Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what the planned dates for start of (a) construction and (b) completion were for each of the six A47 improvement schemes under the Roads Investment Strategy at the time that strategy was published; and what the status is of each of those schemes.

As part of the first Roads Investment Strategy, the six A47 improvement schemes were due to start construction in 2019/20. In 2017 we announced that some adjustments were made to the sequencing of scheme delivery across the Road Investment Strategy programme, which moved five of the six A47 schemes into the second Road Investment Strategy period which will run from 2020 to 2025. The A47 schemes represent the biggest one-time investment in the A47.

The sixth scheme is the A47 Great Yarmouth Junctions. The scope of the A47 Great Yarmouth Junctions scheme is under review in light of the new Great Yarmouth third river crossing. Originally, this proposed to improve the Vauxhall and Gapton roundabouts in Great Yarmouth; but the effects of the new crossing mean that these improvements no longer match the expected pattern of traffic. The scheme will be redesigned to take new circumstances into account and the junctions will be delivered once the crossing is in place. The Government is committed to tackling road congestion in Great Yarmouth.

The six A47 schemes are currently scheduled for a phased start of works, with the first construction starting in 2021. This has been done to smooth the timing and frequency of the roadworks along the A47, reducing the impact on the public. Specific timescales will be confirmed following publication of the second Roads Investment Strategy shortly.