Twenty-eight councils win £275m for major road repairs to support growth

The transport secretary Patrick McLoughlin today unveils the winners of the competition for £275m funding for major local roads maintenance. 

The challenge fund goes to 28 councils with 31 schemes to replace street lanterns and columns or undertake structural repairs to carriageways and bridges. The biggest single award of £39.9m goes to the West Midlands Integrated Transport Authority to renew 211 miles of the conurbation's classified network "to reduce business costs and support regeneration".

Other large awards are:

• £19.3m to Slough Borough Council for a collaborative project with Reading and Wokingham to install LED lanterns and replace 11,000 'at risk' street lighting columns;
• £13.9m for South Gloucestershire for major structural repairs to the A4174 Avon Ring Road;
• And £13.4m to Newcastle City Council for repairs to an area of highway network "critical to the growh of Newcastle... complement(ing) existing funded proposals to improve capacity and connectivity".

McLoughlin said: "Good quality local roads are essential for people to get on with their daily business and today's announcement will provide extra capacity where it is needed most."