Latest news with #NationalHighways'
South Wales Argus
15-05-2025
- Automotive
- South Wales Argus
Severn Crossing: M4 Prince of Wales Bridge resurfacing delay
The original M48 Severn Bridge will be closed to heavy goods vehicles over 7.5 tonnes from Tuesday, May 27 as operators National Highways aim to reduce weight on the bridge due to weakening cables. However during planned closures of the M4 bridge National Highways has said it will allow lorries over 7.5 tonnes to cross the M48 bridge at Chepstow. Officials from the UK Government owned company answered questions from Monmouthshire county councillors at a special meeting of its public services scrutiny committee on Monday, May 12. But the body ruled out financial compensation for firms impacted by the weight restriction though support for resurfacing roads on the Welsh side of the bridge impacted by higher traffic volumes could be considered. National Highways manager Ian Thompson told councillors the body hadn't consulted on the restriction, which was announced on April 11 as it was a decision made on safety grounds. He said: 'Is the bridge safe to operate? Yes it is but if we don't reduce the weight and load we will see further deterioration and weakening of the structure. 'We made an operational safety decision and because it was a safety decision it was not negotiable.' Jonathan Hill, National Highways' route manager, said the weight restriction, expected to be in place for 12 to 18 months is a short term measure. The medium term plan is to manage vehicles over 7.5 tonnes to allow them to cross the bridge and the longer term solution to strengthen the bridge's suspension cables could cost between £300 million to £600m and take five years or more. Both managers stressed funding for the 'groundbreaking' longer-term engineering solution will be dependent on the outcome of the UK Government's spending review, which is due to be held this summer. Mitigations to reduce the impact of the closure to heavy goods vehicles include postponing resurfacing works on east bound lanes, going out of Wales, on the M4 Prince of Wales Bridge to a date yet to be decided. Mr Hill said the bridge has been restored to three lanes, eastbound, at 70 miles per hour. Regular inspections of the surface of the M4 bridge will be made and Mr Thompson said: 'We're not delaying, it forgetting about it and hoping for the best it will be closely monitored and we will need to do some patching work, hopefully overnight, to ensure the integrity and safety of the road surface.' Asked about contingencies, when the Prince of Wales Bridge is closed, Mr Thompson said during planned closures it will be possible for HGVs to use the M48 bridge. 'We will operate a system to allow HGVs over 7.5 tonnes over the M48 in a controlled way, mainly overnight.' Managing the crossings will, Mr Thompson said, be 'resource intensive with boots on the ground.' During unplanned closures those vehicles will be diverted up to the M50 which has been described as a 100 mile detour. Police and the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency will enforce the weight restriction and will also use ANPR number plate recognition technology. But councillors were told using the technology to exempt locally-based HGVs isn't being considered, due to difficulty in determining which locations or firms should be exempt, and were also told implementing the intended medium term managed crossings couldn't be put in place immediately. A team is planning how that can be done while a procurement process will also be needed and the technology then put in place. Along with extensive consultation with local authorities and the transport industry National Highways has also held talks with the New House Farm industrial estate, in Chepstow, which is based at the foot of the bridge. Chepstow Conservative councillor Paul Pavia said it was 'only fair' National Highways put some money towards resurfacing the local road network that would come under greater strain from increased traffic. Mr Thompson replied 'We will take that forward for consideration' and added: 'I'm not promising any funding I'm not in a position to do that.' National Highways will share modelling information on the likely impact of traffic on other roads with Monmouthshire County Council and the Welsh Government's South Wales Trunk Road Agency to manage the impact. Councillors suggested traffic lights should be installed at the M4 Junction 23a Magor roundabout, which is managed by Monmouthshire County Council, while the council is still pushing for a Rogiet link road from the M48 which it believes would also reduce traffic on Chepstow's Highbeech roundabout. Chepstow Labour councillor Armand Watts, who chaired the meeting, said the weight restriction had 'shocked' councillors. He said Monmouthshire had hoped to develop Severnside by 'piggybacking' on to the 9,000 jobs across the channel at Avonmouth: 'That suddenly disappeared and slipped away from our hands.' Buses and coaches, recovery vehicles and fire engines will still be able to cross the M48 Severn Bridge when the weight restriction is in place.
