UK launches rehabilitation programme for riskiest major roads

The UK government has embarked on a €114 million programme to prevent almost 1,450 deaths and serious injuries on the riskiest A roads in England. The money has been allocated from the Safer Roads Fund to rehabilitate the roads - all of which are under the management of local authorities – over the next decade. However, an analysis by the Road Safety Foundation and the RAC Foundation – two driving and highway safety organisations - estimates the value to upgrade over the 20 years would be €627 million
October 17, 2018 Read time: 2 mins
Don’t go there: the most dangerous roads due for upgrades
The UK government has embarked on a €114 million programme to prevent almost 1,450 deaths and serious injuries on the riskiest A roads in England.


The money has been allocated from the Safer Roads Fund to rehabilitate the roads - all of which are under the management of local authorities – over the next decade.

However, an analysis by the 3375 Road Safety Foundation and the 5521 RAC Foundation – two driving and highway safety organisations - estimates the value to upgrade over the 20 years would be €627 million.

Some of the work is simple and straightforward, such as putting in rumble strips, improving visibility at junctions and protecting or removing trees, poles or lighting columns.

A total of 48 projects are planned that entail upgrades to 700km of roadways, of which 467 will have improved shoulders, 240 will get improved speed limits and 112 will be resurfaced.

There will also be 135 new pedestrian crossings, 33km of new or improved cycling facilities and 17km of new or improved footpaths.

Traditionally, steps are taken to improve safety after a crash, while the Safe System approach uses road engineering to try and prevent crashes from happening in the first place.

Safe System working recognises that humans are error prone and some crashes are inevitable. To improve the survivability of these crashes roads and roadsides are reengineered to make them more forgiving when an incident occurs.

Highway & Network Management

For more information on companies in this article

Related Content

  • 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
  • Global road safety programme
    June 11, 2020
    A global road safety programme will help save lives.
    Read More
  • UNCIEF promoting safer commutes for children to education
    June 4, 2015
    Children should have the right of a safe journey to and from school, as part of a wider strategy to build safe, healthy and liveable communities, recommends a new report from UNICEF and the FIA Foundation. The report, ‘Safe to Learn’, was published to mark the 3rd United Nations Global Road Safety Week, which has a theme of child safety. The report was launched at an event at the World Bank in Washington DC by Zoleka Mandela, a global road safety activist, bereaved mother of a road traffic victim, and gran
    Read More
  • Set the ALARM for repairs in England and Wales
    January 10, 2019
    More than 3,900km of roads in England and Wales will need essential maintenance within the next year, according to the annual ALARM survey* Cash-strapped local governments are reporting that the gap between the funds they received and the amount they needed for repairs and maintenance was almost €639 million. This equated to an average shortfall of €3.75 million for every authority. It would take 14 years to get local roads back into a reasonable steady state, but only if adequate funds and resources wer
    Read More

Highlighted Content