Latest news with #railimprovements
Auto Express
08-07-2025
- Automotive
- Auto Express
Five major roads are getting a £92billion revamp. Are any near you?
The Government has announced today that 50 road and rail upgrades will be made over the next five years, thanks to a £92 billion investment from the Spending Review settlement. According to the Government, 42,000 jobs will be supported during the upgrading process, along with the construction of 39,000 homes. The five key road improvements are set to include the M60/M62/M66 in Greater Manchester, the M54 to M6 link road in Staffordshire, the A38 Derby Junction in Derbyshire, the A46 Newark Bypass in Nottinghamshire, and the A66 Northern Trans-Pennine road. Advertisement - Article continues below Speaking on the Government's infrastructure plans, Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander said: 'With over £92 billion of investment, including the biggest ever boost for city regions in the north and Midlands, we're delivering the schemes that fast-track economic growth and jobs, connect communities, and will help us build 1.5 million new homes, as we deliver our Plan for Change.' The specific changes to the M60, M62 and M66 Simister Island section will be based on improving the intersection between the M60's junction 18 and the M62 and M66 – although this is still subject to planning approval. The link road between the M54 and M6 will see a new dual carriageway between M54 junction 1 and the M6 junction 11, which is expected to cost up to £200m. As for major A-road changes, the A46 Newark Bypass will see four miles of A46 single carriageway replaced by a dual carriageway between the Farndon and Winthorpe roundabouts – again, subject to planning approval. The £250m A38 Derby Junction will get three roundabouts replaced with interchanges, and the A66 Northern Trans-Pennine road is expected to cost £1.3bn and will get a single carriageway uprated to a dual between the M6 junction 40 and the A1(M) junction 53 - plus improvements to junctions at Penrith and Scotch Corner. Those hoping for improvements to the A12 (Chelmsford to A120) and the A47 (Wansford to Sutton) will surely be upset to hear these planned 'Strategic Road Network' schemes have been cancelled. Earlier this year, the Government pledged £24 billion (or roughly £8 billion per year) for fixing and maintaining the UK's major roads. Tell us which new car you're interested in and get the very best offers from our network of over 5,500 UK dealers to compare. Let's go… Find a car with the experts Car Deal of the Day: 10k miles a year in Cupra's Terramar for under £300 a month Car Deal of the Day: 10k miles a year in Cupra's Terramar for under £300 a month The Cupra Terramar is an appealing family SUV that looks stylish but offers plenty of practicality. It's our Deal of the Day for July 5 New Volvo XC60 2025 facelift review: big-selling SUV gets a new lease of life New Volvo XC60 2025 facelift review: big-selling SUV gets a new lease of life This refreshed Swedish SUV focuses on familiar areas of strength to take on BMW and Audi Car Deal of the Day: MG ZS gives a big SUV feel for a miniscule £194 a month Car Deal of the Day: MG ZS gives a big SUV feel for a miniscule £194 a month The MG ZS is an easy car to like and live with. It's our Deal of the Day for 3 July
Sky News
11-06-2025
- Business
- Sky News
Wales's first minister hails spending review as 'big win' - but opposition call it an 'insult'
The Chancellor has pledged £445m for rail improvements in Wales over the next 10 years - but opposition parties have branded the investment an "insult" to the people of Wales. While the government says the majority of that money will be spent in the next three years, the average investment of £45m per year has been dubbed "shameful" by the Senedd 's largest opposition party. In total, Wales is set to receive £5bn extra in revenue and capital funding over the next three years. Among those pledges are £118m to secure the safety of South Wales's coal tips and £80m for port infrastructure at Port Talbot, which last year saw the closure of the blast furnaces at the town's steelworks. The rail funding comes after a row about the re-classification of a rail line between Oxford and Cambridge to an England-and-Wales project. That debate followed a similar one over high-speed rail project HS2, linking London and Birmingham. HS2 was classed as an England-and-Wales project by the Conservative government. If a project is classed as England-only, under an agreement called the Barnett Formula, Wales's devolved government gets a population-based share of funding, alongside Scotland and Northern Ireland. But England-and-Wales projects are considered to benefit both nations, so the Welsh government gets no extra cash from them. Labour argues the cash boost is a result of the two governments, in Westminster and Cardiff, working together to deliver for Wales. A Treasury source said Wales will "thrive" under the Labour Westminster government, and that the chancellor's package "has the potential to be truly transformative". Wales's first minister has described the spending review as a "big win" for Wales. Speaking to Sky News, Eluned Morgan said the announcements in the review were "great news" for Wales and represented the "biggest uplift we've had for a long time". "[The UK government knows] that we've been under-funded for a long time and today they've started to correct that injustice," she said. "We know that the amount that's been announced today is over and above what we would have had, had we had fairness when it comes to HS2." But opposition parties say the funding isn't enough, and claim that Wales is owed more. Ben Lake, Plaid Cymru's Treasury spokesperson, said the Chancellor's statement was "more smoke and mirrors" and accused the government of "shifting the goalposts on Welsh funding". Welsh Conservative leader Darren Millar said the rail spending announcement was "an insult to the people of Wales". The Welsh Liberal Democrats' Westminster spokesperson, David Chadwick, said the funding "falls far short of the billions owed to Wales over recent years" and called for the full devolution of rail to Wales. A Reform UK spokesperson said the rail investment was "little more than a token" and did not "come close to addressing the decades of underinvestment our communities have endured".
The Independent
11-06-2025
- Business
- The Independent
Government to ‘take forward our ambitions' for Northern Powerhouse Rail
The Government will 'take forward our ambitions' for Northern Powerhouse Rail (NPR), the Chancellor said. Rachel Reeves said plans will be published shortly. NPR is a scheme to improve rail services between Liverpool and Leeds, which often suffer delays and cancellations. The previous Conservative government's Integrated Rail Plan sparked outrage among northern leaders in November 2021, when it said that a new line would only be built on one section, and the rest of the route would get enhancements to existing lines. Ms Reeves said: 'In the coming weeks I will set out this Government's plan to take forward our ambitions for Northern Powerhouse Rail.' The Chancellor announced £3.5 billion more funding to support the TransPennine Route Upgrade, a project to improve the railway between York and Manchester. She said the Government would provide £2.5 billion of additional funding to enable the 'continued delivery' of East West Rail, a new line between Oxford and Cambridge. In her spending review she also said railways in Wales would get £445 million investment over 10 years. Improvements at Cardiff West Junction and Padeswood sidings will be among those to be funded. Ms Reeves told the Commons: 'For 14 years, the Conservatives failed the people of Wales. 'Those days are over.'
