Drivers groups blasts limited road extensions
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.Britain's major road network increased in length by just 1.1% in the years 1997 to 2007, according to new statistics.
In contrast, the same period saw the number of licensed vehicles rise by 26%, figures from the Road Users' Alliance (RUA) showed.
In 1997, the length of major roads amounted to 30,902 miles (49,732 kilometres) and this had only gone up to 31,256 miles (50,302 km) by 2007, the RUA said.
The alliance also said that motorists received "a paltry" £4 billion investment in road capacity in return for the £46 billion they paid in road-user taxes.
RUA director Tim Green said: "Road users have provided a rich seam of cash for the Treasury for decades and are receiving less and less for it.
"Apart from the damage this causes our economy, it is also a shot in the foot when you consider that motoring is the only form of transport that actually covers its carbon cost several times over.
"In return, road users are forced to cope with congested roads that add to emission levels."
In a Road File 2008/09 publication, the RUA showed:
:: The UK motorway network of just 2,361 miles (3,800 km) compared with Italy's 4,101 miles (6,600 km), France's 6,710 miles (10,800 km), Germany's 7, 705 miles (12,400 km) and Spain's 8, 574 miles (13,800 km)
:: The UK has only 0.7 miles (1.29 km) of motorway for every one billion dollars of gross domestic product - less than a third of the average ration for EU countries
:: The UK has nearly 8,000 cars per kilometre on its motorways, compared with just 1,490 cars per kilometre on Spain's motorways
:: Of the £46 billion a year paid by British road users in tax, £24.9 billion is made from fuel taxes and £5.2 billion is spent on vehicle excise duty car tax
:: According to 2006 figures, roads account for 92% of all passenger travel in Britain, with rail accounting for just 7%
:: In 2007, Britain had nearly 34 million licensed vehicles - nearly 26% more than in 1997 and including more than 28 million licensed cars.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments