£9bn to be spent on maintenance by 2021

The Government has confirmed plans to build around 900 extra lane miles of road capacity on England’s strategic highway network by 2021.

The figure is a third more than was built in the previous decade.

The £24 billion investment will see annual funding for enhancements to motorways and major A roads triple over the next six years.

Investment includes more than £9bn on maintenance, £6bn of which will be spent on resurfacing 3,000 miles of the strategic road network.

Roads Minister John Hayes said: "As a crucial part of our long-term economic plan to secure a brighter future for Britain, we are fixing problems that have been created by governments of the past by delivering around 35% more capacity on our roads than was delivered in the 9 years up to 2010.

"It is because of the difficult decisions that this government has taken that we are able to triple investment in our major roads to over £3 billion a year up to 2021."

The period 2001 to 2010 saw construction of 574 lane miles. The government has now committed to 60 new road schemes, the majority of which will be completed by 2021, subject to value for money and deliverability.

More road schemes are expected to be added to the programme following the 2014 Autumn Statement, which could include solutions identified as part of 6 feasibility studies that are looking at dealing with some of the most notorious and long-standing hotspots on England’s roads, including the A303 in the south west and the A47 in the east of England.