FUNDING for transport infrastructure in the east is “shockingly low” compared to some other parts of the country, new research has revealed.

The government spends about 60 times more on transport projects for Londoners than on those for people living in this region - the Institute for Public Policy Research (IPPR) says �2,700 is spent per person in the capital compared with �43 per head in the East.

Douglas Carswell, MP for Clacton, described the spend-per-head for our region as “shockingly low”.

“Badly maintained roads and poor transport links drive away enterprise,” he said. “Harwich and Clacton are on the end of a peninsula and in order to prosper we need better connections.

“I’m afraid to say, as a regular commuter on the trains, I know the service is not as good as it needs to be.

“Commuting from Frinton, Clacton or Harwich to our capital city – which isn’t a million miles away – should not be a major ordeal.

“We’ve had railways in this country for 150 years and they should, by now, be able to take people in comfort from seaside towns in Essex to London without endless breakdowns and excuses.

“Commuters pay a large sum of money to use the trains and, quite often, what they get is a lot of grief and delay.”

Ben Gummer, MP for Ipswich, admitted the roads and railways have been under funded and said: “Historically this part of the country has not had its fair share of funding for transport infrastructure.”

However, he pointed out that Chancellor George Osborne announced in his autumn statement major projects to improve and widen two of East Anglia’s trunk roads – the A14 and the A11. “

He said: “In times of austerity we are getting the investment which previous governments have said they couldn’t afford.

“It’s now important to keep the money flowing into this region to further improve the road network, such as congestion pinch-points along the A12, and into the railways.

“The priorities for the new rail franchise, which starts in 2014, are proper reliability, better rolling stock and faster journey times.”

Meanwhile, Priti Patel, MP for Witham, questioned the credibility of the IPPR report, saying the figure for London was high because of the new train line, Crossrail.

“The IPPR seem completely unaware that the line will go into Essex as they have failed to include the costs of Crossrail in the calculation for the East of England,” said Ms Patel

“The report also fails to point out that some Crossrail spending is being paid for by increased business rates on larger London businesses.

“When these irregularities with the IPPR report are taken into account, that may explain in part why the average spend for the East of England seems low compared to London. In this respect, the report is misrepresenting how money is being invested in infrastructure.”

Colchester MP Bob Russell said the transport needs of the capital were greater than other parts of the country, but added more investment was needed in the road and rail network here. He said he would also like the government to consider the potential of trams.

IPPR North analysis shows transport spending is:

�2731 per head in London

�792 per head in the South East

�311 per head in the East Midlands

�269 per head in the West Midlands

�201 per head in Yorkshire & Humber

�134 per head in the North West

�43 per head in the East

�19 per head in the South West

�5 per head in the North East