solutions identified as part of six feasibility studies that are looking at dealing with some of the most notorious and long-standing hotspots on England’s roads, including the A303 in the south west and the A47 in the east of England.

Along with the results of the 503 Highways Agency route strategies – a comprehensive review of all roads in England – the outcomes of the studies will help ensure the government continues to meet the future needs of roads users.

Urban Traffic Control

Related Content

  • September 15, 2014
    Congestion-busting roads boost across England
    A widespread congestion-busting road improvement programme worth hundreds of millions of pounds has now tackled 39 bottlenecks, with more than another 80 to be completed in the next seven months. According to the Highways Agency, the US$515 million ‘pinch point’ programme will cut congestion, increase safety and improve journey times and help support the creation of 300,000 new jobs and 144,000 homes. The improvement plans, part of the biggest programme of road enhancements since the 1970s, were dra
    Read More
  • March 26, 2015
    A new era for England’s major roads
    Highways England, the government-owned company which will deliver the largest investment in England’s major roads in a generation, officially launches next week. The company, which replaces the Highways Agency from 1 April, will invest US$16 billion in delivering a raft of improvements on England’s motorways and major A roads making roads even safer, improving traffic flow and reducing congestion. The improvements over the first five years of operation include: 112 major improvements, including 15 sma
    Read More
  • December 1, 2014
    ‘Biggest upgrade to roads in a generation’
    An ambitious US$23.5 billion plan to triple levels of spending by the end of the decade to increase the capacity and condition of England’s roads was announced to Parliament today by Transport Secretary Patrick McLoughlin and Chief Secretary to the Treasury Danny Alexander. The government is investing in more than 100 new road schemes over this parliament and next, 84 of which are brand new today. Over 1,300 new lane miles will be added by schemes being delivered over the next parliament on motorways
    Read More
  • March 19, 2014
    Highways Agency plans to increase capacity of M4
    The UK Highways Agency is holding a series of public exhibitions to inform road users, local residents and businesses about proposals to transform the M4 into one of the longest stretches of ‘smart motorway’ in England by 2021. The improvement, on a 32-mile stretch between junction 3 at Hayes in London, and junction 12 at Theale in Berkshire, would increase capacity, improve journey reliability and maintain safety. The proposals are part of the Government’s investment into England’s motorways and majo
    Read More

Highlighted Content