Politicians and business leaders want Staffordshire road cash

Politicians and business leaders are due to meet government officials to lobby for road improvements.

The group wants money from the government's Road Investment Strategies to to fund changes to the A50 and A500.

Midlands Connect, which aims to boost transport infrastructure in the region, drew up a masterplan in February 2022 of nine projects to cut congestion.

Members are due to meet officials from the Department for Transport (DfT) and National Highways.

Midlands Connect said its proposed upgrades to the A500 and A50 could save motorists 37 minutes a day and create 12,000 jobs across the region.

Included in its masterplan are improvements to the M6 and its junctions in Staffordshire, along with new roundabouts, junctions, a link road and some road-widening to improve the A50, which connects Staffordshire with the East Midlands.

Kate Kniveton, the MP for Burton upon Trent, said there needed to be "urgent intervention to move these plans along" and she is due to chair the meeting.

Staffordshire County Council's deputy leader, Philip White, said he wanted to see the creation of a national hub for the manufacture of hydrogen engines.

"Delays along the route restrict growth, increase costs and cause significant inconvenience," he added.

The Dft said: "In the current road investment strategy we are planning to spend £2.4bn to improve roads in the Midlands."

It also said it was working closely with local MPs, Midlands Connect and others to consider how the strategy would progress after 2025.

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