The government has announced plans for 24 road and public transport schemes, including managed motorway and hard shoulder running projects.Variable speed limits and the use of the hard shoulder lane are already in place on certain motorways to manage traffic flow; the government has now announced an extension to the initiative, which will see hi-tech management of motorways around the country. Under plans announced this week by transport secretary Philip Hammond, the department is to 'modify' the M62 (Jcts 18-20 and 25-30); M60 around Manchester (Jcts 8–12); M1 (Jcts 32–35a and 39-42); M6 (Jcts 5-8) and M25 (Jcts 5-6/7 and 23-27). Access to Sheffield will also be enhanced on the M1 in Derbyshire between Jcts 28 and 31.   "This government sees transport as a key driver of growth nationally and in the regions. So I am delighted to be able to give the green light to 24 new transport projects and a fund worth over £600m for many more schemes to bid for," said Mr. Hammond. "As funding becomes available, another 14 schemes", the Department for Transport added.                                                                                                                                                                               

Well if it works as well as it does around M42 - M6 it's got my vote But the number of camras is odd to say the least  1 every 100mtrs  seems abit over the top                                                                                                                                                                              

im not sure i agree with all that money beig spent on motorway management personally... it grates a bit with me when there are so many other people and things this money could help out... "This government sees transport as a key driver of growth nationally and in the regions. So I am delighted to be able to give the green light to 24 new transport projects and a fund worth over £600m for many more schemes to bid for," said Mr. Hammond. "As funding becomes available, another 14 schemes", the Department for Transport added.do they really believe this is all that matters in this life??????......                                                                                                                                                                             

They seem to think so 

                                                                                                                                                                             

EEEK, no hard shoulders, what are you going to in the event of a breakdown, recipe for carnage methinks.

                                                                                                                                                                             

they let the traffic turning off at next junction use hard shoulder on m42 at moment and have all traffic with each lane on its overhead speed limit if you get me - it does keep traffic flowing and you watch overhead things to tell you if can or cant use lane etc - mostly only let hard shoulder be used in heavy rush hour traffic and then they have all speeds down to about 40 so not too bad on that ..                                                                                                                                                                              

Insead of speading all our hard earned on all this B/S they should spend it on making good the appalling road surfaces we already ride on, two main roads I use a lot the A29 and A24 are like roads in a 3rd world country, and the local councils should be bloody well ashamed,     I know why the A24 Mickleham Bends (locals will know where I mean) is so badly kept is quite simply because it's right near Box Hill, and they don't resurface it, to stop us lot hammering round, but it's a disgrace and will end up causing someone a fatality, if they get much worse without a doubt.                                                                                                                                                                             

Err I mean Spending in last post,                                                                                                                                                                              

  I agree with you on the shoddy state of a lot of roads, Huddersfield is one big pothole. Makes me wonder where the road fund fees actually go.   (LOL I read it as spending, I didn't notice the error)                                                                                                                                                                             

Motorways by definition of damn governments and highways departments are the flagship roads, lol. that means any slight problem and expensive repairs are commisioned. The simple fact is because of the mostly constant speeds of traffic they get less wear, than ordinary roads where there is baking and acceleration, and you are right, what meagre repairs are done to our lumpy roads, are nearly always poor quality, shove some stone in and some wet tar on top and it will do. the reapir then tears clear again after a while and takes more of the road with it, and the "cover it up re surfacing" is a joke, wet tar sprinkled with grit, and a 20 mph spedd limit for two days a quick sweep and god help any biker not wearing a tough visor, its like riding through missiles. Its about time money or no, (what price can ever be put on a life) that there was a major upgrading of the road surfaces, stop considering the cars alone, remember bikers use thw roads too and cause a lot less wear and tear.

There are a few people on here who work on roads and planning who will know the exact figures but I think its around                     £30 to £45 billion collected and about Quarter that spent on the Roads                                                                                                                                                                             

Kwak - I agree with you on the shoddy state of a lot of roads, Huddersfield is one big pothole. Makes me wonder where the road fund fees actually go.

Tell you what, I work for the council oop here in the north east and until the budgets have been finalised for the year, the roads are going to get a 'hole' lot worse.
Problem is, now its just too late to do any major road repairs, so they will deteriorate, how bad depends on the weather and how much grit your local council uses.
Bizarrely our depot is only half full of grit, remember the shortage last year ? .
My feeling is that the work will most likely get sourced out to local/national companies and we will all be at their mercy.
I hope I'm wrong on this, but I fully expect massive delays all over the country next spring/summer due to 'essential works being carried out'.

