MPs link up on A5 and A483 upgrade for Shropshire and Mid Wales
Co-operation between the Welsh government and Highways England could bring the dualling of the A5 and A483 through Shropshire and the borders a step nearer.
Cross border MPs and a Welsh government minister have pledged to work together for major road improvements in the region.
They could be helped by a recent survey which showed that of the traffic on both trunk roads more than 10 per cent was heavy goods vehicles.
The MPs for North Shropshire, Owen Paterson, Clwyd South, Sue Elan Jones and Wrexham, Ian Lucas, met the Welsh roads minister Ken Skates this week. They told him of the problems of the two roads and their importance in the UK's strategic roads network. The A483 is the main north/south arterial route through Wales while the A5 between Shrewsbury and Ruabon is the only single carriageway stretch of road between Europe and Ireland.
Mr Paterson has been campaigning for the A5 to become a dual carriageway for many years and has been promised a visit by the British transport minister, John Hayes, to Shropshire in the new year.
"I have had some very positive feedback about the potential to dual the A5," he said.
"Having the Welsh government well and truly behind improvements to the A5 and the A483 would be immensely helpful to the push for dualling. Welsh Minister, Ken Skates told us that he would do everything in his power to get Welsh money for improvements on the border."
Mr Paterson said that recent studies had shown that 10.1 per cent of traffic using the A5 was heavy goods vehicles while on the A483 that number rose to 10.9 per cent.
"I understand that those figures, crossing the 10 per cent threshold, mean that the Government must now look at providing places to overtake HGVs in safety.
"The problems on the roads are getting worse.
"Between 1991 and October, 49 people have been killed on the A5 north of Shrewsbury and there have been 315 serious and 1,119 slight injury accidents."
