North Swindon MP Justin Tomlinson has welcomed today’s announcement of a multi-billion pound fund to combat congestion in towns and cities, like Swindon, across England.
The money will aim to improve local roads and forms part of a fund totalling more than £61 billion until 2020/2021 that will upgrade the road and rail network nationwide. With a significant element of the fund set aside for improvements, the plan will aim to: decongest local towns; create smoother journeys; reduce air pollution and, create a better opportunity to link Swindon’s new housing developments to the Town centre in the future.
The Transport Investment Strategy sets out a new long-term approach for government infrastructure spending, meaning the money will be targeted at projects that help rebalance the economy. It features the proposed creation of a new Major Road Network, which would see a share of the annual National Road Fund to end the disparity between Britain’s motorways and local ‘A roads’. This will be funded by the Vehicle Excise Duty, which restores the link between the amount that people pay in car tax and the amount spent on roads.
Justin Tomlinson MP, said “The state of our roads is consistently raised with me by local residents, so I welcome the Government’s latest step to invest in the future of the road network. I’ll be making the case to the Transport Secretary to make sure that we get our fair share of the funding locally, especially for the Thamesdown Drive Extension to West Swindon. Today’s announcement shows that we are delivering on our commitment to invest in infrastructure to attract businesses and fix pinch points – opening up opportunities for new housing and local growth.”