                                                                                                                                                                             

And to add insult to injury, after the snow and ice we had at the beginning of the year, now we have more to cause potholes and general wear and tear on the roads,   **warning it gets a bit political from here** look away if your of a nervous disposition**   The money £60bn that the government get in the coffers from us lot the road user, have either spend it on keeping the troops in Iraq/ Afganistan or some other far flung (err i'll be kind) ermm place or giving it the immits to buy cars and vans so they can get a job and send what money they do earn back to where ever it was they came from, makes me mad                                                                                                                                                                               

We are all pissed of with the few million here and the few million there but come if you want to be pissed of with something well ......next time you see that bloke or women you all know is on welfare and smokes 20 a day manages to have and run a car, is down the local having a drink....well read below and see who is fecking swallowing up the money in this country.........think about it........
In 2008/09, gross income tax receipts were £152.5 billion. In the same year, social security benefits cost the Exchequer £150.1 billion.
In 2009/10, the Treasury is expecting to take in £140.5 billion in gross income tax receipts. Social security benefits are projected to be £164.7 billion.

According to an official Treasury forecast, benefits will cost £170.9 billion in 2010/11. That is equal to what the Government will spend on the NHS, schools and universities combined.

This year will be the first in a decade that benefits cost more than workers pay in income tax.
So about time welfare stopped making it better off to be on benefits than in a job, when I was a kid benefits were just enough and no more to live on a tight budget and no luxuries....if you want roads repaired and day to day stuff sorted this is where the buck stops......of course unless you are on benfits then you will strongly disagree.......                                                                                                                                                                             

and not forgeting the the other side where you get the little shop kepper who flys his mom and gran over just to get a few hundred grands worth of heathcare on us and when she is here we pay for the rest of her famiely to come over and stay on us. Then dont forget the over stayers who break the law, kill our kid's, rip us off go to court then some dipshit says it's there right to stay here becuse europe say's so, well I say it's time to change It's our Great Britain and we pay the goverments wage's so if thay dont start doing the job we pay them for,  it's P45 time                                                                                                                                                                              

Because Gordon Brown signed away our rights as a country to unelected central government in Brussels, two world wars and the labour party do what the Germans and the vichy French couldn't achieve in 6 years of fighting..... They finally control Europe and nothing we can do about it now without being outcast financially and by trade by the EU And that would end us

God, this country is a cesspit. Fancy letting me read this topic just before I go to bed, I'll not get to sleep now until Thursday.
Dear Philip Hamhead, instead of spending money on cameras and signs that tell me how fast I'm going, (I know I'm speeding ffs, my bike comes with a speedometer) get the effing potholes filled in, the effing snow off the roads, resign and commit suicide you waste of skin.   Oh yeah, make the effing car driving test harder so that the roads aren't full of tards: on mobile phones, doing 50mph in a national speed limit zone , eating, yapping, changing cd/radio station, picking their nose, doing their make up(guys check this out when you filter through traffic and pull up next to a woman driver at the lights), where was I, oh yeah, drinking a hot drink, rolling a joint, drinking a can of strongbow and genrally being ignorant of the world around them.   Rant over, bile at crisis levels.                                                                                                                                                                             

we just maybe the new cast of grumpy old men lol...."I don't bloody well believe it!"                                                                                                                                                                             

Crikey, CTD you must get a faster type of 'tard' in Rotherhell, "50mph in a national limit !!!!   Every time i'm stuck behind one of these 'tards' on the way to/from work in a 50 limit they refuse to drive at more than 25-30, and get really irate when i blast past them in my motor, bring on the spring and i can get the bike out again and blast their ear drums aswel                                                                                                                                                                              

So about time welfare stopped making it better off to be on benefits than in a job, when I was a kid benefits were just enough and no more to live on a tight budget and no luxuries...

I know I'm complete scum, being single & childless and therefore utterly worthless in the eyes of the DWP, but 65 quid a week doesn't get you very far & certainly doesn't cover luxuries.

I left it a year before signing on, living off my huge savings (all 3 grand of it) & trying to make a living selling my sparkly stuff, but my creditors demanded I prove to them I wasn't entitled to JSA & the only way I could do that was to sign on.

So I now get an income of £65ish a week, either from my sales, in JSA or now, from my part time job. The DWP assess my income on an 8 week average and top me up so I get the £65.

I own my house, so there's no housing benefit available, but the mortgage company still want paying (I pay them £140 a month)... I'm living the life of Reilly me! I've just had my boiler replaced after 14 months without heating/hot water... and had to go begging to my parents to finance it.

Technically though, I suppose you're right - I would be "better off" without bothering to go out to work (either for myself or at my new part time job), as I'm still only on a maximum of £65 a week, whether I shell out on petrol to get to work or whether I fester indoors

If I could find full time work though, I'd definitely be better off working, so I think it's a bit of an urban myth. Could be different if you're on housing benefit & various dependents' allowances I suppose?