Overnight weekend closures on the A1 in North Yorkshire
Drivers advised of overnight weekend closures on the A1 in North Yorkshire
The A1 in North Yorkshire will be closed in both directions on:
- Saturday 21 February (8pm to 6am) – to remove overhead electricity cables
- Saturday 28 February (8pm to 6am) – to switch the traffic management to allow hard shoulder running
- Saturday 7 March (8pm to 6am) – to switch the traffic management to allow hard shoulder running
- Saturday 14 March (8pm to 6am) – to switch the traffic management to allow hard shoulder running and removal of overhead electricity cables.
Northbound the carriageway will be closed between junction 50 (Baldersby) and Scotch Corner. Southbound the carriageway will be closed between Scotch Corner and junction 51 (Leeming). Clearly signed diversions will be in place and drivers are advised to allow an extra 15 to 30 minutes to their journey time.
In addition there will be overnight closures of the northbound carriageway between Scotch Corner and junction 56 (Barton) on Monday 2 to Friday 6 March (overnight only from 8pm to 6am) – to prepare for traffic management switch.
Clearly signed diversions will be in place but drivers are advised that the diversion route for these closures is approximately 40 miles long and that they should allow an extra 50 minutes to their journey time.
The closures have been carefully scheduled to minimise disruption to drivers and will be put in place when traffic flows are at their lowest.
Highways Agency Senior Project Manager Martin Neal said:
The closures are needed for the safe removal of overhead electricity cables and to amend the current traffic management. During these closures we ask that drivers plan their journeys. Diversion routes will be clearly signed and drivers should allow extra time for travelling.
Work to widen a 12 mile section of the A1 between Leeming and Barton, and to create an alternative route for local traffic, started in March 2014. The scheme will unlock growth and boost the economy by creating a continuous motorway-standard route between London and Newcastle (including the M1 and A1M).
When the scheme opens to traffic in 2016/17, journey times between Leeming and Barton will be reduced by approximately 20 per cent, and over a sixty-year period, the improvements are predicted to save around 100 lives and prevent around 650 serious casualties. The work is also estimated to generate 750 jobs in the construction industry over three years.
The work is part of a £380m scheme to upgrade 12 miles of the A1 between Leeming and Barton to motorway standard. Following the decision on the route of the proposed local access road, work on the remaining section, between Scotch Corner and Barton, will start in due course.
For more information on the scheme, visit www.highways.gov.uk/roads/road-projects/a1-leeming-to-barton-improvement
General enquiries
Members of the public should contact the Highways Agency Information Line on 0300 123 5000.
Media enquiries
Journalists should contact the Highways Agency press office on 0844 693 1448 and use the menu to speak to the most appropriate press officer.