Highways England heralds roads revolution

The government is altering the way England’s motorways and A-roads are built and managed with an ambitious package of reforms that is expected to save the taxpayer at least £2.6 billion more than the subsequent 10 years.

Highways England, a new ‘at arm’s length’ government agency, will take over the operating of motorways and significant trunk roads from the Highways Agency in April.

Expressway to heaven?

Up to £15 billion will be invested over the coming years in a programme of works that contains upgrading busy A-roads to ‘expressways’ by removing roundabouts and traffic lights.

These will be replaced with entry and exit slip roads, and refuge locations will be offered for breakdowns and emergencies.

CCTV monitoring will be employed to determine troubles and manage traffic flow.

Slow visitors, such as tractors, will be banned from chosen routes. Cyclists may also be barred from high-speed routes.

Smart moves

A lot more motorways will also be actively managed, with variable speed limits and traffic permitted to use the tough shoulder as a 4th lane during busy periods – the so-called ‘smart’ strategy.

There are also plans to supply wi-fi connections by means of roadside signal masts so that drivers could be provided with info, by way of SatNav devices, relating to congestion, climate situations and fuel rates.

Testing is also expected to take spot on no matter whether electric automobiles can be charged even though in motion by way of charging loops embedded in the road surface.

Jam right now, jam tomorrow?

New routes are also becoming deemed as a way to relieve congestion in notoriously busy areas, such as the route from Devon to Cornwall and the trunk roads north of Newcastle and across northern England.

The government is currently committed to spending £2 billion on a ‘strategic corridor’ to the southwest by means of the A303, such as a 1.8 mile tunnel at Stonehenge in Wiltshire.

Other measures include 9 main improvements along the A1 from Berwick to London, taking it to motorway normal through Yorkshire and extending the continuous dual carriageway 24 miles further north.

Highways England heralds roads revolution

Highways England heralds roads revolution

The government is changing the way England’s motorways and A-roads are built and managed with an ambitious package of reforms that is expected to save the taxpayer at least £2.6 billion more than the next 10 years.

Highways England, a new ‘at arm’s length’ government agency, will take more than the operating of motorways and main trunk roads from the Highways Agency in April.

Expressway to heaven?

Up to £15 billion will be invested over the coming years in a programme of functions that includes upgrading busy A-roads to ‘expressways’ by removing roundabouts and visitors lights.

These will be replaced with entry and exit slip roads, and refuge places will be provided for breakdowns and emergencies.

CCTV monitoring will be employed to identify issues and handle visitors flow.

Slow site visitors, such as tractors, will be banned from chosen routes. Cyclists may also be barred from higher-speed routes.

Sensible moves

Much more motorways will also be actively managed, with variable speed limits and visitors permitted to use the challenging shoulder as a 4th lane in the course of busy periods – the so-named ‘smart’ method.

There are also plans to offer wi-fi connections by means of roadside signal masts so that drivers could be offered with data, via SatNav devices, relating to congestion, climate circumstances and fuel costs.

Testing is also expected to take location on no matter whether electric automobiles can be charged whilst in motion by way of charging loops embedded in the road surface.

Jam these days, jam tomorrow?

New routes are also getting regarded as as a way to relieve congestion in notoriously busy places, such as the route from Devon to Cornwall and the trunk roads north of Newcastle and across northern England.

The government is currently committed to spending £2 billion on a ‘strategic corridor’ to the southwest via the A303, like a 1.8 mile tunnel at Stonehenge in Wiltshire.

Other measures consist of 9 major improvements along the A1 from Berwick to London, taking it to motorway standard by means of Yorkshire and extending the continuous dual carriageway 24 miles additional north.

Highways England heralds roads revolution

Highways England heralds roads revolution

The government is altering the way England’s motorways and A-roads are constructed and managed with an ambitious package of reforms that is expected to save the taxpayer at least £2.6 billion over the subsequent 10 years.

Highways England, a new ‘at arm’s length’ government agency, will take more than the running of motorways and main trunk roads from the Highways Agency in April.

Expressway to heaven?

Up to £15 billion will be invested more than the coming years in a programme of operates that contains upgrading busy A-roads to ‘expressways’ by removing roundabouts and traffic lights.

These will be replaced with entry and exit slip roads, and refuge areas will be supplied for breakdowns and emergencies.

CCTV monitoring will be employed to identify problems and handle targeted traffic flow.

Slow visitors, such as tractors, will be banned from chosen routes. Cyclists may possibly also be barred from high-speed routes.

Wise moves

A lot more motorways will also be actively managed, with variable speed limits and targeted traffic allowed to use the challenging shoulder as a 4th lane during busy periods – the so-known as ‘smart’ method.