Yahoo
09-05-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Drivers using dangerous junction after road closure
Residents living in a Cotswold village say they are being forced to use a dangerous road junction where there are "deaths and accidents regularly". It follows the closure of a minor road from Brimpsfield to the A417 as part of the Missing Link scheme to build a dual carriageway between Gloucester and Cirencester. The closure means locals are using the busy Birdlip junction on the A417 for the most direct route to Cirencester, which involves crossing both lanes of traffic. National Highways said it "understands the concerns of the residents" and that work was being phased "very carefully to minimise the impact on local communities and motorists". Martin Smith, who has lived in Brimpsfield for nearly 50 years, said there are "deaths and accidents regularly" on the junction. He explained drivers end up waiting at the junction for a gap to appear. "If a lorry is coming it's probably doing 30 or so miles an hour, but motor cars they can sometimes be going 60 or 70," he said. "Very recently I was at that junction, taking two of my family to Kemble and a car came over the top and I thought, I've got plenty of time. But then I thought, No, I haven't and the car hit me up the backside while waiting to join the main road, so it is a notorious junction," Mr Smith added. He said "on the positive side", rat running through the village "is probably going to come to an end, when the missing link is done". Another resident, Patrick Daley, said it was "a terrible junction". "Since we've lived here two women have been killed. It is dangerous and people who are coming up the hill are very pleased to be on the flat again, so put their foot down. "You have to be very conscious to get out safely, so I take my time". The road was initially supposed to close for six weeks from March, but now looks set to remain shut into the summer. Steve Foxley, National Highways' project director for the Missing Link scheme, said they were doing "everything we can" to minimise disruption and keep residents informed. He added: "We understand the concerns of the residents at this location, and we will be opening the local access road by early June, or earlier if possible." "For safety reasons, drivers are unable to access the A417 due to the contraflow in place but access remains from the Elkstone/Highwayman Inn junction" he said. Follow BBC Gloucestershire on Facebook, X and Instagram. Send your story ideas to us on email or via WhatsApp on 0800 313 4630. Bike park reopening after A417 closures What's happening with roadworks on the A417? National Highways
Yahoo
23-03-2025
- Automotive
- Yahoo
Clean up of A2 ahead of anti-litter campaign
An initiative to clear rubbish on a busy road near Dover is set to begin on Monday ahead of a campaign to prevent litter being dropped. Some lane closures will be in place on the A2 as waste management company Veolia carry out clearance work over the next two weeks. The company cleared 23 tonnes of litter from the road between the Duke of York and Whitfield roundabouts in 2024 as part of a council initiative. Dover District Council said litter costs taxpayers to clean up, looks unsightly and can endanger motorists and wildlife. National Highways' head of customer journeys, Freda Rashdi, says across England the organisation has teams litter-picking "almost every day", which can involve lane closures. She said this would be unnecessary "if people didn't drop rubbish in the first place". A six-month awareness campaign aimed at discouraging littering by motorists will start in the summer. New bins and signage will be installed at laybys on the A2 between Whitfield Roundabout and the Port of Dover as part of the scheme. Ferries and nearby service stations will also display anti-littering posters, and messaging will be added to correspondence from ferry companies. Jamie Pout, the district council's cabinet member for environmental services, said: "We hope that this joint campaign will draw attention to the blight of discarded litter on our roads and encourage drivers to use the bins provided or take their litter home with them." Follow BBC Kent on Facebook, on X, and on Instagram. Send your story ideas to southeasttoday@ or WhatsApp us on 08081 002250. Criminal gangs ruining environment, says watchdog Wildlife charity asks visitors to leave no trace More than 200 litter fines a week issued in Kent National Highways Dover District Council
BBC News
20-03-2025
- Automotive
- BBC News
Drivers told to avoid M4 near Bristol during bridge demolition
