Highways England announces funding to improve major motorway junction

Highways England has announced plans to invest total of US$3.7 million (£3 million) for major improvements to Switch Island in Merseyside, one of the north-west’s busiest motorway junctions where the M57, M58 and three A roads connect. Construction work at the junction, which is used by over 90,000 vehicles every day, is expected to start next year. The scheme is designed to improve the flow of traffic and enhance safety, following 49 collisions at the junction in the past two years. New traffic light
April 7, 2017 Read time: 2 mins
8101 Highways England has announced plans to invest total of US$3.7 million (£3 million) for major improvements to Switch Island in Merseyside, one of the north-west’s busiest motorway junctions where the M57, M58 and three A roads connect.

Construction work at the junction, which is used by over 90,000 vehicles every day, is expected to start next year. The scheme is designed to improve the flow of traffic and enhance safety, following 49 collisions at the junction in the past two years.

New traffic lights will be installed at a height of over 5 metres – higher than HGVs and double-decker buses – so that drivers approaching the junction can clearly see when the lights are changing.
 
Other improvements will include changes to the road layout and lane markings, new barriers between carriageways, coloured high friction surfaces and better signs.

The scheme is being funded by the government’s US$274 million (£220 million) congestion relief programme, which was announced by Transport Secretary Chris Grayling last month.
Urban Traffic Control

For more information on companies in this article

Related Content

  • Severn tolls will be abolished by the end of next year
    July 24, 2017

    Drivers will see an end to tolls on the UK’s Severn Crossings in 2018; the bridges are used by more than 25 million vehicles each year, saving significant travel time and distance for commuters and drivers using the M4 motorway.

    However, the tolls on both Severn Crossings have been seen as an economic and symbolic barrier to Wales’ future prosperity.

    It is estimated that this announcement would boost the economy of South Wales by around US$130 million (£100 million) a year and the average motorist could save over US$1,800 (£1,400) per year.

    Read More
  • Balfour Beatty JV awarded Southern Gateway contract by Texas DOT
    May 5, 2017
    Pegasus Link Constructors, a joint venture comprising infrastructure group Balfour Beatty and Fluor Corporation, has been awarded a US$625 million (£484 million) contract to reconstruct and improve the Southern Gateway, an 11 mile stretch of road in Dallas, Texas. The Texas Department of Transportation awarded the contract as part of the Clear Lanes initiative, a programme that prioritises funding for congestion relief projects in Texas’ metropolitan areas. The improvement scheme will improve road-user saf
    Read More
  • Øresund bridges the front line for border crossing traffic
    September 15, 2016
    Timothy Compston considers the challenges faced by the operators of the Øresund Bridge between Denmark and Sweden, the largest structure of its kind across Europe. In light of the concerns about the ongoing security threat and the unprecedented flow of migrants, many of the countries that make up the Schengen Area in Europe have re-introduced border controls. For its part, Sweden has rolled out ID checks for train, bus and ferry passengers from Denmark placing the landmark Øresund Bridge very much on the fr
    Read More
  • Heading the right way with Caltrans
    October 27, 2020
    Wrong-way collisions are relatively rare – but they are often head-on and fatal. After recent studies, California DoT is reviewing its highway design standards
    Read More

Highlighted Content