Minister hails Cumbrian dual carriageways to "unleash North's full power"

Roads minister Andrew Jones has visited Cumbrian to hail Highways England plans to dual the A66 and A69.

Jones, visited after Highways England last week appointed a joint venture led by WSP Parsons Brinckerhoff to study the case for turning one or both of the roads into dual carriageways, said: "We are making the biggest investment in our roads in a generation. A full dual carriageway along the A66 or A69 would provide improved east-west links."

The strategic study is part of the Government's Road Investment Strategy, involving seven studies, three in the north of England, to assess the viability of a trans-Pennine tunnel between Sheffield and Manchester, and improvements on the M60 and M62 corridor north and west of Manchester.