Money for old roads Labour
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• A Labour Government would not cut the road spending programme but would shift spending from new roads to existing ones, arid provide extra funding for public transport.
These are the some of the findings of a transport policy document the Labour Party is due to publish in November and were outlined in a recent speech by shadow transport secretary Michael Meacher to the British Road Federation.
He described the Government's road programme as having "collapsed in anger and confusion over insensitive motorway developments," while the existing roads have been allowed to crumble and decay." Quoting figures from the Department of Transport that suggest 34% of motorways will require structural repairs within four years, Meacher promised: "Labour will change this absurd order of priorities."
In what would be the first transport policy document produced by the party since John Prescott's in 1989, Meacher is expected to suggest greater use of rail and road in partnership for freight movement.
A Labour spokesman says: "We will be contacting relevant organisations including the Freight Transport and Road haulage Associations before vvrriting the document."