North will not gain from £13.5bn rail and road plans

Feb 24 2009 by Adrian Pearson, The Journal

PLANS to spend billions of pounds upgrading roads and railways across the UK will fail to help the North East economy, experts warned.

Civil engineers from across the region have told the Government they have no confidence in plans to limit the impact of the recession by bringing forward infrastructure projects.

Transport ministers have been accused of ignoring the North East when they put together a nationwide wish-list of costly upgrades designed to help the construction and engineering sectors survive the economic downturn.

Douglas Kell, North East director of the Civil Engineering Contractors Association, said for many businesses contracts were are at a record low and predicted the region would see “little if any” of the £13.5bn the Government has set aside for the scheme.

He said: “The situation is pretty bleak at the moment, we know there are still some schemes such as the Tyne Tunnel going ahead, and we still see the bollards out across the region, but whether that is substantial work is another matter.

“We need major money invested here to bring both confidence and private sector money. I don’t want to be political here but we as a region have backed the Government and we seem to get nothing in return for it.

“We are in a sense a lost region and that has to be looked at again.”

Mr Kell said he feared some North East businesses might have to lay people off as a result of the Government’s decision.

The Association also warned most of the £7.5bn of rail improvements planned would not be spent in the region, with much of the upgrades being carried out on sections of track closer to the capital.

Mr Kell’s concerns follow a promise by transport minister Geoff Hoon to commit the Government to spending £6bn on improving roads across the UK.