£114,000 to build a zebra crossing

How much would you think it costs to build a zebra crossing?

A couple of workmen, a few pots of black and white paint, two Belisha beacons - it doesn't sound like a lot.

Yet it emerged yesterday that the Highways Agency spends £114,000 on each new pedestrian crossing.



The figure for the familiar black and white crossing includes £11,000 for "design work".

A further £16,000 is spent on the beacons, electrical wiring and road signs while the remaining £87,000 is swallowed up by labour costs, the equivalent of three and a half years pay for the average worker.

The spokesman for the Highways Agency said the £103,000 to construct the crossing includes traffic management whilst the crossing is under construction, drainage, excavation of existing pavement, disposal of material, new kerbing and paving, anti-skid surfacing, road markings and studs, new traffic signs, electrical connection and supply pillars and new signal heads and poles.