Highways Agency to spend £1bn on major improvements in 2009-10

The Highways Agency will have a budget of just over £1bn to spend on major improvements to the road network in 2009-10.

The figure of £1.086bn is slightly more than the £1.049bn set aside in last year's budget.

The Highway's Agency's budget for the year is set out in its business plan for 2009-10, and follows an announcement in January that £400m of planned investment would be brought forward this year as part of the government's fiscal stimulus package.

The total budget for operating England's strategic road network comes to £2.897bn. That is split between:

• Programme Pay & Allowances - £67m
• Major Improvements to the Network - £1,086m
• Traffic Management - £84m
• Technology Improvements - £345m
• Maintaining the Network - £1,113m
• Smaller Local Schemes and Research and Development - £202m

Chief executive Graham Dalton confirmed that construction of the A46 Newark to Widmerpool improvement would start, three years earlier than planned.

Meanwhile the year will also see continued investment in roadside traffic monitoring equipment and variable message signs, which will be installed the full length of the A14.