EEDA - East of England Development Agency

Making the case for a new national route in the East of England - economic benefits study commissioned

11 June 2008

Organisations representing nearly six million people in the East of England have commissioned an in-depth study to demonstrate the economic benefits of a new dual carriageway link.

A new study has been commissioned by three organisations representing nearly six million people in the East of England to carry out an in-depth study to demonstrate the economic benefits of a new dual carriageway link between Braintree and the A12.

The East of England Development Agency (EEDA), Government Office for the East of England (GO-East) and Essex County Council have asked transport consultants Atkins to see how completing the dualling of the east- west link would benefit the UK economy.

The study has two key parts. Firstly, it will examine the wider economic benefits of upgrading that section of the A120. Secondly, it hopes to identify ways to use this and other information to make the case to government for upgrading the status of the A120 to a 'route of national importance'.

Andrew Summers, senior transport planner at EEDA, said:

"This study is a proactive approach to getting the A120 recognised as early as possible as a potential contender for a national improvement scheme.

"The Eddington Study identified that in order to boost economic growth, initial investment in transport should be directed at key pinch-points. EEDA is particularly interested in this section of the A120 because it is a major bottleneck on the regional network. Businesses consistently tell us that transport constraints are holding back productivity growth.

"We hope that this study provides concrete evidence and an objective basis for the dualling of this section of the A120 and leads to the reclassification of the whole route as a 'route of national importance'."

The route is currently classed as a 'route of regional importance', which means that it has to compete for regional funding with other much smaller schemes. Due to the £380m cost of the scheme and the relatively small amount in the regional funding pot, the scheme therefore suffers from the 'whale in the pond' syndrome, and the start date for works has been planned for after 2015.

If the route were reclassified to a route of national importance, then the scheme could arguably compete for funding in the much larger national funding pot, which could bring a start date forward considerably.

Councillor Norman Hume said,

"Building this link between Braintree and the A12 is vital if Essex and the wider region are going to see the economic benefits of major expansion both in terms of new housing and the expanded port at Harwich, as well as links to Stansted Airport.

"While we in Essex are waiting for the government to take the vital step of announcing and finalising the new route for the A120 we are investing our joint energies into demonstrating the very real and pressing economic case for this route of national importance."

Jonathan Foster-Clark, project manager for the study from consultant Atkins, said:

"This is an important study for Essex and the East of England. It is vital that transport investment supports economic growth, and this study will provide robust evidence on the business benefits from reduced journey times and operating costs. It will also consider the impacts on business clustering and local labour markets, as well as the benefits of more reliable journey times to Stansted and the Haven Ports.

"Through the evidence that we collate, we will be working closely with EEDA and its partners in making a compelling case for reclassifying the A120 as a route of national importance."

Mike Evans, Transport Lead at Go-East, said

"We welcome this study that seeks to quantify the wider economic benefits that could arise from dualling the A120."

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