National Highways spending figures reveal key contractors shaping England’s road network

New supplier spending figures have highlighted the scale of National Highways’ relationship with the UK civil engineering and highways supply chain, with companies responsible for operating, maintaining and improving the strategic road network receiving hundreds of millions of pounds during 2025/26.

Connect Plus, the company responsible for managing and upgrading the M25, was the largest construction-related supplier to National Highways during the financial year, receiving £502.4 million.

It marks the second consecutive year that the M25 operator has occupied the top position and reflects the continuing scale of investment required to operate and maintain one of the country’s busiest and most complex motorway corridors.

The figures come during a period of transition for National Highways. Its latest annual reporting covers the year to 31 March 2026, immediately ahead of a new investment period in which maintaining and renewing existing assets is taking greater prominence.

Major civils businesses dominate top positions

Behind Connect Plus, some of the largest names in UK civil engineering and infrastructure feature prominently in the spending figures.

Kier Transportation was the second-largest recipient, receiving £352.5 million, closely followed by Skanska Construction UK on £346.9 million.

Balfour Beatty Civil Engineering ranked fourth with £325.2 million, while Amey completed the top five with payments totalling £240.7 million.

The remainder of the leading suppliers illustrates the breadth of expertise required to operate the strategic road network.

Ringway Infrastructure Services received £134.9 million and Galliford Try Infrastructure £128 million, while consultants Jacobs UK and WSP UK received £98.9 million and £93.6 million respectively.

Colas, Costain, Morgan Sindall, VolkerFitzpatrick and Tarmac also feature, alongside businesses and concession companies responsible for specific sections of the network.

The rankings underline how National Highways’ expenditure extends well beyond major construction projects. England’s strategic road network requires a combination of asset management, civil engineering, resurfacing, structures, design, consultancy, operations and specialist services to remain operational.

Connect Plus itself is responsible for the operation and maintenance of the M25 network and adjoining trunk and slip roads, illustrating the long-term asset-management responsibilities represented within the spending figures.

Focus shifting towards renewal and maintenance

The figures are particularly relevant as the highways sector moves into a period where maintaining existing infrastructure is expected to become an increasingly important part of the workload.

National Highways’ 2025/26 reporting covers capital delivery through both enhancement and renewals programmes, alongside the operational performance of the network.

That creates opportunities across a broad highways supply chain.

Large-scale civils contractors will remain central to bridge, structures and carriageway renewal programmes, while specialist suppliers will be required to support everything from traffic management and road restraint systems to surfacing, drainage, technology and maintenance.

The latest ranking therefore provides more than a snapshot of which contractors received the most money. It also demonstrates the scale and diversity of the supply chain required to keep England’s motorways and major A-roads operating.

National Highways’ leading suppliers in 2025/26

The figures supplied show Connect Plus comfortably leading the rankings, followed by a relatively closely grouped trio of Kier, Skanska and Balfour Beatty.

Amey sits fifth, followed by Ringway and Galliford Try, while HW Martin takes eighth position with £103.8 million, making it the final company in the ranking to exceed £100 million in payments.

Jacobs and WSP complete the top ten.

Further down the list, Colas received £93.5 million and Costain £90.1 million, followed by the Bouygues Travaux Publics/Murphy joint venture and Autolink Concessionaires.

Morgan Sindall, VolkerFitzpatrick, UK Highways M40, Connect M1-A1 and Tarmac also feature among the highest-paid suppliers.

National Highways' top suppliers for 2025/26 included:

Position	Supplier	Total paid
1	Connect Plus (M25)	£502.4m
2	Kier Transportation	£352.5m
3	Skanska Construction UK	£346.9m
4	Balfour Beatty Civil Engineering	£325.2m
5	Amey	£240.7m
6	Ringway Infrastructure Services	£134.9m
7	Galliford Try Infrastructure	£128.0m
8	HW Martin	£103.8m
9	Jacobs UK	£98.9m
10	WSP UK	£93.6m
11	Colas	£93.5m
12	Costain	£90.1m
13	Bouygues Travaux Publics / Murphy JV	£84.6m
14	Autolink Concessionaires (A19)	£84.4m
15	Morgan Sindall	£73.5m
16	VolkerFitzpatrick	£68.4m
17	UK Highways M40	£68.0m
18	Connect M1-A1	£66.1m
19	Tarmac	£62.6m

HW Martin provides specialist presence in top ten

One particularly notable aspect of the figures is the position of HW Martin.

Unlike many of the companies surrounding it in the rankings, which provide broad civil engineering, asset management or consultancy services, HW Martin has a substantial specialist presence in traffic management.

Its £103.8 million of direct National Highways payments puts the company eighth overall, alongside some of the largest organisations operating in the UK highways and infrastructure sector.

The figures also make HW Martin the only clearly identifiable dedicated traffic management specialist in the published leading supplier list.

That distinction is important because traffic management is fundamental to the delivery of almost every type of work undertaken on a live strategic road network. Major structures schemes, resurfacing, renewals and routine maintenance all depend on safely separating workforces from traffic while minimising disruption to road users.

HW Martin has a long-established relationship with the strategic road network, including previous recognition from National Highways’ predecessor Highways England for its work in areas such as workforce capability and skills.

As National Highways places greater emphasis on maintaining and renewing existing assets, the spending figures provide an indication of the scale at which both major civils businesses and their specialist counterparts are already operating.

For HW Martin, a place inside National Highways’ overall top ten – and its position as the only dedicated traffic management specialist represented at that level – provides a notable marker of the company’s scale within the strategic road network supply chain.