Major road projects to improve journeys in Merseyside and Cheshire

Two major new road schemes worth more than US$388 million (£300 million) are set to cut congestion and improve journey times for hundreds of thousands of drivers in Merseyside and Cheshire, UK. Highways England has set out its preferred options for upgrading the key route to the Port of Liverpool and creating a new junction on the M56 near Runcorn following public consultations earlier this year.
September 1, 2017 Read time: 2 mins

 Two major new road schemes worth more than US$388 million (£300 million) are set to cut congestion and improve journey times for hundreds of thousands of drivers in Merseyside and Cheshire, UK.

8101 Highways England has set out its preferred options for upgrading the key route to the Port of Liverpool and creating a new junction on the M56 near Runcorn following public consultations earlier this year.

A new three-mile dual carriageway between the motorway network and the port will take freight away from residential areas on the A5036, which has been identified as being the tenth most congested road in England. The bypass will serve the existing port as well as the deep-water container terminal, which is expected to triple the port’s volume of goods by 2030.

The new junction 11a on the M56 will provide a new link to the Mersey Gateway bridge between Runcorn and Widnes and improve local access to the motorway, while the new junction on the M56 will take traffic away from residential areas as well as providing a new route to the Mersey Gateway bridge – an important new link between Cheshire and Merseyside.

A new roundabout, controlled by traffic lights, will also be built at the junction connecting Broom’s Cross Road, Brickwall Lane and the new bypass. Broom’s Cross Road will also be upgraded to a dual carriageway from the new roundabout to Switch Island, where the A5036 connects with the M57 and M58.

Detailed designs for both major road projects will now be developed, with construction work due to start by spring 2020.

Funding for the schemes is being provided as part of the government’s £15 billion Road Investment Strategy (RIS), and will help boost the Northern Powerhouse by improving transport connectivity and reliability to help the economy of the North.

Urban Traffic Control

For more information on companies in this article

Related Content

  • Monitoring during construction reveals benefits of new expressway
    June 6, 2014
    David Crawford reports on how the authorities in New Zealand are using Bluetooth technology to monitor the effects of a new expressway as it is being constructed. New Zealand Highway Agency (NZHA) is using Bluetooth-based vehicle detection to assess the impact of its biggest road building project as the various sections are completed. The large-scale deployment of a Bluetooth-based vehicle detection system is making substantial contributions to traffic data needs in progressing the new Waikato Expressway, a
    Read More
  • UK government pledges £6m on chargepoints for ultra-low emission taxis
    February 12, 2019
    The UK government is investing more than £6 million in the deployment of chargepoints to support ultra-low emission taxis across the country. The money will be used to install nearly 300 rapid points and 46 fast ones in 17 local authorities, including Greater Manchester, Brighton & Hove and Leicester. Rapid chargepoints are typically able to charge an EV to 80% in 30 minutes depending on the model’s battery capacity while fast charging is expected to deliver more than 60 miles of range in 10-30 minu
    Read More
  • Move NY Legislation introduced
    March 29, 2016
    A coalition of New York State Assembly Members has unveiled legislation that they say will not only fund Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) capital needs but will create a US$4.5 billion Transit Gap Investment Fund (TGIF) to expand public transit and improve accessibility for millions of New Yorkers, particularly those who live in so-called ‘transit deserts’. Introduced by Assembly Member Robert J. Rodriguez, chair of the subcommittee on infrastructure, and joined by 14 co-sponsors from across t
    Read More
  • FCC consortium to build Colombia tunnel project
    November 2, 2015
    A consortium led by Spanish company FCC has been awarded a contract for the Toyo tunnel project, including design, construction, operation and maintenance of the tunnel in the Urabá Port, around 80 kilometres from Medellín, Colombia. The US$432 million project, which is expected to take ten years to complete, is located between the municipalities of Giraldo and Cañasgordas, around 500 kilometres north-west of Bogotá. It includes the building of a completely new road section, 41 kilometres long with one
    Read More

Highlighted Content