A Berwick councillor has said she welcomes the Government's new commitments to dual the A1 in Northumberland - but added that she will believe it when there are "spades in the ground."
Coun Isabel Hunter, represents Berwick West with Ord on Northumberland County Council and runs a haulage firm, says the long-awaited project would undoubtedly benefit the area.
But after decades of campaigning and numerous false dawns, she says she remains sceptical.
Read more: Councillor issues apology to Blyth Valley MP Ian Levy after sharing defamatory video
Coun Hunter said: "I would welcome it. It would help industry, it would help tourism and it would be a benefit to everyone - but I'm still sceptical until I see it.
"We have had these promises for many years. I hope these promises come to fruition, but I'm very sceptical. There have been many false promises.
"It is not going to be an easy fix. There's a lot of work that has to be done, and I will not believe it until I see diggers and spades in the ground."
Coun Hunter also feared that in some areas, the road would have to be diverted due to existing buildings, pushing the cost up higher.
It comes after Berwick MP and newly appointed Transport Minister Anne Marie Trevelyan reiterated her pledge to deliver the project at the Conservative Party Conference.
In a speech on Tuesday, Ms Trevelyan said: "Speaking as the Member of Parliament who has campaigned for dualling the A1 – a road improvement first promised in 1992 - and was elected on that promise, delivering on our promises is firmly on my mind.”
Following Ms Trevelyan's appointment, Coun Hunter warned that the people of Berwick would not forget if the project was not progressed.
The A1 is single carriageway for long stretches past Morpeth, but last week the Government included a plan to dual the road from the town to the village of Ellingham - a 23 mile section of the road - in a list of 100 infrastructure projects set to be "fast tracked."
Speaking to BBC Radio Newcastle on Wednesday, Ms Trevelyan said she was confident the second part of the project - dualling the road right up to Berwick and beyond - would be completed in the future.
She said dualling the A1 would "completely revolutionise and open up the opportunities for the North East" by bringing businesses down the East Coast, adding that the lack of a dual carriageway here had been a "blocker for years".
Ms Trevelyan added that she was "excited" to get spades in the ground but conceded the entire project would not be done in one go. She said roads are typically extended in "chunks" and that feasibility work would begin soon to understand "what the need would be and what the cost would be."
Read next:
