Budget 2017 | North awaits word of £90m road allocation
Those hoping for a commitment to large transport projects such as Northern Powerhouse Rail were disappointed by yesterday’s Budget from Chancellor of the Exchequer Philip Hammond, with a rehash of previous road investment announcements taking centre stage.
Hammond used his first and last Spring Budget to outline some of his plans to spend the £23bn National Productivity Investment Fund announced in November’s Autumn Statement.
Of the £1.1bn set aside from this pot to fund work on local transport networks, £220m of this will be used to tackle congestion at pinch points on roads.
The Chancellor announced that £90m had been allocated to Northern pinch point projects, alongside £23m to the Midlands. Details of the chosen schemes are yet to be revealed.
Also from the National Productivity Investment Fund, Hammond said that £690m would be “competitively allocated” to regions across the UK to tackle urban congestion and “get local transport networks moving”.
He pointed to colleague Transport Secretary Chris Grayling as the one to watch for information on how the money can be accessed, with details to be announced “shortly”.
