Britain's roads are now under the charge of Ruth Kelly, who is the new transport secretary.

Mrs Kelly was given the post by the new Prime Minister, Gordon Brown, as he unveiled his new cabinet earlier today.

Mrs Kelly faces big challenges in her new role, not least the stiff public opposition to road charging.

She has to find a way to deal with the 31 million cars cramming the country's roads, and the Government has committed itself to nationwide road pricing, a proposal to which over one million drivers opposed in an online petition to the last PM, Tony Blair.

Mrs Kelly will have to persuade more people to leave their cars at home and use public transport, at a time when the railways are facing more passenger use than at any time since the 1950s.