M62 to be widened

The plan to allow motorists to use the hard shoulder during rush hour has been resurrected after work to widen the motorway lanes stalled earlier this year.

Chancellor George Osborne said that the Managed Motorway scheme would not be a victim of funding cuts, which were announced this week.

Work around J25, at Brighouse, and J30, at Rothwell, was delayed in July pending the outcome of the government’s Comprehensive Spending Review.

The plan to open the hard shoulder as an extra lane for traffic was unveiled last year as a way to increase the capacity from 2,000 vehicles to 8,000.

A new entrance to Leeds Railway Station is also getting the go ahead.

Speaking on Friday, Mr Osborne said: “Both the Leeds station access and the M62 scheme struck us as of real economic benefit to West Yorkshire.

“We’ve looked at a list of all the potential projects in the country and gone through and prioritised those things that are really going to help the economy grow and help businesses expand.”

The plan has won the backing of Dewsbury Conservative MP Simon Reevell who met Mr Osborne on September 15 to discuss the scheme.

He said: “This scheme will have a huge impact on the whole region and make travelling on the M62 a lot easier.

“Congestion is a nightmare on this stretch of the road.

“It shows that the Government is serious about investing in projects which will benefit local businesses and get the economy moving.”

While welcoming news that the scheme will go ahead, Labour MP Mike Wood (Batley and Spen) criticised the ‘unhelpful’ delay.

“The three month delay in making this decision can only lengthen the disruptions to motorists and the time it will take to complete the works as contractors will now have to contend with worsening weather into the winter,” he said.

“And what a pity that the Government couldn’t bring itself to make the same decision for local children and the need for improved schools.

“The north Kirklees Building Schools for the Future programme was far more important to this area but was cancelled by the Government at a stroke after years of work and possibly as much as £10m being spent.”