Influential committee gives green light to new roads
Commenting on the Transport Select Committee’s report on the major road network, Professor Stephen, director of the RAC Foundation said:
“More than nine out of ten passenger journeys take place on the roads and with large population and traffic growth forecast for the years ahead some sensible form of road building is essential to keeping Britain moving.
“This is not about concreting over the country, but accepting that roads are vital to the economic and social wellbeing of the nation.
“After all the hype about high speed rail at last some politicians have recognised the reality of most people’s daily lives.
“The committee is also right to highlight the need to consider ring-fencing money provided to local authorities for road maintenance. All too often councils are tempted to spend the cash propping up other services when it should be used for things like filling in the ever-increasing number of potholes.”
ENDS
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The RAC Foundation is a charity which explores the economic, mobility, safety and environmental issues relating to roads and responsible road users.
In its report ‘The Major Road Network’, the Transport Select Committee says:
“The Committee accepts… that it may be necessary to build and upgrade motorways in some areas which are currently poorly served. Notwithstanding the multi-modal nature of an integrated, or sustainable, transport strategy, the major road network is the most important part of the UK’s transport infrastructure.
“The committee heard evidence that some local authorities spend less money on the maintenance of the major roads under their stewardship than is provided by the Government.
“Trunk roads should normally be dual carriageway, and the Highways Agency need to take steps to upgrade the 900 miles of trunk roads which are currently single carriageway as soon as possible.”