NORTH Ayrshire's MP has welcomed the commitment of the UK Government to providing funding for the upgrade of one of the area's busiest roads.

As part of Chancellor Rachel Reeves' first budget, announced this week, confirmation was received that £23.7 million would be provided for the improvement of the B714 between Saltcoats and Dalry.

The funding was initially pledged to North Ayrshire Council in 2021 in the first round of the UK Government’s Levelling Up Fund.

There had been repeated calls from politicians since then for assurances to be provided with the previous government failing to deliver on the project.

North Ayrshire and Arran MP Irene Campbell has now welcomed the announcement confirming that the funds will be provided.

She said: “I am delighted that funding for this project has been delivered by the Chancellor to improve our infrastructure and connectivity between North Ayrshire and Glasgow, the central belt and wider motorway network.

“This funding was promised to Saltcoats and Dalry by a Tory government that had no intention of funding it – but this Labour government has delivered the investment that our constituency deserves, alongside billions of pounds of more investment into Scotland, with the largest settlement in history for the Scottish Government to spend on schools and hospitals. 

“The UK Labour government has inherited a £22 billion in year black hole in the accounts from the previous Tory government, who had spent the Treasury reserves threes time over by July this year. 

“Labour chose investment over decline, and that will let North Ayrshire and Arran flourish.”

The confirmation was also welcomed by Cunninghame North MSP Kenneth Gibson - who has been one of those seeking assurances over the years.

READ MORE: MSP calls on new Government to honour plans to upgrade B714

However, he has questioned whether the funding provided will be enough for the scale of the project, given the ever-rising associated costs.

The B714 upgrade plans, which include the creation of a potential new link between the road and the A737, will see the road width increased to 9.3m along the full length of the route and will comprise two 3.65m lanes with a 1m strip at either side.

There are also plans to include a 3m wide active travel route, will allow cyclists and pedestrians to travel between Dalry and Saltcoats.

Mr Gibson says that the £23.7m to be provided does not take into account the inflated cost of the project - with the figure the same number that was proposed back in 2021.

At this time, the overall cost of the project was estimated at £26.7m, with figures provided last year expected to be closer to £31.7m.

This prompted North Ayrshire Council to approve a further £5m to the upgrade last year, adding to a previous commitment of £3m, to support the expected increased cost.

Mr Gibson said: “Having pursued a retention of Levelling Up funding for the B714 with the new government, I’m pleased that the Chancellor has committed to match the funding announced by her predecessors.

“However, the sum allocated is the same £23.7 million announced in October 2021 and so takes no account of the high construction inflation over the last three years - which reached 10.7 per cent in June 2022 alone.

“This leaves NAC millions of pounds short, in terms of successfully upgrading the B714.

“I will therefore continue to seek additional funding from the UK Government to deliver the necessary upgrade of this much needed strategic road as envisaged in 2021.”

North Ayrshire Council's most recent update on the project stated that construction would go out to tender this year - with work set to commence in spring of 2025 before concluding the following year.