Today the Isle of Wight Council announced that they’ve received confirmation of £364.6 million of free grant for the Highways Private Finance Initiative (PFI) project.
Naturally, the news has sent cheers around County Hall, and those who have been waiting for the approval of the outline business case for PFI can breath a sigh of relief.
The figure allocated is some £40 million higher than the previous figure sum set aside by the Government.
The 25 year project will result in 803km of the Island’s roads being rebuilt or resurfaced, as well as every pavement, kerb and cycleway and the £40m boost will also ensure the rebuilding of Bouldnor Road in Yarmouth.
Stuart Love, IW Council Strategic Director for Environment and the Economy said: “We know that residents want to see a dramatic improvement in the quality of our roads and the PFI grant means we will receive the necessary investment to make that real difference.
“Our task now is to make sure that we also use the PFI funding to achieve as many spin-off benefits in terms of stimulating the local economy and enhancing job and career prospects for Island residents. The positive implications of this project for the wider Island economy are massive and we will continue to liaise with our partners in industry to maximise these.
“From a council point of view, it is pleasing that the outline business case prepared by our PFI team has been described as an exemplar model by Government assessors.”
There are more details on timings and quotes from councillors over on the official press release.
Image: Ken Lund under CC BY-SA 2.0
