Highways Agency

The Project

The existing A19/A189 Moor Farm junction is a six armed at-grade roundabout.  The A19 provides access to the Port of Tyne, and to major employment sites, while the A189 is a major arterial commuter route linking South Northumberland with Newcastle.  Traffic flows on the A19 through the junction are expected to increase significantly on completion of the second Tyne Tunnel.

A recently completed improvement scheme involved widening of the roundabout and installation of full time traffic signals.  The improvement will deliver substantial benefits in the short term by alleviating existing traffic congestion and road safety problems.  In the longer term, however, further improvement is required to maintain an acceptable level of service at this key location.

The need to relieve congestion at the Moor Farm junction was identified by the Tyneside Area Multi-Modal Study (TAMMS) in 2002 and the Secretary of State supported the scheme in his response to TAMMS.  The proposed longer term improvement forms part of a strategy to upgrade the A19 through the east of Tyneside, including three other junction improvements (at A184/Testos, A1058/Coast Road and A1/Seaton Burn) and the second Tyne Tunnel.

This is a Regional scheme, identified as a funding priority in 2006 by the North East Interim Regional Transport Board, whose recommendations were accepted by the Secretary of State in his letter of July 6th 2006.

The scheme is at an early stage of development.  The Highways Agency is carrying out an Option Identification Study with a view to entry of a proposed junction improvement into the Government's Programme of Major Schemes.  Once the Study is complete, the public and stakeholders will be consulted on the proposals.