RAC blasts UK Government's poor infrastructure investment

The UK’s motorists are facing increased congestion and longer delays due to a steady increase in vehicle numbers combined with reduced spending on transport infrastructure. A report by the RAC Foundation warns that there will be 4,000,000 more cars on the UK’s roads in the next 25 years, while the UK’s Government has not explained what plans it has to cope with the projected increase in traffic. The report predicts a 43% rise in traffic volume by 2035, with the biggest increase in the East Midlands. The fou
May 14, 2012 Read time: 2 mins
RSSThe UK’s motorists are facing increased congestion and longer delays due to a steady increase in vehicle numbers combined with reduced spending on transport infrastructure. A report by the 5521 RAC Foundation warns that there will be 4,000,000 more cars on the UK’s roads in the next 25 years, while the UK’s Government has not explained what plans it has to cope with the projected increase in traffic. The report predicts a 43% rise in traffic volume by 2035, with the biggest increase in the East Midlands.

The foundation, working with consultancy group 1419 Arup, identified 96 key road schemes currently waiting for a decision by the 5432 Department for Transport. The foundation claimed the top 10 projects on this list would offer a six fold return on investment. But RAC Foundation director Professor Stephen Glaister said, "Forget about Plan B, ministers do not even have a Plan A for dealing with the awful conditions forecast for the roads in the years ahead. It is a case of jams today, and even more jams tomorrow. The Department for Transport's own figures show that by 2035 traffic is set to rise by almost 50% and delays by more than 50%. And these are only average figures."

Key projects still awaiting the decision to go into action include: A453 widening (M1 to A52) Nottingham; A5-M1 Dunstable northern bypass, Bedfordshire; A21 Tonbridge to Pembury dual carriageway, Kent; Kingkerswell bypass, Devon; Leeds Inner Ring Road; A38(M) Tame viaduct, West Midlands; A47 Blofield to North Burlingham, Norfolk; Evesham bridge maintenance, Worcestershire; A45 westbound bridge, Solihull, West Midlands; A18-A180 link, Lincolnshire. Meanwhile other projects such as the twin tube road tunnels to carry the A303 past the historic Stonehenge site have been repeatedly cancelled due to cost, despite the massive congestion and major safety issues for the existing link and the impossibility of building the widened road on the surface due to archaeological and environmental reasons.
Highway & Network Management

For more information on companies in this article

Related Content

  • India’s poor road safety requires improvement
    September 13, 2016
    The Indian Government has revealed that 146,133 people died in crashes on the country’s roads during 2015. This figure is of concern as it is an increase of 4.6% over India’s road fatality rate of 139,671 for the previous year. Also of concern is the fact that over half of the people who died in crashes were aged from 15-34, revealing that there is a particularly high risk for the young on India’s roads. The data also shows that there were 501,423 reported crashes on India’s road network in 2015, an increas
    Read More
  • New techniques for tackling congestion
    December 8, 2015
    Transport experts from the Royal Academy of Engineering are proposing methods to reduce traffic congestion. These proposals are included in a discussion document intended to stimulate debate on congestion issues. The working group behind the paper includes industry experts and academic researcher. The team looked at technology and policy measures that could reduce congestion in the most critical transport sectors by 2030, evaluating which measures would be effective and value for money.
    Read More
  • Pumping aids tunnel improvement work
    July 28, 2015
    In the UK, the busy Dartford Tunnel has benefited from the use of powerful pumping technology during improvements intended to boost traffic flow. Pump hire specialist, Sykes Pumps, helped by providing a pumping system, so as to enable piling for the conversion programme to a fully-electronic payment infrastructure.
    Read More
  • Concerns over increased US road fatality rate in 2012
    November 25, 2013
    Data from the US Department of Transportation's National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) shows that highway deaths increased to 33,561 in 2012, an increase of 1,082 over the figures for 2011.The official Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS) data reveals that the majority of the increase in deaths, some 72%, occurred in the first quarter of 2012. Most of those involved were motorcyclists and pedestrians. This newly released data marks the first increase in road related fatalities in the US
    Read More

Highlighted Content