The UK government has doubled down on its pledge to deliver major infrastructure upgrades with a £13bn increase in capital investment over the next five years, supported by wide-reaching reforms to the planning system.
Announced in the Spring Statement 2025, the measures are designed to remove regulatory barriers, streamline delivery and stimulate growth through transport, housing and construction-led development.
A headline commitment includes £4.8bn for the Strategic Road Network in 2025-26, encompassing £1.3bn for road renewals and £1.6bn for local road maintenance – a record level of funding aimed at boosting resilience, improving journey times and enhancing road safety.
Chancellor Rachel Reeves described the infrastructure package as key to “turbocharging regional connectivity, reducing congestion, and laying the foundations for long-term economic renewal”.
Reeves also unveiled a new Planning and Infrastructure Bill that will overhaul consent regimes for nationally significant infrastructure, enable strategic land assembly and introduce mechanisms for cross-boundary planning.
The reforms, first outlined in December 2024, could support the delivery of 170,000 additional homes by 2030, increase GDP by 0.2% and reduce public borrowing by £3.4bn, according to the Office for Budget Responsibility.
Michael Mulhern, director of strategic infrastructure at the West Yorkshire Combined Authority, welcomed the changes as “an essential step toward enabling mass transit, sustainable travel, and housing-led regeneration in our cities.
However, despite the record investment, transport experts warned that the Spring Statement failed to provide the policy clarity or long-term vision needed to drive urban mobility innovation and meet net-zero targets.
Ann Carruthers, president of the Association of Directors of Environment, Economy, Planning and Transport (ADEPT), noted that while the government was right to respond to immediate pressures such as defence and economic stability, “essential services people rely on every day are being pushed to breaking point”.
She added: “Place-based services – from roads to waste collection, housing and green spaces – are integral to supporting healthier, more sustainable communities.”
Fleet sector leaders echoed these concerns. David Bushnell, director of consultancy and strategy at Fleet Operations, said: “This Spring Statement was another missed opportunity to provide the leadership and clarity the fleet sector urgently needs.”
While the recent £120m extension of the Plug-in Van Grant was a “welcome move”, Bushnell argued that it “feels like a sticking plaster” in the absence of a coherent decarbonisation roadmap.
He also criticised the removal of the VED exemption for electric vans from April 2025 and the continued classification of 4.25-tonne electric vans as HGVs.
“These vehicles are performing the same tasks as their 3.5-tonne diesel counterparts – the extra weight is in the battery, not the payload,” he said.
Bushnell also reiterated calls for aligning public charging VAT with home charging rates and raising the £40,000 Expensive Car Supplement threshold to reflect the current EV market.
Rail industry voices also expressed frustration. Eddie Dempsey, general secretary of the RMT, said the statement failed to address the “deep structural problems” in the UK economy and criticised continued reliance on outsourcing.
He called Labour’s plans to bring rail back into public ownership “a step in the right direction,” adding that infrastructure reform should be driven by a public service ethos, not profit.
Further updates are expected in the summer’s Spending Review, including announcements on the National Infrastructure Strategy, locations for new towns and regional connectivity schemes such as the West Yorkshire Mass Transit programme.
But for now, industry stakeholders say more consistent, joined-up policy is needed to ensure the UK’s transport transformation is both sustainable and future-proofed.
Achievements and innovations in sustainable urban mobility will be recognised and celebrated at the fourth annual CiTTi Awards on 25 November 2025 at De Vere Grand Connaught Rooms in London. Visit www.cittiawards.co.uk to learn more about this unmissable event for the UK’s transportation sector!
