Ms Howlison joins the government-owned operator from the Department for Transport where she spent three years as its finance director.

She will take up her new role on the 20 June, taking over from Steve Dauncey who has held the position since 2009.

The appointment comes a year after Highways England replaced the Highways Agency as the body to oversee England’s strategic roads network.

Ms Howlison will play a key part in the delivery of Highways England’s £15bn roads investment strategy, with funding for roads projects set to grow by £1.2bn between now and 2020.

The appointment marks the latest in a list of high-profile public sector roles held by Ms Howlison.

Before the DfT, she spent four years as FD at the Department for Energy and Climate Change as well as four years leading Ofsted’s finance team.