There are also plans to provide wi-fi connections by means of roadside signal masts so that drivers could be offered with data, by way of SatNav devices, relating to congestion, climate conditions and fuel prices.

Testing is also anticipated to take spot on regardless of whether electric automobiles can be charged while in motion through charging loops embedded in the road surface.

Jam today, jam tomorrow?

New routes are also being considered as a way to relieve congestion in notoriously busy places, such as the route from Devon to Cornwall and the trunk roads north of Newcastle and across northern England.

The government is currently committed to spending £2 billion on a ‘strategic corridor’ to the southwest via the A303, including a 1.8 mile tunnel at Stonehenge in Wiltshire.

Other measures incorporate 9 major improvements along the A1 from Berwick to London, taking it to motorway regular by way of Yorkshire and extending the continuous dual carriageway 24 miles further north.

Highways England heralds roads revolution

Highways England heralds roads revolution

The government is changing the way England’s motorways and A-roads are constructed and managed with an ambitious package of reforms that is expected to save the taxpayer at least £2.6 billion more than the subsequent 10 years.

Highways England, a new ‘at arm’s length’ government agency, will take more than the running of motorways and key trunk roads from the Highways Agency in April.

Expressway to heaven?

Up to £15 billion will be invested more than the coming years in a programme of operates that involves upgrading busy A-roads to ‘expressways’ by removing roundabouts and targeted traffic lights.

These will be replaced with entry and exit slip roads, and refuge areas will be offered for breakdowns and emergencies.

CCTV monitoring will be employed to determine difficulties and manage targeted traffic flow.

Slow traffic, such as tractors, will be banned from chosen routes. Cyclists may also be barred from higher-speed routes.

Sensible moves

Much more motorways will also be actively managed, with variable speed limits and targeted traffic allowed to use the tough shoulder as a 4th lane during busy periods – the so-referred to as ‘smart’ approach.

There are also plans to offer wi-fi connections by means of roadside signal masts so that drivers could be supplied with info, via SatNav devices, relating to congestion, climate circumstances and fuel rates.

Testing is also expected to take spot on no matter whether electric cars can be charged whilst in motion by means of charging loops embedded in the road surface.

Jam today, jam tomorrow?

New routes are also becoming regarded as a way to relieve congestion in notoriously busy areas, such as the route from Devon to Cornwall and the trunk roads north of Newcastle and across northern England.

The government is already committed to spending £2 billion on a ‘strategic corridor’ to the southwest by way of the A303, including a 1.8 mile tunnel at Stonehenge in Wiltshire.

Other measures incorporate 9 major improvements along the A1 from Berwick to London, taking it to motorway standard via Yorkshire and extending the continuous dual carriageway 24 miles further north.

Highways England heralds roads revolution

Govt hails £15bn roads ‘revolution’

The government has revealed how it plans to devote the £15billion it has earmarked for improvements to England’s ne2rk of trunk roads and motorways as element of its ‘roads revolution’.

As we outlined last month, the government is upgrading some of the UK’s busiest and most problematic roads and it has nowadays revealed this will involve 100 road improvement schemes and add 1,300 new miles of additional lanes to current motorways and A roads.

The plans had been announced by Patrick McLoughlin, the transport secretary, who said: “I am setting out the largest, boldest and most far-reaching roads programme for decades. It will substantially improve our road ne2rk and unlock Britain’s economic prospective.”

Light at the finish of the tunnel?

Among the improvements outlined are plans to turn the M53 motorway in Wirral into a ‘smart motorway’, with varying speed limits and occasional use of the challenging shoulder allowed to ease congestion, and make the A1 a dual carriageway from London to Ellingham, 25 miles south of the Scottish border.

There will also be improvements to the M62 amongst Manchester and Leeds, and the A27 along the south coast, upgrades to the east-west connection to Norfolk by means of the A47 and A11, as well as work on M25 junctions and the M42 east of Birmingham.

Arguably the most ambitious program even though is the tunnel under Stonehenge as part of upgrades to the A303 and A358.

Road to ruin?

But will the plans ever see the light of day?

It is not unusual for governments to announce massive plans for the roads – specifically with an election looming – only to place them on ice when budgets get a tighter.

This happened under the Conservatives in the late 1980s when the biggest building programme because the Romans was shelved, and also beneath the last Labour government in 2007 when it stopped plans to tunnel below Stonehenge amid spiralling charges.

The present coalition government has previous form when it comes to cancelling projects and cutting road maintenance budgets – the shadow transport secretary, Michael Dugher, was keen to point out “infrastructure output has fallen significantly considering that Might 2010”.

