Text entered

Construction exhibitions ahead of preparatory work on M62 managed motorway scheme

Government Communications (NDS)

13 September 2011

The Highways Agency exhibitions in Cleckheaton on Friday 23 and Saturday 24 September will outline how the managed motorway scheme will benefit road users on the 15.5-mile section between Junction 25 (Brighouse) and Junction 30 (Rothwell).The contractor will begin mobilisation works on Monday 26 September and this will include the installation of traffic management and site clearance. The hard shoulder will be closed between Junction 27 (Gildersome) and Junction 28 (Tingley) but three lanes will be kept in both directions. A 50mph speed limit, enforced with average speed safety cameras, will also be in place for the safety of road users and the workforce. The £150m managed motorway scheme - the first of its kind in Yorkshire - will involve the use of variable mandatory speed limits and use of the hard shoulder as an extra traffic lane to ease congestion. It is expected that construction work will start in full in October (subject to a statutory process being completed), with work due for completion in 2013-14.David Pilsworth, Highways Agency project manager said:"These public exhibitions will be a chance for residents and road-users to find out more about what they can expect, both once construction work gets underway and once the managed motorway scheme is in operation. If anyone has any questions about the scheme and how it works, we would welcome the opportunity to speak to them."This scheme will provide much needed additional capacity on the M62, and our experience elsewhere shows that Managed Motorways deliver significant safety benefits and more reliable journey times."The M62 public exhibitions will be held at Cleckheaton Library, Whitcliffe Road, Cleckheaton, BD19 3DX, on:* Friday 23rd September between 11am and 8pm; and * Saturday 24th September between 11am and 4pm.Visitors to the exhibitions will be able to find out more about what the works will involve, the steps being taken to minimise disruption during construction, and how the finished scheme will lead to safer and more reliable journeys. Staff from the Highways Agency and joint venture contractor bmJV will also be on hand to answer questions.The M62 managed motorway scheme features:* Controlled motorway technology installed along the whole scheme length - junctions 25 to 30 - to allow variable speed limits to be displayed to manage traffic flow and reduce congestion;* The hard shoulder will become a permanent traffic lane (24 hours a day, seven days a week) in both directions between junctions 25 and 26 and westbound between junctions 30 and 29;* The hard shoulder will be opened as an additional lane during busy periods in both directions between junctions 26 and 28 and eastbound between junctions 29 and 30; * As the M62 is four lanes in both directions between junctions 28 and 29 the hard shoulder will not be used as an additional traffic lane. Information about the speed limit and when to use the hard shoulder will be displayed on electronic signs on gantries above the motorway and monitored by staff in the Agency's Regional Control Centre at Wakefield.Work to deliver the scheme will include strengthening the hard shoulder, building emergency refuge areas, installing gantries and electronic signs, and installing sensors in the road to measure traffic levels and speeds. CCTV cameras will also be installed to monitor the motorway and emergency refuge areas.