Road expansions to play key role in ‘northern powerhouse’ plans

Improvements in the road network are to form a major plank of the government’s new transport strategy for the north of England – the so-called ‘northern powerhouse’ project.

In a report outlining the strategy – which has been developed jointly by government, northern city regions and local enterprise partnerships, in conjunction with Highways England and rail organisations – the Department for Transport said it would “capitalise on the strengths of northern cities and encourage economic growth and investment.”

Conceding the perceived constraints on the Northern economy caused by the number, capacity and reliability of east-west road connections, the report laid out plans to improve east-west links in the region and thereby journey times.

The M62, the report said, which currently accommodates 46 million tonnes of road freight per year, will be upgraded to four lanes of Smart Motorway along its entire length from Manchester to the east of Leeds – alongside other proposed trans-Pennine enhancements such as new link roads and climbing lanes.

The report also proposed to expand capacity on north-south routes through northern England, including an expansion of the M6 to four-lane Smart Motorway between Stoke-on-Trent and Knutsford, and between the M62 interchange at Junction 21A and Wigan.

In the north east, meanwhile, the A1 upgrade will be completed to provide ‘continuous motorway standard’ between London and Newcastle, with ‘unprecedented investment’ north of Newcastle to bring the route up to modern dual carriageway standard as far as Ellingham.

Capacity improvements on the A19, and upgrades of the M1 between junctions 32-35a and 39-42 to Smart Motorway, are also planned.

Congestion around Manchester and Warrington would be addressed, the report said, while the possiblity of a major new road link under the Pennines between Sheffield and Manchester would be explored: “to  take HGV and other traffic out of the Peak District National park and to protect our natural heritage.”

Further options include significant upgrades of the A66 between Scotch Corner and Penrith, and of the A69 from Newcastle to Carlisle.