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A new road through Shropshire and Cheshire is needed to reduce traffic congestion between Birmingham and Manchester, according to the Road Haulage Association (RHA). It is calling for a motorway or dual carriageway running from the M42/M5 junction at Bromsgrove to the M56 south of Warrington via Telford .

The proposal follows mounting criticism of the Department for Transport (DfT) plan to upgrade the M6 between J11 and J19 by either widening the existing route or building a toll motorway alongside it. But Mike Farmer, Midlands regional director of the RHA, disputes claims that this will increase traffic congestion: "You would tend to have choke points at the top and bottom of the M6, but I don't think it will make things worse - and it's what is being offered to us." However, he argues that the only viable long-term solution to congestion on this route is a completely new road.

"We've said 'yes' to widening the M6 because we think there will be a short-term gain," he says. "However we need to look long-term at punching a new road down to Birmingham from the North." The idea is backed by Stafford-based haulier Stan Robinson. "It would give a complete  alternative to north-south traffic and bring mid-Wales into the motorway system," he points out.

But a spokesman for the DfT says such a route has never formed a serious part of its plans for the motorway network: "I think the main way forward will be to improve capacity on the existing network, which can be done at far less cost to the taxpayer and the environment. New capacity will be considered but it isn't a case of building our way out of congestion."