Drivers have been told avoid the M4 ahead of a major closure. Terry Robinson, National Highways' engineering manager for structures in the South West, has urged motorists to follow official diversions as the road closes for 60 hours to allow a bridge over the motorway to be demolished. The road will be closed between Junction 18 and 19 near Bristol from 19:00 GMT on Friday 21 March to 06:00 GMT on Monday 24 March. One business owner who had been cut off by the closure of the A432 Badminton Road bridge told the BBC: "It's welcome that the bridge is coming down, it's just how long we've got to wait now." Mr Robinson said that 88,000 vehicles a day used the M4, all of which would be diverted down smaller roads during the closure. "If you can, avoid the area," he said. "If you are using the diversion routes please stick to the diversion routes. "They are well-signed and they will be your quickest way of getting between Junction 18 and Junction 19." He added that over the 60 hours of the closure, workers would be putting in place huge reinforcements to protect the motorway, including four shipping containers. Six excavators would be used to take out sections of the sides of the bridge until it collapses in on itself. Mr Robinson said it had been a "huge effort to get to this point", adding that National Highways had used unconventional methods to get the bridge ready in the expected three years - less than half the usual six or seven years it would ordinarily take to replace a similar bridge. This weekend's work is expected to cost half a million pounds, with the total project coming in at around £20 million. It was announced in 2023 that the bridge would be closing after cracks were noticed in the structure, cutting off a number of businesses from the rest of the of those affected was Shaun Young, manager at Heritage Sheds and Fencing. He said revenues at the family-run business had dropped "40% overnight" after the closure. He added that the business had been forced to start offering free deliveries at their own cost and criticised the lack of support they had been offered. "There doesn't seem to have been any help for local businesses to survive," he said, adding that if the "nightmare" closure went on longer than expected he'd be forced to consider the long-term future of the company. "If it carries on, I don't know what the future is going to hold," he said. Responding to a query about these concerns from local businesses, Mr Robinson said: "We fully appreciate the disruption this has caused to the local economy and to everyone else but as a company safety is our first imperative. "We closed the bridge for safety reasons so we are working as fast as we can to get that bridge reopened, traffic flowing again, and restore the business really to those properties."
BBC News
14-03-2025
- Automotive
- BBC News
Study recommends new M4 to south coast corridor to avoid Bath
Lorries and other traffic heading to the south coast from the M4 should be routed through Wiltshire instead of Bath, according to a government study. Currently, the designated route from the M4 to the Dorset coast is via the A46 and A36, funnelling it across Cleveland Bridge and through a National Highways' study has recommended making the A350 in Wiltshire the designated route and North East Somerset Council (BANES) said it would make a "hugely positive impact" to traffic in the city. Wiltshire Council said it would need to secure investment but the finding was "a vital first positive step" towards improvements. To avoid Bath, the agency's M4 to Dorset Coast Study recommends traffic should follow the A350 via Chippenham, Melksham and Westbury and then join the A36 at already have to find alternative routes due to an 18-tonne weight limit on Cleveland Bridge in Bath, introduced in Rigby, BANES cabinet member for transport, said the authority was "delighted at this outcome"."No longer will Bath be seen as the preferred route for HGVs between the M4 and the south coast," she said."This will have a hugely positive impact on traffic flows long term in Bath and north east Somerset and air quality enhancements." Parvis Khansari, from Wiltshire Council, said it will mean highway improvements could be made at "several key points in the county" including Melksham, Westbury, Warminster and Salisbury."This corridor is not only essential for regional travel, but these strategic roads also provide vital links between many of our towns and villages here in Wiltshire and so improving them will benefit us all," he said."There is a long way to go before we can secure this investment and make these improvements a reality, but this is a vital first positive step in the right direction."
