The chancellor has promised to extend inflation beating funding arrangements until 2018 (links below.)
http://www.rmtbristol.org.uk/2007/10/darling_pledges_aboveinflation.html#more

http://www.gnn.gov.uk/environment/fullDetail.asp?ReleaseID=321092&NewsAreaID=2&NavigatedFromDepartment=False

Emphasising the need for long term investment in Britain's transport infrastructure , Alistair Darling said he was extending the guideline that government funding should rise by 2.25% a year above inflation until 2018.

As well as extending the funding guideline by an extra four years, Mr Darling said that investment on transport would rise to £14.5bn a year by 2010.

He said the cash would provide additional funding for strategic road schemes such as the widening of the M1 and M25 as well as providing £1.3bn a year to improve local and regional transport networks.

The amount being spent on upgrading the rail network would double over the next two years , ahead of a further £15bn over the following five years. The transport funding programme also provides for the construction of the £16bn trans-London railway link , Crossrail , which was given the go-ahead by Gordon Brown, last week.

Other projects include modernisation of the Thameslink line , the provision of an additional 1,300 rail carriages to help cut overcrowding , an extensive programme of station modernisations and more investment in freight.

Mr Darling's transport plans came under criticism from the British Chambers of Commerce. Director general David Frost said: "The chancellor's report was a disappointment for British businesses which are crying out for investment in the country's struggling transport infrastructure. The £14.5bn of new investment announced is a smokescreen, covering only a series of already announced projects."