Alliance against road building

PRESS RELEASE – 1st December 2006

EDDINGTON REPORT: REVIEW ROADS PROGRAMME

Road Block today argued that with the Eddington report [1] concluding that road pricing not roadbuilding will solve congestion, and that a national road pricing scheme would remove the economic case for roadbuilding by 80 per cent, the government's roads programme [2] should be put on hold immediately and reviewed. Currently the government has an expanding programme of some 200 increasingly expensive approved road schemes.

As the report also emphasised that the strategic economic priorities for long-term transport policy should be on urban areas and key inter-urban corridors, Road Block called for the government to scrap highly damaging rural road schemes such as the Weymouth Relief Road, the Mottram to Tintwistle Bypass and the Hastings Bypass which all go through Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty, National Parks and Nature Reserves.

The Eddington argued heavily for a road pricing scheme and concluded that:

"Provided it is well targeted, a national road pricing scheme of this type could... reduce the economic case for additional strategic road infrastructure by some 80 per cent" [3]

Road Block welcomed the study, especially the importance it attaches to recognising economic costs of the environmental impacts of transport. Once these environmental costs were factored into appraisal for schemes, the benefits of road projects decreased and smaller projects such as cycling and walking were much more economically attractive. The report said:

"It is certainly clear that returns are lower on the very biggest projects. As a result, it can often be sensible to invest in a collection of smaller, high-return, projects rather than a single large one" [4]

The cost of the roads programme is also spiralling out of control with cost escalation of trunk road schemes reaching 67 per cent, and a National Audit Office inquiry investigating the increases (due to report in a couple of weeks). Road Block argues that the roads programme offers bad value for money, and the £12 billion roads programme should be invested in sustainable and healthy alternatives.

Rebecca Lush, Road Block's Coordinator said:

"With the Stern report and now the Eddington report all recognising that road transport must pay its environmental costs, the case for the government's road building programme looks weaker and weaker. With road pricing most of the roads programme would not be needed, especially destructive rural schemes. We call on the government to end the sprawling £12 billion roads programme now, and rethink its roadbuilding policies. The costs of the roads programme are spiralling, and roads do not represent good value for money. The government should put the programme on hold, and have a fundamental rethink of its roadbuilding policies".

Notes to Editors:

[1] The Eddington Transport Study:
http://www.hm-treasury.gov.uk/independent_reviews/eddington_transport_study/eddington_index.cfm

[2] The government has approved over 200 road schemes at a cost of over £12 billion in its Targeted Programme of Improvements and its Local Transport Plan roads programmes, and schemes funded through the Community Infrastructure Fund. The £12 billion figure comes from Written Answers from Dr Stephen Ladyman from 24 May 2006, Hansard Column 1902W. Tables showing the scheme costs can be viewed here.

[3] Executive Summary, paragraph 1.109

[4] Executive Summary, paragraph 1.100

Road Block
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