Press release

Planned road works in the North West: summary for Monday 3 to Sunday 9 October 2016

Summary of planned new and ongoing road improvements over the coming week.

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The following summary of planned new and ongoing road improvements over the coming week is correct as of Friday 30 September and could be subject to change due to weather conditions or unforeseen circumstances. All our improvement work is carried out with the aim of causing as little disruption as possible.

M53 between junction 4 and 5

Work began on 28 September 2016 for approximately 4 months. The scheme will include renewal of road markings, renewal of bridge joints and traffic censor works

This will be carried out in a number of phases between 8pm and 5am (7am during weekend) Monday to Saturday with lane closures. Some night closures will also be required with signed diversions.

M56 Weaver Viaduct repairs and resurfacing

Work started on Monday 15 August on a £1.5 million project to repair and resurface Weaver Viaduct which helps carry the M56 between junction 12 and junction 14. The work involves overnight lane and hard shoulder closures – with a handful of overnight carriageway closures in October and work will be complete by the beginning of November.

M6 junctions 16 to 19: Cheshire smart motorway

Work is underway for the smart motorway upgrade – typically with 1 or 2 lanes closed overnight between junctions in both directions and/or mobile lane closures along short sections of carriageway.

For more information, visit the scheme website.

M6 Mount North and South – Bridge Maintenance Works

Essential bridge maintenance starts on 3 October to replace 40 corroded bearings on the M6 J22 bridges. The Highways England work, between Junctions 21a and 23, is likely to last for six months. It will be carried out in a number of phases, largely during daytime hours, Monday to Friday, between 7.30am and 5pm, with some work taking place outside these times.

M6 junction 34 Lancaster

Lancashire County Council work off the motorway on the Heysham Link project requires a lane 1 and hard shoulder closure in both directions on the motorway around junction 34. On Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday and Saturday nights (4, 5, 6 and 8 October) – between 8pm and 6am each night - both the southbound entry slip road and the southbound exit slip road will be closed at junction 34. On Friday night (7 October) the northbound exit slip road at junction 34 will be closed from 8pm until 6am.

For more information, visit the scheme website.

M6 junction 39 Shap to 38 Tebay

A combination of resurfacing, bridge joint replacement and fencing renewal on the M6 southbound started on Monday 15 August until early October. This will involve a temporary 50mph speed limit for the duration of the works and lane and slip road closures. Most of the work – between 8pm and 6am at night - will be done with lane closures but some slip roads will need to be closed overnight occasionally.

M60 junction 8 Sale to junction 20 Rochdale

A major scheme is taking place to cut congestion and improve journey times on parts of the M60 and the M62 in Greater Manchester. The scheme involves overnight slip road and carriageway closures with a 50mph limit in place for the safety of workers and drivers. A significant programme of temporary night closures has been programmed to fit gantries with wiring and signs, which will take the project to May 2017. These are detailed on the journey impact tab of the project page and updated weekly, subject to weather conditions.

The project is due to be completed in autumn 2017.

For more information, visit the scheme website.

M602 Clarendon Bridge

Work to refurbish this footbridge over the M602 near Eccles started on Tuesday (30 August) and is expected to take around 12 weeks. The footbridge will be closed – with a signed pedestrian diversion place – throughout the project. There will also be occasional overnight – 9pm to 5am – M602 carriageway closures with signed, short diversions in place.

Signed local diversions.

A556 Knutsford to Bowdon

A £192 million project is being carried out to create a new dual carriageway linking the M56 to the M6 in Cheshire.

Current and forthcoming closures:

*the exit slip road from the eastbound M56 at junction 7 is closed for work to provide new link roads and a new roundabout at Bowdon
* Millington Lane, off the existing A556, is now closed around the clock until Friday 11 November - access will be maintained for local residents at all times.

For more information, visit the scheme website.

A56 Rising Bridge roundabout

Work has started to improve safety and reduce delays at Rising Bridge Roundabout near Haslingden. Work will be carried out daily between 8pm and 6am, and will involve total closure of the A56 between A680 Blackburn Road and A679 Burnley Road. Single lane closures to Rising Bridge roundabout will also be required and some full closures will be needed at Rising Bridge roundabout, during which times fully signed diversion routes will be in place. With the exception of the embankment and surfacing, the works is expected to finish in the near future.

A590 Booths Roundabout to Greenodd

There will be a full closure in both directions between Booths roundabout and Greenodd roundabout overnight from 2000hrs-0500hrs on Sunday 9 October and again on Sunday 30 October whilst carriageway repairs are undertaken. Traffic travelling north east will be diverted to take the first exit at the A590/A595 roundabout and travel north on the A595 until they reach the junction with the A5092. They will continue on the A5902 until they reach the end of the diversion at Greenodd roundabout. Traffic travelling south west will be directed to exit the A590 at Greenodd roundabout and continue on this route until they reach the A592 junction where they will turn right. Traffic shall continue on the A592 in a southerly direction until they reach the junction with the A590 where the diversion will end.

A595 Blackbeck

Bridge repairs south of Blackbeck roundabout, between Egremont and Calder Bridge, started on Monday 12 September for 6 weeks. Work will take place around the clock with a temporary speed limit and temporary traffic lights in place. The traffic lights will be staffed at key times.

A66 Brough

There will be overnight closures of the eastbound carriageway, with traffic being diverted through Brough village, on Thursday 6 and Friday 7 October whilst carriageway repairs are being undertaken.

A66 Keswick

A 4 week programme of overnight work to resurface sections of the A66 between Crosthwaite roundabout and the bridge over the River Greta High Briery interchange with the A591 started on Monday 12 September. Most of the resurfacing will be done between 8pm and 6am each night – with a temporary 40mph speed limit and often with temporary traffic lights being used to manage traffic through the roadworks.

A66 Embleton

24hr traffic signals will be in place from 19 September until Christmas, although these will be reduced to daytime signals where safety allows, whilst carriageway works are undertaken to alleviate flood risk. Further works will be done at other sites adjacent to Bassenthwaite Lake from October which will necessitate full overnight closures and contraflows; full details of which will be published nearer the time.

A663 Broadway

From 3 October 2016, three and a half miles of the are to be resurfaced, from the junction with the A627 (M) at Holden Fold, to Moston Lane East, south of junction 21, M60.

Highways England will replace the old asphalt with a low-noise, smooth surface and replace worn markings with new ones. Studs and traffic detector loops will also be replaced as well as manhole covers.

All work will be carried out in sections under night closures, between the hours of 8pm and 5am (Monday to Friday nights) with some weekend working between 8pm and 7am (Saturday and Sunday night). Between 7 November and Christmas, work will only take place from Monday to Wednesday. Signed diversions will be in place.

The project is likely to be completed by the end of January.

General enquiries

Members of the public should contact the Highways England customer contact centre on 0300 123 5000.

Media enquiries

Journalists should contact the Highways England press office on 0844 693 1448 and use the menu to speak to the most appropriate press officer.

Published 30 September 2016