§ Mr. DjanoglyTo ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions when the Highways Agency is(a) to start and (b) to finish its review of the plans on the A14 road improvements; when he will start consultation on the plans; whether the proposed public transport element of the plans will cover from Huntingdon to Cambridge; when he will complete the public transport element of the plans; and whether he will provide financing to complete the road element of the plans. [25147]
§ Mr. SpellarI have asked the Highways Agency to carry out preparatory work on the major A14 improvements included in the Preferred Plan of the Cambridge to Huntingdon Multi-Modal Study with a view to an early entry to the Targeted Programme of Improvements. The Highways Agency will begin this work in January 2002 with the aim of finishing it within six months. Public consultation on the route can be expected within 12 months of the scheme's entry into the Targeted Programme of Improvements.
855WWe have endorsed the general approach that the public transport elements of the Preferred Plan should be in place before extra road capacity is provided. The Preferred Plan proposed that a guided bus system should extend from Cambridge through to the centre of Huntingdon, though capacity on existing roads to allow a dedicated bus corridor from St. Ives to Huntingdon would only be available following the opening of the new A14 bypass. We have encouraged Cambridgeshire county council as the local transport authority to come forward with a full appraisal of the guided bus project within six months. Its completion will depend upon an order under Transport and Works Act 1992 powers.
The 10-Year Transport Plan provides the resources for implementing decisions arising from the multi-modal studies.