On 30 July 2024, the Transport Secretary Louise Haigh announced a Transport Infrastructure Review. This will include all road schemes in National Highways’ roads programme, many of which are unaffordable and outdated, trying to solve 20th century problems. The funding would be better used for vital rail freight, public transport and active travel improvements, and filling potholes.
The table below shows 16 road schemes where main works have not yet started, and in many cases a Full Business Case has not been produced or approved. Cancelling these road schemes would save over £15 billion, and nearly 20 million tonnes of CO2.
All figures are from National Highways, although the many gaps are where it has failed to publish the information. Most scheme costs are out of date and likely to be significantly higher than shown here. Likewise scheme Benefit Cost Ratios (BCRs) and value for money ratings are likely to be worse than shown here.
| Scheme | Cost – £m | Initial BCR1 | Adjusted BCR2 | Value for money3 | Carbon emissions (tCO2e)4 | Other issues |
| Lower Thames Crossing | 9,0005 | 0.486 | 1.227 | Low | 6,600,0008 | Opposed by all local MPs and councils. Impacts on Kent Downs National Landscape (AONB), ancient woodland and Thames Estuary SAC |
| A66 Northern Trans Pennine | 1,4909 | 0.4810 | 0.9211 | Poor | 2,709,01412 | Impacts on two SACs and the North Pennines National Landscape (AONB). Subject to legal challenge |
| A12 Chelmsford to A120 widening | 1,30013 | 0.814 | 1.7 | Medium | 1,964,18515 | Subject to legal challenge |
| A46 Newark | 686.416 | 0.8317 | 1.218 | Low | 683,20019 | Net worsening of air quality |
| A358 Taunton to Southfields | 39720 | – | 1.221 | Low | 2,043,00022 | Opposed by parish councils |
| A5036 Port of Liverpool Access Road | 33523 | – | – | – | 555,23224 | Opposed by local council, Regional Mayor and MPs. Severely damages country park |
| A1 Morpeth to Ellingham | 261.625 | – | 0.826 | Poor | 2,487,00027 | Threatens ancient woodland |
| M60 Simister Island | 23028 | 0.8629 | 1.1730 | Low | 213,10331 | Increases noise and air pollution near schools |
| A38 Derby Junctions | 22932 | –33 | –34 | – | 279,31335 | Threatens 11.38 hectares of trees. Subject to legal challenge |
| M3 Junction 9 | 21536 | 1.4437 | 1.8138 | Medium | 176,87039 | Impacts on South Downs National Park and opposed by the Park Authority |
| M54-M6 link road | 20040 | 341 | – | High | 206,86042 | Carbon emissions are an underestimate, as only up to 2032 |
| A47 North Tuddenham to Easton | 195.2743 | 1.744 | 2.245 | High | 596,79046 | Links to the contentious Norwich Western Link |
| A57 Link Roads | 180.647 | 1.4548 | 2.4549 | High | 438,837 | Increases pressure for more road building in Peak District National Park |
| A46 Coventry Junctions | 112.550 | – | – | – | –51 | |
| A47 – A11 Thickthorn Junction | 91.252 | 1.753 | 2.454 | High | 163,75155 | |
| A47 Blofield to North Burlingham | 89.556 | 2.457 | 3.358 | High | 159,10259 | |
| Totals | £15 billion | 19,277,417 tonnes of CO2 |
- The Benefit Cost Ratio (BCR) is a calculation that values all the benefits (time savings, etc) and costs (carbon emissions, etc) of a scheme, to demonstrate whether the scheme represents good value for money. A BCR of less than 1 indicates that a scheme’s costs are higher than its benefits and therefore building it doesn’t make sense. ↩︎
- The adjusted BCR inflates the initial BCR by including “wider economic benefits” (WEB), journey time reliability, and agglomeration. The adjusted BCR only includes wider benefits, not wider costs (such as the cost to the NHS from inactivity and pollution) ↩︎
- According to DfT’s Value for Money Framework ↩︎
- Construction and operational carbon over 60 year appraisal period ↩︎
- LTC Funding Statement, 2.1.1, National Highways, October 2022: ↩︎
- LTC Combined Modelling and Appraisal Report,Table 7.17, National Highways, October 2022 ↩︎
- LTC Combined Modelling and Appraisal Report,Table 7.17, National Highways, October 2022 ↩︎
- LTC Environmental Statement Chapter 15 – Climate, 15.6.19, National Highways, October 2022 ↩︎
- A66 Funding Statement, 2.1.1 National Highways, June 2022 ↩︎
- A66 Combined Modelling and Appraisal Report, Table 6-21, National Highways, June 2022 ↩︎
- A66 Combined Modelling and Appraisal Report, Table 6-21, National Highways, June 2022 ↩︎
