Motorists in the North East will benefit from better roads due to an extra £23 million for repairs, Roads Minister Jesse Norman announced today (November 12, 2018).
The Department for Transport has revealed the regional breakdown of the £420 million announced during last month’s Budget, which brings the total funds for North East roads for this year to over £76 million.
Next year (2019-2020), the North East will get £60 million from the Local Highways Maintenance and Integrated Transport Block funds, which will go towards repairing roads and investing in small safety, bus priority or walking and cycling schemes.
Roads Minister Jesse Noman said:
“Potholes are a huge problem for all road users, and too often we see issues occurring at the same place time after time.
“That is why the Government is investing more in improving our roads than at any time before – £15 billion between 2015 and 2020 and a further £28.8 billion to 2025. Plus an immediate extra £420 million for potholes and local road maintenance just this year.
“The North East will be getting an extra £23 million this winter to keep its roads in good condition to keep drivers and cyclists safe.”
Since 2015, roads in the North East have benefited from £185 million for highways maintenance, in addition to widening the A1 from Leeming to Barton to create a motorway from Newcastle to London, the Morpeth bypass and A19 improvements.
The Tees Valley Combined Authority also received a £16.5 million boost from the Budget, bringing its Transforming Cities Fund total to £76.5 million. This fund is designed to improve public transport links to jobs. The authority has decided to spend £45 million on Darlington and Middlesbrough stations.
The North East Combined Authority (NECA) has also been shortlisted for the Transforming Cities Fund. NECA is developing a business plan in a bid for a share of £860 million to make it easier, safer and quicker for people to travel and get to work by funding improved transport connections.