Paul Clark said "I am delighted that Tyne and Wear is being rewarded for beating its congestion-busting targets. The money will help local authorities give road users in these areas faster, safer and more reliable journeys – benefitting the local economy.
"Congestion has serious consequences for the economy and the environment and is a frustrating experience for all road users. Across England we have now provided nearly £23 million to the participating authorities to tackle urban congestion which is responsible for 80 per cent of all our congestion problems."
Tyne and Wear is one of 10 urban areas across the UK sharing a total of £10.7 million for beating congestion targets. The other areas are Nottingham, Leicester, Greater Manchester, West Midlands, London, Merseyside, West of England, West Yorkshire and South Yorkshire.
The £60 million Urban Congestion Performance Fund has been set to help England's 10 largest urban areas identify and tackle the causes of congestion on the major routes in their areas. Further funds will be available over the next two years provided the areas continue to exceed their target performance.
The latest awards follow the publication of National Statistics this month that showed that congestion had fallen by an average of 3 per cent across the 10 largest urban areas between the baseline (a mixture of 2004-05 and 2005-06 data) and 2007-08.
In Tyne and Wear the target areas include routes in Gateshead, Newcastle, North and South Tyneside and Sunderland.