- A66 Environmental Statement Chapter 7 – Climate, Table 7-24, National Highways, June 2022 ↩︎
- A12 Funding Statement, 2.1.1, National Highways, August 2022 ↩︎
- A12 Combined Modelling and Appraisal Report, Table 11-5, National Highways, August 2022 ↩︎
- A12 Environmental Statement Chapter 15 – Climate, Tables 15-21 and 15-22, National Highways, August 2022 ↩︎
- A46 Funding Statement, National Highways, April 2024 ↩︎
- A46 Case for the Scheme, Table 5-12, National Highways, April 2024 ↩︎
- A46 Case for the Scheme, Table 5-12, National Highways, April 2024 ↩︎
- A46 Case for the Scheme, 5.5.8, National Highways, April 2024 ↩︎
- The A358 Scheme page on National Highways website gives an upper limit of £500m, but in 2021 the scheme was costed at £397m as described in this Highways article ↩︎
- In this Highways article a Highways England spokesperson confirms the BCR is 1.2 ↩︎
- A358 Preliminary Environmental Information Report, Tables 14-15 and 14-17, National Highways, Sept 2021 ↩︎
- A5036 Scheme page on National Highways website ↩︎
- A5036 Appraisal Summary Table, National Highways, March 2017 ↩︎
- A1 Funding Statement, 2.1.1, National Highways, June 2020 ↩︎
- A1 Case for the Scheme, Table 30, National Highways, June 2020 ↩︎
- A1 Environmental Statement – Appendix 16.9 Climate Likely Significant Effects of The Scheme, Table 1-3, National Highways, June 2020 ↩︎
- M60 Funding Statement, 2.2.1, National Highways, April 2024 ↩︎
- M60 Case for the Scheme, 5.4.3, National Highways, April 2024 ↩︎
- M60 Case for the Scheme, 5.4.4, National Highways, April 2024 ↩︎
- M60 Environmental Statement Chapter 14 – Climate, Tables 14-22 and 14-23, National Highways, April 2024 ↩︎
- A38 Funding Statement, 2.1.1, National Highways, April 2019 ↩︎
- The lack of an economic case for the A38 Derby scheme is currently grounds for Judicial Review, and no up to date figures were presented to the DCO examination in 2019 or to the DCO redetermination in 2022 ↩︎
- The lack of an economic case for the A38 Derby scheme is currently grounds for Judicial Review, and no up to date figures were presented to the DCO examination in 2019 or to the DCO redetermination in 2022 ↩︎
- A38 Environmental Statement Chapter 14 – Climate, 14.12.2 and Table 14-14, National Highways, April 2019 ↩︎
- M3J9 Funding Statement, 2.1.1, National Highways, Nov 2022 ↩︎
- M3J9 Combined Modelling and Appraisal Report, 5.9.7, National Highways, Nov 2022 ↩︎
- M3J9 Combined Modelling and Appraisal Report, 5.9.7, National Highways, Nov 2022 ↩︎
- M3J9 Environmental Statement Chapter 14 – Climate, Tables 14.4 and 14.6, National Highways, Nov 2022 ↩︎
- M54-M6 scheme page on National Highways website ↩︎
- M54-M6 Case for the Scheme, 6.4.3, National Highways, Jan 2020 ↩︎
- M54-M6 Environmental Statement Chapter 14 – Climate, Table 14.15, National Highways, Jan 2020 (note: CO2 emissions are likely to be an underestimate, as this total is only up to 2032, not the full 60 year appraisal period) ↩︎
- A47NTE Funding Statement, 2.2.1, National Highways, March 2021 ↩︎
- A47NTE Case for the Scheme, Table 5-1, National Highways, March 2021 ↩︎
- A47NTE Case for the Scheme, Table 5-1, National Highways, March 2021 ↩︎
- A47NTE Environmental Statement Chapter 14 – Climate, Table 14-10, National Highways, March 2021 ↩︎
- A57 Funding Statement, 2.1.1, National Highways, July 2021 ↩︎
- A57 Transport Assessment Report, 7.2, National Highways, July 2021 ↩︎
- A57 Transport Assessment Report, 7.2, National Highways, July 2021 ↩︎
- A46 Coventry Junctions scheme page on National Highways website ↩︎
- No CO2 figures were given by National Highways in the Oct-Dec 2023 Statutory Consultation ↩︎
- A47TH Funding Statement, 2.1.1, National Highways, March 2021 ↩︎
- A47THI Case for the Scheme, Table 5.1, National Highways, March 2021 ↩︎
- A47THI Case for the Scheme, Table 5.1, National Highways, March 2021 ↩︎
- A47THI Environmental Statement Chapter 14 – Climate, Table 14-10, National Highways, March 2021: ↩︎
- A47BNB Funding Statement, 2.1.1, National Highways, Dec 2020 ↩︎
- A47BNB Case for the Scheme, Table 5-3, National Highways, Dec 2020 ↩︎
- A47BNB Case for the Scheme, Table 5-3, National Highways, Dec 2020 ↩︎
- A47BNB Environmental Statement Chapter 14 – Climate, Table 14-9, National Highways, Dec 2020 ↩︎
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