PLANS to improve the A1 in the North were unveiled yesterday.

The Highways Agency's ten-year route management strategy sets out how the road is to be operated, maintained and improved between Blyth in Nottinghamshire and Gateshead, Tyne and Wear.

It aims to reduce congestion and journey times, improve safety and reduce the impact of the route on local communities and the environment.

The plans will be carried out through small-scale improvements, such as laying low-noise surfacing, installing fencing and adding more vegetation to screen the road.

They will also look at reducing and improving journey time reliability by improving junctions.

Signs will be updated and more electronic message signing introduced.

Hard shoulders are to be built on non-motorway sections, to help emergency services.

It follows a three-month consultation with people who live along the A1 corridor.

Highways Agency project manager Keith Gorst said: "Local people often provide very useful solutions to problems on the road and we took these into account when preparing the strategy."

The strategy will be available for public viewing at 43 libraries along the route and is also available on the Highways Agency website, www.highways.gov.uk