An MP has warned that “BONEHEADED ignorance” over two major road schemes could bring heavier congestion, stalled development, housing pressures and lost growth to Essex.
Dame Priti Patel has launched a blistering attack on the Government over the abandoned A12 widening scheme and the decision to remove major A120 improvements from its pipeline.
The Witham MP says the fallout could stretch from notorious Woodend Bridge, home to the UK’s longest-running temporary roadworks, to housing, jobs and investment.
She said: “It’s not just about roads, it’s about people, jobs and livelihoods.”
She accused ministers of ignoring how closely Essex’s infrastructure is linked, calling their approach “boneheaded ignorance” and “stupidity”.
How are the A12 and A120 connected — and what will the decisions mean for Essex?
What happened to the A12 widening scheme?
The plan would have widened the A12 between Chelmsford and its junction with the A120.
But following the Spending Review last summer, the government announced the scheme would not proceed.
The Department for Transport says the scheme was still in development and construction had not begun.
Priti Patel, however, says years of planning had already gone into the project and that cancelling it would have consequences for a much wider network of infrastructure.
The cancellation of the A12 widening scheme resulted in £212.5million being written off, according to Department for Transport accounts, while £225.3million had been spent on the project by March 2025.
Dame Priti said: “Their teams have worked with me for 10 years.”
“This is not trivial stuff. This is all about the long-term infrastructure investment that is required here.”
Why does the A12 matter to the A120?
Dame Priti says it is wrong to treat the A12 and A120 proposals as separate schemes.
“The road schemes were always going to be coterminous,” she said.
“You have to integrate. These were integrated road schemes.”
She highlighted Marks Tey, where the A12 meets the A120, as a key point.
The proposed A120 Braintree-to-A12 project itself has also been removed from the Government’s pipeline.
The Department for Transport said A120 improvements could boost safety, network performance, jobs and housing.
But it said the scheme faced major affordability and delivery challenges.
Dame Priti argues the A12 widening was essential to unlocking the larger A120 solution.
“You need the A12 widening scheme to then unlock the A120 scheme,” she said.
What does it mean for Woodend Bridge?
Few pieces of road infrastructure provoke as much frustration around Witham as Woodend Bridge, where temporary traffic lights have been in place for 11 years.
Dame Priti says the bridge illustrates how decisions about major infrastructure can filter down to individual local problems.
She said plans to repair the bridge were linked to the wider A12 project and had been hit by its cancellation.
“It’s fundamentally a very, very serious issue,” Dame Priti said.
What about congestion and road safety?
The Department for Transport says National Highways is considering smaller fixes, including junction upgrades, clearer signs and markings, better barriers and speed controls.
It is also developing a strategic plan covering investment in the A12, including existing safety, reliability and resilience problems.
That work will consider future housing, employment and freight growth too.
The question for Essex is whether smaller interventions can tackle problems which supporters of the original scheme believed required a much bigger solution.
What could it mean for thousands of new homes?
Priti Patel says housing could be one of the biggest casualties.
Councils are planning major housing growth, but she says new homes need roads, GP surgeries and other services too.
She said the Government is failing to provide the infrastructure Essex needs to meet its housing targets.
She argued improved roads would “unlock more housing growth, more jobs, more investment, and more businesses coming to this part of Essex”.
The Department for Transport says future housing growth is one of the factors being considered as part of National Highways’ strategic work on the A12.
What about jobs and Essex's economy?
Dame Priti believes better connections along the A12 and A120 could encourage businesses to invest, support housing and create employment.
She accused the government of “boneheaded ignorance” and claimed it was damaging economic prospects in Essex and the wider East of England.
The Government strongly rejects that argument.
A Department for Transport spokesman said: “These claims are inaccurate.
“Given the challenging financial picture inherited, the Government took the difficult decision not to progress a number of unaffordable and unfunded road schemes, which would have cost over a further £4billion to complete.
“National Highways are currently working with local stakeholders, including councils and MPs, to develop a strategic plan on future investment for the A12, including on existing safety, reliability and resilience issues, alongside future housing, employment, and freight growth.”
Its latest five-year roads strategy, covering 2026 to 2031, puts greater emphasis on maintaining and renewing existing roads and includes £8.4billion for renewals and maintenance, according to the background supplied by the department.
So what happens now?
For the A12, the Government has shifted from the abandoned widening project to smaller fixes National Highways says it can deliver.
For the A120, the larger Braintree-to-A12 proposal is no longer in the government’s pipeline.
Dame Priti, meanwhile, has no intention of dropping the issue.
The big question is how Essex will handle more homes, businesses and traffic without the major roads meant to support them.
The Colchester Gazette and its sister title, the Braintree and Witham Times, are calling for action on the A120, a key commuter and freight route in Essex.
We are calling on the Department for Transport to prioritise and fund dualling the A120 between Marks Tey and Braintree.
Sign the petition here.
The cancelled £1.2billion project would have widened 15 miles of the A12, which carries about 90,000 vehicles a day.
Collision data cited by National Highways recorded 89 injury collisions and 145 casualties on the A120 route between Marks Tey and Braintree over five years.
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