The Plan for Change is tackling the pothole plague, building vital roads and ensuring every penny is delivering results for the taxpayer.
The Transport Secretary has unveiled £4.8 billion funding for 2025 to 2026 for National Highways to deliver critical road schemes and maintain motorways and major A-roads.
This cash will mean getting on with pivotal schemes in construction, such as the A428 Black Cat scheme in Cambridgeshire, and starting vital improvements to the A47 around Norwich and M3 J9 scheme in Hampshire, building thousands of new homes, creating high-paid jobs, connecting ports and airports, to grow the economy and deliver the Plan for Change.
The £4.8 billion for National Highways will protect the country’s strategic road network, which provides critical routes and connections across the country for people, businesses and freight to help drive growth as part of Plan for Change.
Prime Minister Keir Starmer said the government was ‘investing an additional £4.8 billion to deliver vital road schemes and maintain major roads across the country to get Britain moving’.
The funding represents roughly the same level of funding the government-owned would have expected to receive during the year.
The £4.8 billion includes a record £1.3 billion investment to keep this vital network in good repair, so the network remains fit for the future, and £1.8 billion for National Highways’ daily operations that are critical to ensuring the network runs safely and smoothly for millions of people and businesses that rely on it every day. As well as £1.3 billion for essential improvement schemes to unlock growth and housing.
Since entering office, the government has approved over £200 million for the A47 Thickthorn Junction and £290 million for M3 Junction 9 plus £90 million for local road schemes like the A130 Fairglen Interchange, the South-East Aylesbury Link Road, the A350 Chippenham Bypass, the A647 scheme in Leeds. This is a total of over £580 million for schemes to get Britain moving.
National Highways Chief Executive, Nick Harris, said:
"We welcome today’s announcement. This interim settlement allows us to continue connecting the country safely and reliably.
"Our motorways and A roads are vital for economic growth, connecting cities and regions, supporting businesses, and enabling new housing and infrastructure projects.We will soon publish our interim period delivery plan, outlining our priorities and how we will meet the targets set out by the government."
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