COUNTY chiefs have approved an £160 million package of investment to improve Hampshire’s transport network. The hefty cash injection includes structural highway and bridge maintenance work, improvements to road safety, and flood mitigation measures. County roads boss Rob Humby said: “The county council is delivering transport improvement schemes on a huge scale, with around £160 million being invested into Hampshire. “This year alone, 15 major schemes across Hampshire are in either the design or delivery stage, compared to two or three just a few years ago. “This investment in Hampshire’s roads and transport is vital to our economic prospects and our quality of life, with improvements focused on relieving congestion, improving air quality and safety, and easing journey times as the population grows.” Investment in improvements is spread across Hampshire, from the Whitehill and Bordon relief road in the East of Hampshire, the A33 at Crockford and Binfields in Basingstoke through to Newgate Lane South in Fareham, and the Eclipse Busway in Gosport. As well as this, cash is also being pumped into building transport links such as the Eclipse busway in Fareham and Gosport A successful bid to complete the route with a 1km busway extension was announced last year. This is allowing the council to press ahead with this scheme which forms part of a wider package of initiatives designed to improve access in the area by encouraging more people to us buses, and contribute to improved air quality by reducing traffic on the local road network. Councillor Humby added: “Much of the funding for these improvements has been secured through competitive bidding, and the County Council’s expertise and successful preparation has directed national investment to Hampshire. “In these times of financial pressures on council services, it is even more important that we are able to lever in additional funding to improve transport links, so that people can go about their day to day lives and Hampshire shows it is open for business.”