A new report has called for around £2 billion to be invested into upgrading the UK's transport system.

The 'Bang for Buck: the economic value of inter-city connectivity improvements' study was carried out by Mace.

The report found targeting spending on improving transport connection times between regional towns and cities could deliver an annual economic boost of over £3bn across the UK.

Overall, the study found that reducing journey times by just 60 seconds on key regional routes would haul in £17bn of new economic value over the next five years.

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Transport experts at Mace said a 'one-off injection' of £2bn in the Chancellors Autumn Statement could pay for upgrades targeting areas with the greatest potential, namely regional city connections, and the right schemes, such as road widening or rail signalling upgrades.

The findings follow that of a YouGov poll commissioned by the construction consultancy, which discovered many people think Brexit makes it more important to invest in our transport infrastructure (49%) than those who do not (4%).

Jason Millett, COO of Major Programmes and Infrastructure at Mace, said: "As we take steps to leave the EU, it is critical to maintain progress on projects like HS2 and Heathrow that will make the UK an attractive place to invest. But our research also shows the big growth potential in smaller, regional transport investments and we call on the Chancellor to deliver this Brexit boost in his Autumn Statement."

(LM/CD)