Setback for A1 dualling

Dec 27 2008 by William Green, The Journal

THE Government will consider whether to upgrade the A1 through Northumberland next year – but only from a limited funding pot.

Ministers have consistently rejected calls from campaigners for the key route north of Newcastle to be dualled up to the Scottish border to boost safety and the economy.

Transport Minister Paul Clark has reaffirmed there are no plans to fully dual the A1, although improvements could be considered as part of a revised set of transport priorities to be submitted by regional chiefs next year.

The cash for such a scheme though may have to come from a limited regional funding pot, which proved insufficient to upgrade the A1 when advice on priorities was sent to ministers in 2006.

Despite being an English-Scottish link, the road is not classified as a route of national strategic importance and that closes off a much larger source of funding from Whitehall.

Mr Clark’s comments were outlined in a response to a written Parliamentary question from East Lothian MP Anne Moffat, who asked whether the Government had plans to consider the merits of dualling the A1 from Newcastle to her own constituency across the border in Scotland. The Minister said: “There are currently no plans to consider full dualling.

“Two discrete dualling schemes, from Morpeth to Felton and Adderstone to Belford, were considered by the North East interim transport board in 2006 for funding through the central Government regional funding allocation.

“However in its 2006 advice to ministers the region concluded that within the resources available these improvements could not be prioritised. All regional transport boards have been asked to review their funding allocation priorities.

“These schemes will be considered by the region along with others, and this represents an opportunity for supporters of improvements on the A1 north of Newcastle to make their views heard.

“The region will submit its advice to ministers on its priorities early in 2009 for consideration.”

Ross Smith, head of policy at the North East Chamber of Commerce, said: “It is good to see Scottish MPs take an interest, which illustrates that this is a route of national importance.

“This is part of a road that links between London and Edinburgh and if that isn’t nationally strategically important, it sends a signal that something is badly wrong with the criteria.”

Hexham MP Peter Atkinson said the A1 had not been included as a regional transport priority before as it would have used up all the money in the funding pot for the North East.

The Tory MP said: “There isn’t enough money to do it in the regional allocation and there never will be.

“The best thing we can do is put the A1 back on the national road network and at least it has got an opportunity to compete for funding with other such roads.”