In other words, it’s anyone’s guess how much of the function will really be carried out.

As you can see from the government graphics below, the Strategic Road Ne2rk (SRN) is currently overworked and so some significant improvements do require to be produced.

Why the Strategic Road Ne2rk (SRN) demands investment

Are modifications to the Highways Agency the key?

The government also plans to turn the Highways Agency into a government-owned organization to make confident funding can be allocated on a longer-term basis and give it a assured price range every single 5 years.

In theory, this must bring about a change in how roads are planned and constructed, allowing for longer-term investment and arranging and, eventually, cutting road-building costs.

As ever even though, we’ll have to sit tight and see what the future brings.

What do you feel? Will these plans ever see the light of day? Or will this and possibly any successive governments revert to variety and shelve the plans? Let us know…

Govt hails £15bn roads ‘revolution’

Electric automobiles: is the revolution on its way?

You might not have noticed, but we’re ‘on the cusp of a technological revolution’ which in just a few decades will see almost every motorist embrace ultra-low emission cars.

Well, that’s what speakers at the Electric Vehicle Summit, which took place on earlier this week at the University of Surrey, would have us believe.

Leading the charge

The summit is a meeting place for the automotive sector, government and academia to share their knowledge about the development of the electric vehicle sector.

It is held at the University of Surrey because it is one of the leading centres for research into electric car technology. The county is also home to many of the companies at the forefront of this sector, including Toyota and McLaren.

Speakers this year included a lecturer in environmental psychology, a Renault product manager and a professor of Energy and Environmental Systems. Together, the group looks at investment and funding issues, as well as how to encourage take up of electric vehicles.

Miles off target

Only a tiny fractions of the UK’s 30 million motorists have yet to embrace electric cars, with many perhaps deterred not only by their cost, but by the fact that mileage on a single charge remains relatively low.

As Baroness Kramer, Minister for Transport, admitted at the summit, in 2010 just 111 plug-in cars were bought in this country.

3 years on, that figure had reached 3,585 and, between January and August this year, so far 6,000 electric cars have been sold.

However, Baroness Kramer claims we’re set to see a change on the roads over the next few years which will be “as significant as the move from coal to petroleum.”

She said that by 2050, almost every car on the roads is expected to be ultra-low emission.

The government is certainly doing all that it can to encourage electric car take-up, pledging £37 million to make it cheaper to install charging facilities both at home and on streets, and providing at least £100m for British businesses for green vehicle research and development.

Volt face

It’s certainly hard for any motorist to ignore the benefits of going electric.

Imagine the ease of simply plugging in your car every evening to charge it up for the following day. No more stinky petrol fumes, or waiting around on garage forecourts for the next pump to become free.

There are low running costs too – it’ll set you back as little as 2p a mile to drive an electric car, so you could kiss good-bye to expensive fuel costs.

You also escape car tax and the London Congestion charge, and you can get a generous grant towards the cost of your electric vehicle. The government will give you 25% off the cost of a car, up to a maximum of £5,000, and 20% off the cost of a van, up to a maximum of £8,000.

The grant will be deducted automatically at the point of purchase, so you don’t even have to submit an application to get the cash.

The government has pledged £200m to extend this plug-in grant, but even with this subsidy, the biggest sticking point with electric cars remains the cost.

Leaf well alone

I, like many people, would happily considering buying an electric car when my battered Peugeot 207 finally gives up the ghost – if only I could afford one.

The Nissan Leaf, for example, costs around £16,000, even after the £5,000 grant has been deducted, which is out of the reach of many people.

And it doesn’t seem as though costs are likely to fall any time soon. According to the Low Carbon Vehicle Partnership, the total cost of owning an electric car is unlikely to approach that of a conventional car until around 2030.

So, while the funding and progress outlined by Baroness Kramer at the summit is certainly welcome, it still seems as though it’s going to be some time before electric cars become an affordable option – and the “revolution” can really begin.

Electric automobiles: is the revolution on its way?

American Revolution: A Pair of Dodge Challenger SRT Hellcats Declares Independence From Traction [Exclusive Video!]

When news broke that the supercharged 6.2-liter Hemi V-8 Hellcat engine destined for the prime-grade 2015 Dodge Challenger SRT would get a whopping 707 horsepower, every thing forever skipped a beat. But even though every person was scrambling to get their mind about that impressive figure, we were busy getting to know every and every one of those Mopar ponies on a personal—and smoky—basis. Cameras rolling, we developed the cinematic Auto and Driver masterpiece embedded under. It is known merely as “Gratuitous Burnouts.” You are welcome, ‘Murica!

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