DRIVERS WARNED
Major motorway to CLOSE in hours for ‘drainage, sweeping & inspections’ with drivers urged to follow diversion
There are warnings that plans could be changed at short notice
COMMUTERS will need to re-think their journey after a huge section of a major motorway is set to close.
Diversions will be put in place to help ease the traffic flow.
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Highways works are scheduled for the M4 from November 18, starting at 8pm and finishing at 6am.
The National Highways website states: "We’ll soon be carrying out general maintenance works, such as drainage, sign repairs, sweeping and inspections, between the M4 J18 roundabout and the A46 Cold Ashton roundabout.
"This will maintain safety and improve journeys, while preventing the need for unplanned closures.
"During the day the road will be open as usual."
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The National Highways website adds: "Please remember that closures can change at short notice.
"You can check the latest information on our daily closures page or find live travel information on our Traffic England website. Our travel alerts give details of live incidents on our network."
This comes as a vital link road to the motorway is set to be closed for up to six months for urgent repairs.
The work is part of a £2.5 million project to address a dangerous issue.
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Motorists have been warned that a significant entry route will shortly be shut down for an extended period.
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The B4058 is popular with HGV drivers as part of a network of routes connecting London, Bristol and Gloucester.
It allows drivers to access the West Country while avoiding delays on the M4 or long loop-around on the M5.
Unfortunately, the high demand has taken its toll over time, with users consistently complaining of cracks in the road surface and an uneven camber.
Concerns have also been raised over the issue of small landslides in the area, which can put drivers at risk and cause lengthy closures.
To try and combat this problem, the county council is investing a whopping £2.5 million in repairing the road.
However, the scale of the work does mean that a long-term closure is required to carry it out.
The local highways authority has said that they will implement a "medium-term solution" by putting in 255m of sheet pile to support the road.
This is where sheets of metal, often rolled steel, are laid under the surface in order to level it out and prevent subsidence.
Diversion route
Southbound diversion is to:
- travel north of A46.
- turn right onto Norley Lane,
- turn right onto Marshfield Road
- turn right onto the A420 to Cold Ashton roundabout
- Northbound diverted traffic to follow in reverse
For southbound LGV traffic:
- follow M4 eastbound to J17
- go south on A350
- turn right onto the A420 and follow to Cold Ashton roundabout
- Northbound diverted traffic to follow in reverse.
The 9m deep layer should reinforce the road sufficiently for workers to carry out a "further ground investigation" at a lower depth to address the root cause of the problem.
What it does mean, though, is that a vital section of the B4058 will be closed for an entire six months while the sheet pile is laid.
The area around Rushmire Hill, just outside Wotton-under-Edge, Gloucestershire, will be off-limits for the foreseeable future.
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This also includes the Old London Road, which is popular as a shortcut around the town centre.
Drivers will instead be sent around 5 miles north out of their way through Dursley on the A4135, before looping around and travelling the same distance back southwards on the B4060 to avoid the closure.
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