The Highways Agency has announced the publication of the first five-year Strategic Business Plan of the soon to be unveiled body Highways England.

The new government-owned organisation will replace the Highways Agency from April next year and already has plenty to do in terms of more than 100 schemes that have so far been announced as part of the government's latest multi-billion pound investment in transport network improvements that will be completed by the end of the decade.

However, as part of this new five-year Strategic Business Plan, further details of the responsibilities and commitments of the newly-formed organisation have been revealed, including a pledge to create upwards of 400 miles of additional major A road and motorway carriageway in England by 2020.

In addition, the document outlines the need for improved road safety to be at the heart of all Highways England developments in the years ahead, building towards a vision of the blight of accidents on the UK's roads being all but eliminated in the future.

A new strategy to improve safety for and to encourage more people to take up cycling is also set to be published by the body by the end of 2015 and a pledge to improve the quality of existing roads has also been made, with more than 1,150 miles of carriageway to undergo resurfacing.

The reduction of traffic noise through the use of innovative new low-sound surfaces will also be a key requirement for Highways England in the coming years.

Highways Agency chief executive Graham Dalton stated: "This is another important milestone for England's motorways and major A roads.

"The plan is ambitious and sets out a vision where safety means no-one should be harmed on our network; where minimal disruption means planning roadworks better over the next five years; and modernisation means more 'smart' motorways and a new standard of A road.

"When we realise this vision it will make a real difference for the four million people who drive on this network every day."

Mr Dalton added that in order to deliver investment and improvement to the nation's transport infrastructure on the scale that has been outlined in the latest plans by roads minister John Hayes, it is important for the new body to work smarter and in a more efficient manner, while building lasting and beneficial relationships with suppliers and all road users in the years ahead.

It is therefore an exciting time for the road transport sector in the UK at present, with Mr Dalton concluding: "This will allow us to provide a network that offers better journeys on better roads enabling growth across the country."

A detailed delivery schedule for the measures set out in the Strategic Business Plan is now expected to be produced by April next year and will coincide with the official launch of the new Highways England body.