Press release: Government pledges funding for A38 Derby Junctions expansion despite unknown costs
Government pledges funding for A38 Derby Junctions expansion despite outdated economic case and unknown costs
Local residents from the Stop the A38 Expansion Campaign[1] have criticised today’s announcement that the A38 Derby Junctions expansion will receive funding in the Government’s infrastructure spending review despite there being no full business case or up to date costs.
The scheme, which would see the A38 widened from 4 lanes to 6 lanes near Markeaton, Kingsway, and Little Eaton, including overpasses and underpasses, would take over four years to complete and cost an expected £250 million or more. It has been widely criticised for relying on an outdated economic case and for its environmental and community impacts evidenced in the planning documents such as the felling of thousands of trees over the area of the three junctions, increasing carbon emissions and increasing air pollution especially near the Royal School for the Deaf and Markeaton roundabout.[2] These negative impacts are not “claims” by the campaign, these are facts about the scheme evidenced in National Highways’ own planning documents. Reporting on these as if they are claims is inaccurate and false.
National Highways states that the scheme’s main aims are to reduce congestion, improve journey time reliability on the A38 between Birmingham, Derby, and the M1, and support economic growth by enabling at least 11,000 new road-dependent developments in the surrounding areas.
However, critics highlight that road schemes like this often lead to induced demand—where increasing road capacity encourages more traffic—which can quickly fill the new space and negate any congestion relief. They urge new developments to have multiple transport links, not just reliance on a single road’s capacity. National Highways’ 2017 Pinch Point Programme largely failed to deliver the promised reductions in congestion and economic benefits[3].
The scheme’s environmental impacts have caused controversy. National Highways’ own planning documents confirm the project will increase carbon emissions both through construction and additional traffic[4]. Over 11.38 hectares of trees will be cut down, with only 6.40 hectares replanted, including the loss of a veteran oak tree and other centuries-old trees in and around Markeaton Park.[5] Derbyshire Wildlife Trust has raised concerns about the ecological assessment and the complete loss of the A38 Kingsway Roundabout Local Wildlife Site[6].
Those opposed argue it would be far more effective, less disruptive, and environmentally beneficial to invest in improving local public transport services, creating better active travel infrastructure, and planning new developments with sustainable transport connections to reduce pressure on the road network. The campaign group has listed various alternatives to the road scheme.
The scheme was found unlawful in 2021 due to failings in the environmental assessment around carbon emissions. The Government reapproved the scheme in 2023 despite ongoing concerns about an outdated economic assessment. While a second legal challenge on the outdated economic assessment was unsuccessful, the courts accepted the assessment was incomplete and outdated but ruled that the then Transport Minister had the authority to approve the scheme without updated information, on the understanding it would be provided at the Full Business Case stage.
The Full Business Case for the A38 expansion, which will provide the updated costs and assessments, is due in June 2026.
The cost of the A38 project is likely to escalate, as seen with other major road schemes—such as the A50 junction upgrade, which doubled in cost,[7] and the M3 Junction 9, which rose from £215m to £290m in just two years[8].
Despite today’s announcement, the Stop the A38 Expansion Campaign has pledged to continue opposing the scheme and pressing for the money to be reallocated to sustainable transport solutions instead.
“This is a deeply short-sighted decision,” said Adrian Howlett, 56, a software developer who lives near Kedleston Road. “The full business case hasn’t even been completed yet, and the cost figures and benefit cost ratio being used are over five years out of date. The Government has never explored alternatives to road building for the A38 in Derby, never considered cheaper, less disruptive, and less harmful options like investing in public transport and active travel to reduce rush hour congestion at those roundabouts and the rest of the Derby road network.
It makes no sense to pour public money into a road scheme that will worsen the climate and nature crisis and won’t even deliver economic growth that benefits people struggling with the cost of living crisis. It will just lead to four years of disruptive road works, more traffic, more noise, and more pollution and less nature and green space for Derby residents.”
Callum Bain, 37, a telecoms engineer from Mackworth, added:
“People in Mickleover and Mackworth are already struggling with pressure on local services caused by poorly planned house building. The A38 expansion will lead to even more of this. In those thousands of new developments planned alongside the A38, there is no mention of extra doctors, schools or any transport for those new houses other than a bit of extra road space on the A38. That’s not going to make people’s lives better.
I live near and drive on the A38 frequently for work, and it’s only busy during rush hour, just like most city roads! It seems pointless to waste all that money on years of roadworks disruption, destroying homes and trees, just to make a road bigger that’s only going to fill up again. Why not invest in better bus services to reduce congestion? Or at least just fix the potholes on existing roads.”
