£186m for A6 and M1

£186m has been announced by the Chancellor of the Exchequer and Transport Secretary to create new major roads for Manchester Airport and Morpeth. The works linking the A6 to Manchester Airport and from the A1 at Morpeth into Northumberland are intended to improve two major northern routes and boost economic growth in the region. £165m of the DfT funding is to go towards the full cost of a £232m link road between the A6 and Manchester Airport, whilst the remaining £21m will be spent on the South East Northumberland link road, the Morpeth Northern Bypass. The 2.4 mile single carriageway bypass will relieve congestion in Morpeth as well as improve links to development sites in the town and in the surrounding area, including Blyth and Ashington. The work is scheduled to be completed by November 2016 with money from the Government’s Road Investment Strategy, which was described as the biggest upgrade to England’s roads in a generation and is expected to see spending on the country’s roads triple by the end of the decade.

Transport Secretary, Patrick McLoughlin, said, ‘Our support for these two major schemes is further proof that the government is working to deliver a world class transport network. This £186 million investment will benefit people across south Manchester, north Cheshire and Northumberland. It is part of the government’s long term economic plan to invest in transport, create jobs and drive economic growth.’