Budget 2018: what it means for motorists

The Chancellor of the Exchequer, Philip Hammond, has delivered the UK Government's 2018 Budget, which contained plenty of interesting details for motorists.

The proposals unveiled in the House of Commons, includes £30 billion of investment in the English road network. 

Here's our rundown of everything in the 2018 Budget that related to motorists.

VED to fund £28.8 billion pot for motorway and major road upgrades

Philip Hammond has created a £28.8bn fund for Highways England to spend on upgrading and maintaining motorways and other major roads. The bulk of that cash will come from Vehicle Excise Duty (VED), which will be exclusively used for the scheme. It's the first time that road tax has been spent solely on the UK’s road network.

The majority of that money – £25.3 billion – will be spent on the Roads Investment Strategy 2, which was launched in draft form. The Budget report termed it "the largest ever investment in England's strategic roads." It said the investment would cover new major roads and large local major roads, citing the North Devlon Link Road as an example.

The spending will mark a 40% improvement on the £17.6bn the Treasury spent in the previous five-year investment cycle. That Roads Investment Strategy 1 scheme helped fund work on the A1(M), A66 Trans-Pennine route and the Oxford-Cambridge Expressway.

The investment plan was welcomed by Matthew Fell, the boss of the Confederation of British Industry, which represents UK companies. He said: “investing so significantly in our roads could help ease the all-too-real delays that people face just getting to work.”

VED will rise on April 1 2019 in line with the Retail Price Index (RPI). Hammond also said that the Treasury will review the impact of the new WLTP emissions test procedure on VED and company car tax, with a report due in the Spring.

Road repairs: £420 million to fix potholes and problems

Hammond has confirmed that he will distribute £420 million to councils to "fix potholes, bridge repairs and other minor works in this financial year." He had also earmkarked £150m for improving local road junctions and roundabouts.

Hammond said that every Member of Parliament "will testify potholes are high on the public's list of concerns."

The spending will be in addition to the existing £1.3bn highways maintenance budget and the previously announced pothole repair fund of £300 million.

Fuel duty frozen for ninth consecutive year