The government have announced £8 billion boost to repair roads and back drivers.

Redirected HS2 funding to resurface more than 5,000 miles of road across the country, improving journeys for all.

Westmorland and Furness Council are set to see £156 million of the £8 billion investment to improve local roads, one of the highest amounts on investment in the country, given to a local authority.

Millions of people will enjoy smoother, safer and faster road journeys thanks to the biggest-ever road resurfacing programme to improve local roads.

Today (17 November 2023), Transport Secretary Mark Harper has set out the allocations of an £8.3 billion long-term plan, enough to resurface over 5,000 miles of road across the country over the next 11 years. It’s one of the key cornerstones of Network North to improve journeys for all.

Across England, local highway authorities will receive £150 million this financial year, followed by a further £150 million for 2024/2025, with the rest of the funding allocated through to 2034.

Each local authority can use its share of the £8.3 billion to identify what local roads are in most need of repair and deliver immediate improvements for communities and residents. This is divided as:

• £3.3 billion for local authorities in the North West, North East and Yorkshire and the Humber
• £2.2 billion for local authorities in the West Midlands and East Midlands
• £2.8 billion for local authorities in the East of England, South East, South West and, for the first time in 8 years, London

Transport Secretary, Mark Harper, said:

“Most people travel by road and potholes can cause misery for motorists, from expensive vehicle repairs to bumpy, slow and dangerous journeys. Our £8.3 billion boost to repair roads across the country shows that we’re on the side of drivers.

Today’s biggest-ever funding uplift for local road improvements is a victory for all road users, who will enjoy smoother, faster and safer trips – as we use redirected HS2 funding to make the right long-term decisions for a brighter future.”

Barrow and Furness MP, Simon Fell said:

“It is great to see Government once again invest in my constituency of Barrow and Furness. This time, by giving the local council £156 million to improve our local roads. The state of local roads and amount potholes throughout the area are one of the most frequent issues to land in my inbox, and I look forward to seeing this money fix those very problems.

“I will be contacting the council to find out where they intend to use this funding and would be keen to hear constituent’s views on how they think the money should be spent.”