Transport funding almost doubled

A near-doubling of Government money for transport over the next three years was announced today by Chancellor Gordon Brown.

A near-doubling of Government money for transport over the next three years was announced today by Chancellor Gordon Brown.

The big cash injection is part of an expected £120-£140 billion boost for transport over 10 years due to be announced by Deputy Prime Minister John Prescott on Thursday.

The plan will tackle congestion on the roads and improve public transport, said Mr Brown.

He said that while transport was getting £4.89 billion in 2000-1, it would get £6.01 billion in 2001-2, £7.36 billion in 2002-3 and £9.12 billion in 2003-4.

"The 10-year plan will deliver reduced congestion on our busiest roads, better and more reliable trains, a renaissance in local public transport, a step improvement in transport in London and will tackle the maintenance backlog on local roads," said today's Treasury report.

The AA said the pledge was "a welcome change from decades of penny-pinching and underinvestment that have all but ruined the UK's transport system.

"There's no doubt that this represents the most serious attempt to tackle our transport crisis in years," said AA policy director John Dawson.

The announcement was "good news for rail passengers and for the country in the long term," said Stewart Francis, chairman of the Rail Passengers Council.

However, the Association of Train Operating Companies said it was not yet clear if the spending plans would provide "enough additional funding to deliver the bigger, better railway Government and passengers want".