Darling unveils £7bn transport plan

A £7 billion plan to tackle congestion on major routes, including widening the M25 and M1, has been unveiled by Transport Secretary today.

Alastair Darling said that the proposed improvements would help improve safety and also tackle the worst congestion hotspots on roads in Britain.

The flagship proposal includes widening at most of the remaining three lane sections of the M25 to four lanes with a £1.7 billion investment over the next decade.

Widening will also occur on the M1 between the M25 and Milton Keynes to dual four lanes, costing £623 million; widening on the M11 between junctions 8 and 9 at £171 million; and capacity improvements to the M1, M18, M62 and the A1/A1(M) in South and West Yorkshire at £1.2 billion.

The government also revealed that a number of proposed schemes were rejected due to the impact they would have on the local environment.

Mr Darling said he would be asking local planners to find "less damaging alternatives".

In addition to improving roads, local transport also received a boost with up to £1 billion going to the West Midlands conurbation to plan improvements that could include light rail and bus schemes.

Mr Darling said: "The improvements are essential to tackling congestion on major routes - particularly the widening of the M25 and M1. They will add vital capacity to the strategic road network and support economic growth.

"But unless there is an overriding public interest, there should be a strong presumption against building roads through areas of outstanding natural beauty or other sensitive sites.

"Looking ahead 20 to 30 years as the economy grows and people become better off, we face increasing pressure on road space. We will not be able to build our way out of all the pressures we will face."

The Transport Secretary also set out a feasibility study to look at road pricing for cars as part of a wider discussion paper on managing demand for road travel in the future.

(GMcG)