RIS3 – missed opportunity to drive growth

  |   Road Transport   |   RIS3 - missed opportunity to drive growth

15:00 Wed 27th Aug 2025 | Posted By UKHAULIER

8 hours ago

The Department for Transport (DfT) has confirmed that GBP24.9bn will be allocated to the Third Road Investment Strategy (RIS3) to improve England's motorways and trunk roads between 2026-31. This represents a 10 percent reduction in the funding allocated to the previous five-year RIS2 period (2020-25), which is likely to hamper the Government's mission to deliver economic growth. This is a real missed opportunity, and we will still continue to make the case to ministers that ambitious investment in new roads can drive growth, particularly at a time when the economy is stalling and the costs of living and doing business are so high.

This lack of prioritising new roads investment will have long-term impacts on haulage, coach and van businesses, with congestion costing the UK economy more than GBP30bn a year in delays and lost productivity. We're clear that new roads are a vital enabler to boost business and better connect communities - indeed the Government's ambitious housebuilding programme to deliver 1.5m new homes by 2029 will rely on a fit-for-purposes national infrastructure. We are pleased that some key new schemes were given the go-ahead earlier this year after we'd campaigned for them - Lower Thames Crossing, A66 Northern Trans-Pennine scheme, the A46 Bypass at Newark and the M60 Simister Island.

We await specific plans detailed through National Highways' Strategic Delivery Plan later in the year, and note that DfT will ringfence aspects of RIS3 for 'Designated Funds' schemes which have been a vital source for improving truck stops.