Stop funding grand projects, just fix the blinking roads for tradesmen and commuters

The government should redirect a significant portion of the budget currently allocated to enormous, long-term national transport projects, like high-speed rail, towards funding immediate, practical improvements for local road networks and congestion hotspots. We need to stop pouring money into pipe dreams and start sorting out what affects people every single day.

Right now, we’ve got roads full of potholes that cost businesses a fortune in repairs and delays, all while billions are poured into schemes that take decades and mostly benefit a few. Small businesses, delivery drivers, and everyday commuters rely on decent local roads to get work done and move about, not on trains that run twice a day to places no one needs to go quickly. It’s common sense, really.

My proposal is to ring-fence a larger share of vehicle excise duty money and give it directly to local councils.