Cambridge: A14 Improvements
8 October 2012, 15:50 | Updated: 8 October 2012, 16:03
£7.7 million is to be spent upgrading a key part of the A14 near Cambridge.
The Highways Agency has announced the road will be widened between Histon and Bar Hill.
The A14 improvements are one of several road upgrades announced for the East of England, totalling around £22 million.
The A1/A47 junction at Wansford, near Peterborough, will also be upgraded.
The upgrades are expected to be competed by March 2015.
It's hoped widening this part of the A14 will reduce congestion, along with supporting plans for thousands of new homes nearby in the planned new town of Northstowe.
It is also expected to support the continuing development of ports at Felixstowe and Harwich, which are accessed by lorries using the A14.
Cambridge MP Julian Huppert said: "It's been a long wait for something to happen with the A14.
I wish we'd managed to get on with some of the safety improvements earlier on to really make a difference.
People who use the A14 will know how many problems there are with it regularly.
So I'm very pleased to have got some small-scale money to get on and do things."
According to The Highways Agency, the work on the A1/A47 junction near Wansford will include additional signage and improved road markings.
Around £217 million is being spent on upgrades to roads across the country.
Transport Secretary Patrick McLoughlin said: "These £217 million road improvements prove the Government’s determination to accelerate growth and cut congestion.
Keeping traffic moving is vital to securing prosperity.
By removing bottlenecks and improving access to local enterprise zones, key international trading ports and communities, these road schemes will help get people to and from work and power the economy.
They also have the potential to help deliver more than 300,000 new jobs and 150,000 new homes."
In the East of England, the upgrade schemes include:
• A14 junction 31 to 32 improvement, Cambridgeshire
• A1(M) junction 6 northbound all lane running, Welwyn
• A1 Black Cat part-time signals, Chawston
• A47 Honingham roundabout expressway
• A1/A47 Wansford junction, Peterborough
• A120 Galleys Corner roundabout improvement, Essex