Dr Sarah Hobday, 60, retired consultant paediatrician from Derbyshire, said:
“When I worked as a doctor, I saw many children suffering from asthma due to air pollution, especially those near busy roads. This scheme will worsen air quality in Derby during construction and after completion.
More traffic means residents, especially near Markeaton Island and the Royal School for the Deaf will be exposed to increased pollution.
It’s very disturbing that the Government has chosen to sacrifice public health by funding this unnecessary road scheme. Investment in public transport and active travel schemes can deliver public health benefits instead of harm like this road expansion”
The Stop the A38 Expansion campaign said:
“The Government has decided that funding a polluting, destructive and pointless road scheme to line the pockets of the private developers is more important than funding for SEND children or preventing disabled people and pensioners falling into poverty. This Government has been willing to cut funding to the most vulnerable in society but has pledged to waste apparently “scarce” public money on a destructive, polluting, unpopular, and ultimately pointless road scheme that will not solve rush hour traffic but actually just increase traffic. The economic assessment and costs are 5 years out of date and the Full Business Case will not be completed and approved until June 2026, so nobody even knows how much it will cost and if it will even provide these unfounded and fantastical claims of “economic growth”.
The Full Business Case will reveal the actual costs and whether the Government still thinks this scheme is worth hundreds of millions of money, especially when many new major road schemes come with significant disruption and damage while providing only temporary congestion relief before induced demand kicks in.
Road schemes destroy nature, worsen the climate crisis - which has recently been driving drought and record breaking temperatures in the UK - and harm health through air pollution, with these externalised costs ignored in official calculations. Apparently these are all worth sacrificing for the “economic growth” in private developer’s pockets.
The A38 scheme is a relic of an outdated model, one that assumes that there is no climate and nature crisis and more road space equals less congestion and therefore economic growth, when in reality it means more traffic, more pollution, and more public money wasted.
Experience and evidence from many similar projects show these sorts of schemes often lead to more traffic and increased pollution with the only beneficiaries being National Highways and private developers who profit from these pointless construction projects.
Unlike investment in active travel and public transport, road schemes fail to benefit or increase opportunities for many people and worsen inequality, as over 20% of households do not have access to a car. [9]
This is not the end of the road. We will continue advocating to scrap this scheme and redirect funding to sustainable, fair transport projects that benefit everyone.”
Footnotes for editors:
[1] The Stop the A38 Expansion Campaign is run by group of concerned local residents who have been campaigning against the scheme since 2019 with petitions, letter writing actions and two crowdfunded legal challenges. https://www.a38derbychaos.org/
[2] Air pollution increase at Royal School of the Deaf on page 33 of National Highways’ planning document 6.1 Environmental Statement Chapter 5 - Air Quality (PDF, 263KB) https://nsip-documents.planninginspectorate.gov.uk/published-documents/TR010022-000446-TR010022_A38_6.1_Environmental_Statement_Chapter_5.pdf
[3] National Highways published a report in 2017 which found that congestion was made worse on dozens of major roads in England by a project to tackle bottlenecks. The pinch-point programme was started in 2011 to relieve congestion, stimulate growth in local economies and improve safety, but the report showed most schemes had failed to do this.https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/791450/National_PP_Programme_Meta_Final_draft.pdf
[4] Carbon emission increase detailed on page 24 of National Highways’ planning document 6.1 Environmental Statement Chapter 14 - Climate (PDF, 149KB) https://nsip-documents.planninginspectorate.gov.uk/published-documents/TR010022-000456-TR010022_A38_6.1_Environmental_Statement_Chapter_14.pdf
[5] Trees to be felled detailed on page 96 of National Highways’ planning document Deadline 9 Submission - 6.1 Environmental Statement Chapter 8(a) - Biodiversity - Tracked (PDF, 706KB) https://nsip-documents.planninginspectorate.gov.uk/published-documents/TR010022-001207-6-1_ES_-_Chapter_8(a)_-_.pdf
[6] Response to the Secretary of State's Consultation of 23 September 2021 (PDF, 1MB)
From Derbyshire Wildlife Trust https://nsip-documents.planninginspectorate.gov.uk/published-documents/TR010022-001482-Kieron%20Huston%20-%20Derbyshire%20Wildlife%20Trust.pdf
[7] The A50 junction scheme has doubled in price since 2021 now costing over £70 million. https://www.derbytelegraph.co.uk/news/local-news/cost-new-a50-junction-south-9970833
[8] The M3 Junction 9 costs have rocketed in just over two years, up by over a third, from £215m to £290m. https://transportactionnetwork.org.uk/new-roads-true-costs-hidden-by-national-highways/
[9] DfT statistics: Household access to a car in England https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/national-travel-survey-2023/nts-2023-car-availability-and-trends-in-car-trips