Greater clarity about the Government’s transport priorities has emerged from chancellor Kwasi Kwarteng’s controversial ‘Mini Budget’, focusing on achieving economic growth as the over-riding priority, including a mission to fast-track more than 100 road, rail and local transport projects by streamlining the assessment, approval and planning process. The list of schemes was set out in a “Plan for Growth”, published alongside the Chancellor’s statement.
As well as indicating where transport expenditure will be concentrated in the coming two years ahead of the next General Election, the Chancellor’s proposals have provoked concern and opposition about the way the decision-making and implementation about transport policies and projects is set to change, and what this means for those initiatives not achieving a boost to GDP – for example, those relating to decarbonisation, promotion of active travel and Levelling Up.
The 100-plus projects identified as ready to implement (see below) will be accelerated as fast as possible, with the aim of starting construction on most of them by the end of 2023, Kwasi Kwarteng said.
Presence on the acceleration list did not guarantee funding, planning consent or approval for other regulatory or necessary permission processes, said the Government. It also added that “the list is non-exhaustive of all projects which may benefit from acceleration.”
The Government has promised to support those local authorities or agencies who are the delivery leads for the selected schemes in achieving the intended acceleration.
According to the DfT, “the plans aim to reduce the burden of environmental assessments, reducing bureaucracy in the consultation process and reforming habitats and species regulations, while still protecting individual rights and environmental needs”.
The Government will make the changes to the Nationally Significant Infrastructure Projects process through amendments to the Levelling Up and Regeneration Bill. This will enable major infrastructure developments in England and Wales to bypass normal local planning requirements (LTT 30 Aug).
The Growth Plan includes 86 road schemes, among them controversial plans to upgrade eight miles of the A303 near Stonehenge, including a two-mile tunnel.
The nine rail projects in the list include East West Rail and the Transpennine Route Upgrade. Local transport schemes include West Midlands Sprint Phase 2, West Yorkshire Mass Transit and the South Yorkshire Supertram Renewal.
There are also expected implications for transport from the new ‘Investment Zones’, which the Chancellor promised would offer “generous, targeted and time-limited tax cuts for businesses, backing them to increase productivity and create new jobs”. These areas would benefit from further liberalised planning rules to release more land for housing and commercial development, and reforms to increase the speed of delivering development, Kwarteng said.
One of the emerging political issues from the plans is their relationship of the approach to commitments to address global warming and achieve net zero. And, also, where they would sit within wider transport policy, about which the approach of the new transport secretary Anne- Marie Trevelyan is yet to be clear.
A DfT spokesperson stressed to LTT the economic dimension. “We are building a new era for Britain and unleashing our potential for growth by targeting more than 100 rail and road schemes for acceleration,” they said. “By reducing unnecessary burdens on planning processes and speeding up infrastructure, we can give our economy the freedom to boost growth.”
There has been mixed reaction to the plans amongst transport authorities, with some seeking to relate their own priorities to the Government’s. For example, chair of England’s Economic Heartland, Cllr Richard Wenham, welcomed the Government’s commitment to prioritise and accelerate a number of transport infrastructure projects in the region. This includes road schemes in Oxfordshire, Bedfordshire, Hertfordshire and Northamptonshire, alongside Cambridge South Station and East West Rail.
“EEH has consistently made the case that East West Rail – delivered in full to Bedford, Cambridge and Aylesbury – will transform our region’s economic potential,” said Wenham. “It is about sustainably unlocking greater employment and educational opportunities for the region’s workforce and making sure businesses that are here – or are planning to invest here – have access to commercial space and staff to help them grow their business.”
Cllr Steven Broadbent, chair of the East West Main Line Partnership, also welcomed the inclusion of East West Rail on the list of major infrastructure projects. Businesses in the region had “told us for our Building Better Connections report, published this week, its delivery – in full to Aylesbury, Bedford and Cambridge – cannot come soon enough.”
Andy Street, West Midlands mayor also welcomed the Government’s plans. “The Government today has shown real ambition for growth and a clear commitment to the West Midlands – putting our region at the front of the queue for investment and project delivery here on the ground.”
He said the WMCA had been asked by the Government to lead and co-ordinate the setting up of the new investment zones in the region. The authority would now work closely with local councils and other partners to co-ordinate a regional response setting out proposed locations and specific projects within them, said Street.
“This is great news and will result in local residents and businesses benefitting from lower taxes, faster development and improved economic prospects in the weeks, months and years ahead.
“We have also received a tremendous vote of confidence in our infrastructure plans with the exciting news that a number of vital regional transport projects will be fast tracked – so we can expect diggers in the ground on the majority of them by the end of 2023.”
