Highways Agency

With the launch of Dart Charge set for 30 November, work to remove the toll booths will begin on Friday 28 November - the same weekend the new payment arrangements go live. Dart Charge means that drivers will no longer stop at a barrier to pay the charge. Instead, they will pay online, by phone, by post or in one of thousands of payzone retail outlets. The new payment arrangements will signal the start of major construction work to improve the road layout at the crossing, with 27 lanes of traffic reduced

Road users on the vast majority of the UK’s M25 will benefit from four-lane capacity now that the final section between junctions 25 and 27 has become a smart motorway. The road has been upgraded from three to four lanes in each direction, with the hard shoulder converted for use as a permanent traffic lane and enhanced on-road technology to manage traffic flow to improve the reliability of journey times, providing a boost for businesses and the wider economy.

Major improvement work has begun at junction 5 of the M18 motorway in the UK. The US$8 million pinch point scheme will widen the junction and install traffic signals, improving congestion and reducing journey times at this junction near Doncaster.

Work begins shortly on the initial phase of a US$278 million project to improve the M3 between the M25 and Farnborough. The section between junctions 2 and 4a will become a smart motorway, adding a fourth lane in both directions in place of the hard shoulder and adding enhanced on-road technology to keep traffic moving safely and reliably, providing a boost for businesses and the wider economy. The road will also be resurfaced with a new, low noise material. The main works are due to be completed by the

The Freight Transport Association (FTA) has voiced its support of Transport Focus today, whilst responding to the Department for Transport (DfT) announcement of the reform of the Highways Agency (HA) and introduction of a long term vision for improving the UK road network. The Government has set out how a new watchdog and monitor will play a part in helping England’s motorways and major roads run better, whilst the promise from the new voice of the roads, Transport Focus, is to ‘make a difference for ro

‘The delay of the introduction of free-flow tolls at Dartford River Crossing disappointing as it may present additional costs to industry’ is the message from the Freight Transport Association (FTA). The Association has voiced its concern in response to the announcement by the Highways Agency (HA) that the planned technology to allow motorists to use the crossing without having to stop at barriers and pay is to be delayed by up to four weeks. Originally planned to be in place by the 28 October 2014, th

A widespread congestion-busting road improvement programme worth hundreds of millions of pounds has now tackled 39 bottlenecks, with more than another 80 to be completed in the next seven months. According to the Highways Agency, the US$515 million ‘pinch point’ programme will cut congestion, increase safety and improve journey times and help support the creation of 300,000 new jobs and 144,000 homes. The improvement plans, part of the biggest programme of road enhancements since the 1970s, were dra

Road users in the UK will see around 900 extra lane miles of road capacity added to England’s strategic highway network by 2021, a third more than was provided in the previous decade. The boost is thanks to a huge US£39.7 billion investment, the biggest since the 1970s, which will see annual funding for enhancements to motorways and major A roads triple over the next six years. Investment includes more than US$15 billion on maintenance, US$10 billion of which will be spent on resurfacing 3,000 miles of t

Sweeping changes that will make the north-east city of Newcastle one of the easiest cities to get around look set to get the green light this week. Described by Newcastle City Council as the biggest change in a generation, the US$30.7 million programme of transport works and smart traffic signal technology is intended to make Newcastle one of the most accessible cities in the UK within five years. A report to the city council Cabinet highlights the huge benefits for pedestrians, cyclists, users of pub

Three new major motorway schemes on the M1 and M3 will cut congestion and give Britain's drivers smoother, quicker journeys, Transport Secretary Patrick McLoughlin has announced. Construction will now start on the M1 junctions 28-31 in Derbyshire, M1 junctions 32-35a in South Yorkshire and on the M3 at junction 2-4a in Surrey. The new schemes are central to the Government's long term economic plan and part of US$41 billion of investment in the road network by 2021, which will see spending tripled to U