Chancellor hints that funds may be found to help deal with flyover

RACHEL Reeves has promised that completing the restoration of the Tyne Bridge will be just the first step in fixing up the North East's crumbling infrastructure.

- DANIEL HOLLAND Local Democracy Reporter

The Chancellor was on Tyneside yesterday to champion a £1bn investment upgrading and repairing run-down transport links, speaking just a stone’s throw away from the condemned Gateshead Flyover that has stood disused for the past six months.

It was confirmed ahead of last week's Spending Review that the final £6m needed to finish the Tyne Bridge’s once-in-a-generation refurbishment would be drawn from a £1.85bn funding package being handed to regional mayor Kim McGuinness, ending months of anxiety about the project.

Ms Reeves’ latest pledge, as the Treasury prepares to unveil a £745bn infrastructure spending strategy for the next decade, is a Structures Fund targeted at “run-down bridges, decaying flyovers and worn out tunnels”.

And a prime example of that was plain to see for the Chancellor as she met local leaders at the Glasshouse International Centre for Music, just down the road from the closed A167 flyover. Ministers have yet to commit any money towards dealing with the travel crisis that hit Tyneside as a result of the concrete highway’s sudden closure last December and Gateshead Council has had to set aside £18m to pay for its impending demolition.