Transport improvements

• In 2014 the government launched a £15 billion road improvement strategy to widen and increase capacity on the UK’s major roads
• The improvements to the A1 near Gateshead and Newcastle, have helped reduce congestion during peak hours
• By 2020, 1300 new lane miles had been added throughout the UK, making them into smart motorways
• In London the new Crossrail and Elizabeth line is currently being built. It will cost £15 billion and will create a direct route across central London
• The electrification of the Trans-Pennine railway will improve train journeys between Manchester and York and Leeds and Newcastle
• Another rail improvement is the HS2
• In June 2018, MP’s voted in favour of a third runway in Heathrow airport
• Currently 750000 flights and 200 million people travel through Heathrow
• Improvements to ports are important because most large imports and exports travel through ports such as Felixstowe and Grimsby