Better Transport

Roads are very costly. Never mind the social and environmental cost of road building, the actual financial cost is exhorbitant. And a road almost always ends up costing more than was first promised.

In the East Midlands, pricetag balloons six times

• The A46 Newark to Winderpool was supposed to cost £82 million but is now expected to cost up to £506 million, more than six times the original estimate 

East of England roads pricetag has grown to five times its original size

• The A14 Ellington to Fen Ditton was originally estimated at £490 million. It is now expected to cost up to £1.2 billion – an almost three-fold rise - making it the UK’s most expensive road project
• The A14 Haughley New St – Stowmarket was supposed to cost £10 million. When it was finally built it cost more than three times that: £35 million
• The A1 Peterborough - Blyth ‘grade separated junction’ – currently under construction – was supposed to cost £31 million. It is currently expected to cost three times that, or £96 million
• The A421 Bedford to M1 J13 was £171 million, but could cost up to £271 million, an increase of 35%
• The A47 Blofield to North Burlingham Dualling was set to cost £10 million, but could be as much as £52 million, fives times its original pricetage
• The A5 to M1 Link (Dunstable Northern Bypass) was supposed to cost £48 million. It is now predicted to be as much as £218 million -- a whopping 4.5 times what was originally promised
• The A11 Fiveways to Thetford was supposed to cost £30 million but is now expected to cost up five times that, or £147 million

The North East roads pricetag trebles

• Widening the Testos Roundabout was supposed to cost £21 million but could cost more than three times that, up to £70 million
• The A1 Dishforth to Barton was supposed to cost £225 million but could cost more than three times that, up to £732 million
• The A1/A19/A1068 Seaton Burn was supposed to cost £30 million but could cost three times that, up to £90 million

In the North West, roads treble

• The Mottram-Tintwistle Bypass was supposed to cost £90 million. It turned out it would cost up to three times that, or £315 million – so much that the region rejected it for funding in February
• The A595 Parton - Lillyhall Improvement was supposed to cost £18 million but cost more than double that, £44 million
• The M6 Carlisle to Guardsmill was supposed to cost £46 million but cost three times that, or £118 million

South East roads quadruple

• The A2 Bean to Cobham Widening was supposed to cost £35 million, but ended up costing almost four times that, at £130 million
• The A3 Hindhead Tunnel was estimated at £107 million, but will now cost more than three times that, or £372 million
• The A23 Handcross to Warninglid was supposed to cost £41 million but could cost up to £105 million – 2.5 times the original estimate

South West roads double and treble

• The A38 Dobwalls Bypass was supposed to cost £17 million, but ended up trebbling in price to £52 million
• A419 Blunsdon was supposed to cost £29 million but cost more than double that, £66 million

In the West Midlands, prices rise two and three times 

• The M1 Junction 19 / M6 project was supposed to cost £100 million but is now expected to cost up to three times that, or £302 million
• The A45/A46 Tollbar End was supposed to cost £57 million but is now expected to cost up to £150 million: an almost three-fold rise
• The A453 Widening (M1 J24 to A52 Nottingham) was supposed to cost £90 million but is now expected to cost up twice that, or £194 million

Yorkshire and the Humber road doubles

• The A1 Bramham to Wetherby was supposed to cost £38 million, but is expected to cost £71 million: an increase of 87%.