Press release

Planned road works in the North West: summary for Monday 9 to Sunday 15 January 2017

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 6 January 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. Drivers looking for roadworks information (such as overnight carriageway closures) for individual schemes should now visit Traffic England. Some of our larger schemes have project pages giving other information. These can now be accessed from a dedicated regional page.

M6 junctions 16 to 19: Cheshire smart motorway

Work is underway to upgrade the M6 to a smart motorway between Crewe and Knutsford, converting the hard shoulder to an extra lane and introducing new variable speed limits. The project is due to be completed in spring 2018. Details on planned overnight closures are available at Traffic England.

M6 junction 22 Newton-le-Willows

Essential bridge maintenance work is underway to replace 40 corroded bearings on the M6 junction 22 bridges. Average speed cameras and a 50mph speed limit are in place. The work, between junctions 21a and 23, is due to be completed in the spring.

M6 junction 34 Lancaster

Lancashire County Council’s new link road between junction 34 of the M6 and Heysham has now opened but finishing work will require lane and hard shoulder closures along the M6 through junction 34 to continue for the time being. More information is available of the scheme website.

M60 junction 8 Sale to junction 20 Rochdale

A major smart motorway 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 narrow lanes and a temporary 50mph split limit in place for the safety of drivers and road workers. The project is due to be completed in autumn 2017. Details on overnight closures are available on our Facebook page.

M61 junctions 4 Atherton to junction 5 Westhoughton

A scheme is taking place overnight to replace the central reservation barrier between junctions 4 and 5 on the M61. The work is being carried out between 9pm and 5am, Monday to Friday, and is due to be completed by February. Temporary lane closures will be in place.

M61 to A580 Kearsley

The southbound link road from junction 2 of the M61 near Kearsley to the eastbound A580 East Lancashire Road will be closed overnight for resurfacing from Monday 9 January. The work will take place between 8pm and 5am, Monday to Friday, and until 7am at weekends. The scheme is due to be completed by early February.

A556 Knutsford to Bowdon

A £192 million project is being delivered to build a new dual carriageway linking the M56 to the M6 in Cheshire. The A556 will be closed overnight southbound between Bowdon roundabout and Bucklow Hill for five nights, between 9pm and 5am, from Monday 9 January. The exit slip roads at junction 7 of the M56 will also be closed during the same times. The A56 Lymm Road will be closed at the junction with Bowdon roundabout from 9pm on Friday 13 January until 5am on Monday 16 January. Chapel Lane will remain closed from the A556 Chester Road to Hulse Heath Lane until the end of January.

A585 West Drive to Fleetwood Cycleway

Work is taking place on a new shared footpath and cycleway between West Drive and Fleetwood. Narrow lanes and a temporary 30mph speed limit are being used used along the route to help provide a safe space for workers constructing the new shared paths. Work will take place between 7am and 7pm each day with occasional overnight work. The project is due to be completed by the end of March.

A590 Lindal in Furness

Work is taking place to tackle flooding between Pennington Lane and Bank End Cottages. Narrow lanes and a temporary 30mph speed limit will be in place until completion at the end of March 2017.

A595 Egremont

Repairs to the safety barriers adjacent to Wyndham Place on the A595 will get underway from Monday 9 January and are due to be completed by the end of February. A contraflow system will be in place on the southern approach to the Main Street/East Road roundabout.

A66 Brough

Resurfacing work started on Monday 14 November and will continue until the end of January. Overnight lane closures will be in place, between 8pm and 6am, with traffic led through the roadworks by a contractor’s vehicle.

A66 Embleton

Works is taking place to install new signs and paint white lines at the Embleton junction. Temporary traffic lights are in place, and the scheme is due to be completed later this month.

A66 Bassenthwaite Lake

A contraflow system is in place while work takes place on the embankment in the central reservation next to Bass Lake. The scheme is due to be completed in the spring.

A66 Thornthwaite (Osprey Site)

Construction work is taking place to protect the A66 from flooding, at the Osprey Site near Thornthwaite, by raising the height of the carriageway. Temporary traffic lights are in place along with a 40mph speed limit. The scheme is due to be completed in the spring.

A66 Crow Wood to Dacre – Eastbound

Lane closures and a 40mph speed limit will be in place for one week along the eastbound dual carriageway between Crow Wood and Dacre junction to install new kerbs, paint white lines and for verge work following the recent resurfacing scheme.

A66 Marron Bridge

Maintenance work on Marron Bridge, between Broughton Cross and Bridgefoot on the A66, will get underway on the Monday 9 January. Temporary traffic lights will be in place, mainly during off-peak hours, for the first phase of the scheme. The project is due to be completed by March.

A66 Sandford

Temporary traffic lights will be in operation between 9.30am and 3.30pm on the A66 at Sandford to allow BT to carry out cabling work between Monday 9 and Friday 20 January.

A665 Bury Old Road

A scheme is taking place to upgrade the safety barriers on the A665 bridge on Bury Old Road over the M60 near junction 17. The work will be carried out between 8.30am and 11pm, Monday to Friday, with temporary traffic lights and lane closures in place from 6.30pm. Some overnight and weekend working may also be required. The Kenilworth Avenue junction with Bury Old Road will be closed throughout the scheme, with a diversion in place. The project is due to be completed by March.

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 6 January 2017