To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many lane kilometres of the motorway and trunk road network have been resurfaced with a lower noise surface since 1997. (125990)

The Highways Agency's policy to use quieter surfacing materials as a matter of course whenever a road is resurfaced has been in place since 2001. Given this, we have no separately recorded information on quieter surfacing delivered prior to this date.

A total of 8,240 lane kilometres (lkms) of quieter surfacing were delivered between 2000-01 and 2005-06. The agency is forecasting to deliver a further 1,100 lkms during 2006-07.