A £145m rolling programme aimed at tackling congestion and improving safety on major roads in England was announced today by the transport secretary, Alistair Darling.

He listed 92 schemes across the country which are intended to improve conditions on trunk roads and motorways.

The measures will be carried out by the highways agency and should all be completed within five years.

The "pinch points" had been identified at locations ranging from major motorway junctions, such as Junction 10 on the M62 in north-west England, to congested dual carriageway roundabouts such as the A38 at Derby.

Mr Darling said: "The government is committed to tackling congestion and reducing the number of accidents on our roads.

"The package announced today will address some serious bottlenecks on the motorway and trunk road network which currently cause major delays."

He added: "Improving these junctions will cut queues and improve traffic flow, leading to more reliable journey times and less pollution."

Later, speaking at a meeting of road experts in the West Midlands, Mr Darling argued that he did not accept the "simple" argument that people were "either pro- or anti-car".

"Let's be clear about this: the government's role must be to help people travel, not stop them," he said.

"Our existing prosperity depends on our ability to move people and goods as quickly and as efficiently as possible.

"I believe we can do so in a way that is consistent with our needs to conserve and improve the environment in which we all live."