- The majority of people across the country travel by road, but potholes can cause misery for motorists – from expensive vehicle repairs to bumpy, slow and dangerous journeys.
- That is why the Conservative Government is investing a total of £8.3 billion of redirected HS2 funding to resurface roads across the country – the biggest ever uplift in funding for local road improvements.
- This investment will be transformative for every region across the country, creating smoother, well-maintained and safer roads for all.
Essex is to receive £121 million of funding for road repairs and resurfacing between now and 2034, the Government has confirmed.
I know all too well the inconvenience potholes can cause, and I welcome the Government’s decision to redirect HS2 funding to local highway authorities, with Essex County Council, which is responsible for repairing and maintaining local roads, to receive £121Million. This funding will greatly improve the day-to-day lives of my constituents – ensuring shorter, faster and smoother journeys.
The funding follows the Prime Minister Rishi Sunak’s announcement at Conservative Party Conference that the £36 billion that would have been spent extending HS2 would now be spent on long-term transport improvements that will deliver better, faster journeys for far more people.
This announcement is only possible due to the long-term decision the Conservative Government has taken to redirect every penny of savings from HS2 in transport projects across the country – benefitting more people in more places, more quickly.
Essex County Council have issued the following information about how they will use the money:
"The funding, which has been reallocated to Local Authorities across England from the HS2 scheme, will ensure the road network across Essex will receive repairs and help towards maintaining the condition of roads across the county.
Essex County Council already receives funding from the Department for Transport (DfT) each year, including the additional funding the Chancellor announced in March in the Budget for pothole repairs, which is available this financial year and next. The new funding announced will ensure there is financial support for road repairs until 2034.
It will allow Essex Highways to deliver repairs and resurfacing for priority routes and defects, remaining in line with the current strategy to target repairing the most unsafe issues.
This follows the additional investment Essex County Council allocated to highways in this year’s budget of £17.4 million. This is currently being spent providing additional works across the county that might not have otherwise taken place.
Councillor Tom Cunningham, Essex County Council Cabinet Member for Highways, Infrastructure and Sustainable Transport, said: "By allocating £121 million to Essex, the Government has recognised that well maintained and repaired roads are a priority for Essex residents the width and breadth of this county. I want each person that calls Essex their home to feel pride in the place they live, and supporting the transport network by delivering repairs will help do just that.
"Essex County Council made an important commitment to delivering more road maintenance works this year by allocating additional financial support for highways, and I'm pleased to see that extra repairs are being delivered up and down the county thanks to that support. The Government funding will help us continue with the repairs Essex Highways works hard to deliver."
The Department for Transport published details of the funding allocation alongside the announcement, which totals £8 billion of funding for road repairs across England. Essex’s allocation includes:
- £30.6 million existing annual allocation in 2023/24 (highways maintenance block funding, plus Pothole Fund)
- £7.6 million of additional funding over the next 2 years
- £121 million of funding between 2023 and 2034"
If you have a pothole you want to report, or a road which needs repairs, you can report and track it online here: https://www.essexhighways.org/