Roads
1. M27 Junction 8
2. A417 Air Balloon
3. M54-M6 Link Road
4. A164/Jock’s Lodge Junction Improvement Scheme
5. Tyne Bridge and Central Motorway A167 (M)
6. A1237 York Outer Ring Road Dualling Phase 1
7. A140 Long Stratton Bypass
8. A34 MRN Cheadle – Handforth Improvement Plan Phase 1
9. A350 Chippenham Bypass Improvements – Phase 4 & 5
10. A382 Drumbridges to Newton Abbot
11. A4123 Birchley Island
12. A500 Dualling
13. A511 Growth Corridor
14. A59 Kex Gill
15. A595 Grizebeck Bypass
16. A614/A6097 Corridor Scheme
17. North Hykeham Relief Road
18. A38 Bromsgrove Route Enhancement Programme
The Growth Plan 2022 35
19. A3102 Swindon Safer Road Scheme
20. A186 Tyne and Wear Safer Road Scheme
21. A35 Weymouth Safer Road Scheme
22. A165 Scarborough Safer Road Scheme
23. A13 London Safer Road Scheme
24. A3056 Isle of Wight Safer Road Scheme
25. A5038 Liverpool Safer Road Scheme
26. A2010 Brighton Safer Road Scheme
27. A625 Derbyshire Safer Road Scheme
28. A35 Devon Safer Road Scheme
29. A6022 Ipswich South Yorkshire Safer Road Scheme
30. A586 Blackpool Safer Road Scheme
31. A1156 Ipswich Safer Road Scheme
32. A6042 Manchester Safer Road Scheme
33. A5183 Elstree Safer Road Scheme
34. A4030 Smethwick Safer Road Scheme
35. A25 Surrey Safer Road Scheme
36. A6130 Nottingham Safer Road Scheme
37. A4158 Oxford Safer Road Scheme
38. A104 Epping Safer Road Scheme
39. A113 Brentwood Safer Road Scheme
40. A19 Selby Safer Road Scheme
41. A2047 Portsmouth Safer Road Scheme
42. A23 Croydon Safer Road Scheme
43. A3025 Southampton Safer Road Scheme
44. A361 Devon Safer Road Scheme
45. A38 Devon Safer Road Scheme
46. A609 Nottingham Safer Road Scheme
47. A420 Oxford Safer Road Scheme
48. A579 Bolton Safer Road Scheme
49. A676 Bolton Safer Road Scheme
50. A4165 Oxford Safer Road Scheme
51. A432 Bristol Safer Road Scheme
52. A5105 Morecambe Safer Road Scheme
53. A6 Preston Safer Road Scheme
54. A41 Birkenhead Safer Road Scheme
55. A439 Stratford Safer Road Scheme
56. A60 Leicestershire Safer Road Scheme
57. A5191 Shrewsbury Safer Road Scheme
58. A6200 Nottingham Safer Road Scheme
59. A52 East Midlands Safer Road Scheme
60. A6 Safer Road Scheme
61. A583 Manchester Safer Road Scheme
62. A690 County Durham Safer Road Scheme
63. A57 Liverpool Safer Road Scheme
64. M25 Junction 10
65. M25 Junction 28
66. A66 - Northern Transpennine
67. A303 Stonehenge
68. A428 Black Cat
69. A358 Taunton to Southfields
70. A1 dualling – Morpeth to Ellingham
71. A4174 MOD Roundabout Improvements
72. A22 Corridor Package (East Sussex)
73. A259 (King’s Road) Seafront, Highway Structures (‘Arches’) Renewal Programme
74. A374/A386/A364 Plymouth MRN Phase 1
75. A38 North Somerset (formerly Bristol Airport Access)
76. A4174 Ring Road Junction Improvements
77. A426/A4071 Avon Mill/Hunters Lane Improvements
78. A509 Isham Bypass
79. A582 South Ribble Western Distributor Upgrade
80. A595 Bothel Strategic Improvements
81. A650 Tong Street
82. A689 Corridor Improvements - Wynyard and Hartlepool
83. Brent Cross Highway Structures - Asset Renewal
84. Dawson’s Corner Junction and Stanningley Bypass
85. Gallows Corner Roundabout Improvements
86. Norwich Western Link
Rail
87. Cambridge South Station
88. Northumberland Line
89. White Rose Station
90. Thorpe Park
91. Transpennine Route Upgrade
92. East West Rail
93. Leeds Station Enhancement
94. Manchester Improvements
95. Midland Main Line Phase 3
96. Northern Powerhouse Rail
Decarbonisation
97. Local EV Infrastructure Fund
98. Rapid Charging Fund
Local Transport
99. LCR: Independently Powered Electric Multiple – Unit (IPEMU) – Network Expansion
100. WMCA: Wednesbury to Brierley Hill Metro Extension
101. WMCA: Sprint Phase 2 (A34 and A45)
102. LCR: Green Bus Routes
103. GMCA: Initial phased delivery of Rochdale-Oldham-Ashton Corridor
104. West Yorkshire Mass Transit
105. TVCA: Middlesbrough Station
106. TVCA: Darlington Station
107. WECA: M32 Sustainable Transport Corridor and Hub
108. WYCA: Leeds City Centre Cycle Improvements
109. WMCA: East Birmingham to Solihull Corridor
110. WMCA: Walk, Cycle and Bus Access: Darlaston and Willenhall Train Stations
111. WMCA: Aldridge Station
112. WECA: Bristol to Bath Sustainable Transport Corridor
113. WMCA: Bus Priority Cross-City Routes
114. SYMCA: Supertram renewal
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