Roads
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• The "modest" reduction of 2145m in the roads programme for the 1994-95 spend amounts to a cut of almost 7%. The fall from 22,151m to 22,006m next year—and to 21,956 in 1995-96—means that some future road schemes will start construction later than planned and some schemes may not start at all: bypasses will be particularly vulnerable.
The Highways Agency is reviewing the roads programme and will announce specific cuts next March. Nearly 70 schemes due to start between April 1994 and December 1995 are under threat. They include the M62-M1 link road; widening the M25 at Junctions 8-10, 16-19 and 23-26; Al Alconbury to Peterborough; M66 Denton to Middleton; and M3 widening Junction 3-4. The Chancellor also announced that motorway charging will be introduced In due course". This is likely to be in five years' time when the technology is ready (see Industry News page 5 for further details). Motorway charging is designed to attract funds from the private sector to finance new roads. But the British Roads Federation says the Government's desire over the past 12 years to involve private sector finance for roads has not led to a single new road.
12 COMMERCIAL MOTOR