Following a two-year investment of an additional £9m into the city’s highways, over £50m of additional investment has been approved.
The report presented to Cabinet detailed three different work programmes including:
- Highways and Transport
- Vehicles, Plant and Equipment
- Flood Defence (this is different to the Our City, Our River project)
The Highways and Transport programme alone will see an investment of £51,481,000 over the next three years with some of the budget coming from external funding sources such as the Transforming Cities Fund and Active Travel Fund. Key work in the programme will see maintenance and improvements to roads in the city as well as changes to transport infrastructure to encourage the take-up of active and sustainable transport options such as cycling and walking.
Some of the key projects that are expected to be delivered in 2022/23 include:
- Work at Derby Bus Station to improve passenger experience with new seating, new flooring and installation of a changing places toilet
- Refurbishment of traffic signals at Spider Island to improve reliability and reduce energy usage
- New traffic management in Darley Village to address concerns raised during a consultation with local residents
Despite the extensive planned programme of works, there are risks to the delivery of projects due to ongoing national supply chain issues. Additionally, rising energy costs have also driven up prices of materials such as concrete, steel and timber.
Steven Danby, Highway Asset Team leader commented:
“The success of the additional £9m investment we’ve made over the last two years has improved our roads and footways noticeably, but we need to keep investing in these key assets to continually maintain these standards.”
Nigel Brien, Head of Traffic & Transportation added:
“Whilst we know it’s important to resurface roads and fill potholes, we also recognise the need to provide infrastructure for those making climate friendly travel choices such as walking and cycling. I’m pleased to say that the proposed programme includes significant investments into active travel projects.”
