§ Mr. Whitlockasked the Secretary of State for Transport what is the cost per mile of construction of (a) motorways, (b) all purpose dual carriageways and (c) single carriageways.
§ Mr. Kenneth ClarkeRoad construction costs vary widely depending on a number of factors such as the nature of the terrain through which the route passes and whether the location is urban or rural. For contracts let since 1976 the costs—at December 1981 prices—were as follows
For inter-urban motorways:—in the range of £1.8 million per mile for dual 2-lane motorways, with an average cost of £2.9 million.—in the range of £2.2 million to £17.9 million for dual 3-lane motorways, with an average cost of £4.4 million.For inter-urban all purpose trunk roads:—in the range of E0-6 million to £7-8 million per mile for dual 2-lane roads, with an average cost of £2.5 million.—in the range of £0-3 million to £2-3 million per mile for single 2-lane roads with an average cost of £1-1 million.Land costs and rehousing costs, which are excluded from these figures, also vary widely, and account for 19 per cent. or more of the overall cost of rural schemes. The average construction costs of urban motorways which pass predominantly through built-up areas tend to be between two and three times more expensive than rural motorways.
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