THE roads that will be resurfaced in Warrington through funding reallocated from the cancellation of HS2 have been revealed.

A programme of pothole repairs and road resurfacing projects across the north west, from the first stage of HS2 funds worth £1.2 billion, has already began.

Councils in the north west have already been paid more than £19million to get on with the work and deliver improvements, with another £19million following in this financial year.

As a condition of this funding, and to make sure money is being spent on pothole repairs, councils are required to publish a two year plan detailing exactly which roads will benefit.

Warrington Borough Council has confirmed that additional resurfacing schemes for 2023/24 through HS2 funding are two sections of Farrell Street and the A50 Knutsford Road.

The former includes from the roundabout at Kingsway North to west of the ambulance station, costing £92,000, and west of St Katherines Way and College Close to east to Travis Perkins, costing £313,000.

The latter is from Latchford Post Office to Thelwall Lane, costing £49,000, and Kingsway South to west of Maybrook Place, costing £53,000.

Plans have also been published for HS2 resurfacing in 2024/25, for the A5061 Knutsford Road and A574 Warrington Road.

The Knutsford Road scheme is for east of Wash Lane to east of Park Avenue, costing £354,000, and the Warrington Road section is from the roundabout at Holcroft Lane to west of Churchill Avenue, costing £153,000.

A structural maintenance scheme is already planned for Warrington Road in the vicinity of the proposed section from mid-August 2024, so this additional scheme will be undertaken alongside that one.

The anticipated total expenditure in 2024/25 for the maintenance of roads in the town is £32,643,550, made up of £18,528,500 from the council and £14,115,050 from HS2 funding.

All of the £19.8 billion saved from the northern leg of HS2 will be reinvested in transport across the north, the Government says.

Transport Secretary Mark Harper said: “We are on the side of drivers, which is why this Government is getting on with delivering our plan to invest £1.2billion in the north west as part of the biggest ever funding increase for local road improvements, made possible by reallocated HS2 funding.

“Alongside this unprecedented funding, which is already being used to improve local roads, we are making sure residents can hold their local authority to account and see for themselves how the investment will be spent to improve local roads for years to come.”

Having submitted their first reports last month, councils in the north west will now also be required to submit quarterly reports from June, announcing work which has taken place over three months.

This means residents will now regularly be able to scrutinise the progress their council is doing to tackle potholes.

The Government says its long-term plan to improve local road networks across the country could save motorists up to £440 on vehicles repairs in the biggest ever uplift in funding for local road improvements.

Simon Williams, head of policy at the RAC, added: “It is very encouraging to see so many local authorities quickly setting out how they will use the first tranche of the Government’s reallocated HS2 funding to improve their roads.

“Drivers will be pleased to see potholes fixed and roads resurfaced, especially as our research shows the poor state of local carriageways is their number-one concern.

“We hope councils will also use this extra money to carry out vital surface dressing work which helps prevent cracking in the cold winter months by sealing roads against water ingress.

“The prime time for this life-extending work is between April and September, so time is of the essence.”

Warrington South MP Andy Carter commented: “Drivers in Warrington who have responded to my recent survey said repairs to the town’s roads were a high priority.

"So, I welcome the news that Warrington has submitted a plan. We now need to see the work taking place.

“Alongside the additional £33.8million in funding for Warrington Borough Council comes additional accountability, with a requirement to set out which roads are to be resurfaced so that residents can see where the money is being spent and a timescale for the council to deliver the work.”