Beverley and Holderness MP, Graham Stuart, has accelerated his campaign to secure £40 million of funding from the government to transform the dangerous Jock’s Lodge junction. Graham said that the East Riding deserves substantial investment in its infrastructure following major regeneration deals for other areas across the North.
Having met the Transport Secretary to make the case in person, Graham has now written to Jake Berry, Minister for the Northern Powerhouse, and the Chief Executive of Transport for the North, Barry White, to lobby them to support the funding request.
The £40 million bid would represent the largest single transport investment ever in the East Riding, and faces stiff competition from a number of proposals across the country.
Graham wants to see the area benefit from a cash boost as regions like the North-West begin to reap the rewards of sizeable investment. Highways England are currently involved in twelve planned or ongoing major schemes around Liverpool and Greater Manchester, compared to just one in Hull and East Yorkshire, and Graham says he wants to make sure his constituents are getting a fair cut.
Graham said: “I’m under no illusions that we’re facing an uphill task to secure this unprecedented funding to transform the Jock’s Lodge junction. That’s why I have written to the Northern Powerhouse Minister and the Chief Executive of Transport for the North – to make sure our voices in East Yorkshire are heard.
“I welcome the government’s efforts to redress historical under-funding in the North, and I want to make sure that the effects of this are not only felt in Liverpool, Manchester, Sheffield or Leeds, but in Beverley and Holderness as well. Fixing this local blackspot is a top priority; keeping the junction as it is – with numerous accidents and constant congestion as the result – is simply not an option.”
