News, Politics

Nottingham roads to be resurfaced and buses improved as council gets £16m in funding

By Joe Locker, Local Democracy Reporter

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A “significant financial commitment” has been made towards improving roads and bus services across Nottingham.

The East Midlands Combined County Authority (EMCCA) has now taken over the role of directing where local transport funding is awarded, rather than it coming directly from the Government to local councils.

Nottingham City Council will be receiving £16.4m to help pay for improvements to roads, cycling infrastructure, and NCT – its publicly-owned bus company.

Some of the money will also be used to pay for a study looking into the future layout of the southern section of Maid Marian Way.

The road will need to undergo changes once the NCP car park is demolished to make way for the redevelopment of the wider Broadmarsh site, following its sale to Government housing and regeneration agency, Homes England, earlier this year.

During an Executive Board meeting on Tuesday (April 22), Cllr Neghat Khan (Lab), the leader of the council, said the funding marked a “significant financial commitment” by EMCCA.

“This programme reflects the new ways in which transport funding is allocated to councils,” Cllr Khan said.

“When we joined EMCCA we did so in the hope and promise of greater funding flexibility, new funding streams and longer-term certainty – all of which are now becoming a reality.

“It is an important shift in how we plan and invest for the future.

“This represents a significant financial commitment and a real opportunity to shape the transport network that meets the needs for today and lays the groundwork for the future.”

The £16.4m has been broken down into a number of pots of cash to be used for different projects.

Around £7.5m, around double the budget available for highway maintenance across Nottingham city, will be used to carry out resurfacing and preventative road maintenance.

Repairs will be conducted on dozens of roads, including on Porchester Road, Bestwood Park Drive, A6514 Valley Road and B6004 Arnold Road. 

Another £4.9m will be spent on bus service improvements, and to support the roll-out of more electric buses, while a further £3.4m will be allocated for small-scale street improvements, including traffic signal upgrades and sustainable travel changes.

The council says improvements to its buses will support sustainability through carbon reduction, air quality improvements, as well as reduced operational costs.

Cllr Linda Woodings (Lab), executive member for finance and resources, said residents living in areas in need of roads repairs and maintenance should report the issues to the council.

The initial list of road repair schemes has been drawn up off existing condition surveys, but representations can be made for the areas that have been missed.