Highways Agency

• Introduction
• Works Progress
• The Works
• How we will widen the motorway
• Environmental effects in the area
• Timetable

The Works

The Works

The work to add one extra lane in each direction between junction 25 and junction 28 started in October 2007.

To complete this we will need to:

• Move more than 800,000 tonnes (787,000 tons) of earth.
• Install 50km (31 miles) of new drains.
• Demolish and replace one bridge and improve other bridges.
• Replace hundreds of street lights.
• Convert the existing hard shoulder to become a traffic lane.
• Construct a new hard shoulder and resurface the motorway with low noise material.
• Install a new concrete safety barrier in the central reserve.
• Put up around 50 gantries with signs over each carriageway.

The work planned over the next few months is:

March and April 2008

• Widening work from junction 26 to junction 27 - extending the embankments and widening the cuttings, constructing walls and other devices to support large amounts of earth, removing some parts of the old carriageway, laying a new carriageway surface, creating gantry sign foundations (up until the autumn).
• Continuing bridge work at the B600, Nottingham Road, Nuthall; and at the A610, Nuthall.
• Start of bridge work at the B6019 Kirkby Lane, Pinxton. Kirkby Lane will have two-way traffic signals from 25 March to 9 April 2008; it will be closed from 10 April until late July.
• Continuing edge strengthening work at various footpaths and bridleways.

May and June 2008

• Further widening work from junction 26 to junction 27.
• Continuing bridge work at the B600, Nottingham Road, Nuthall, and at the A610, Nuthall, and at  the B6019 Kirkby Lane, Pinxton. Kirkby Lane will be closed from 10 April until late July.
• Continuing edge strengthening work at various footpaths and bridleways.

July and August 2008

• Further widening work from junction 26 to junction 27.
• Completion of  bridge work at  the A610, Nuthall, and at  the B6019 Kirkby Lane, Pinxton.
• Continuing edge strengthening work at various footpaths and bridleways.
• Start of bridge work at Brookhill Lane, Pinxton. Brookhill Lane will be closed until November 2008, once Kirkby lane is reopened.

Details of closures and restrictions scheduled to be in place can be found on the Traffic Management page for this scheme.

Minimising Disruption

We apologise in advance for any disruption we may cause, our aim is to minimise this wherever possible.

For our neighbours we will minimise disruption by:

• Carrying out as much of the work as we can during daytime.
• Signing clear diversion routes where we have to close roads temporarily; these diversions will be agreed with local authorities, and we will keep the closures to the shortest time we can.
• Locating our site offices next to the motorway and where our site vehicles or operations have the least direct impact on people.
• Replacing noise barriers as quickly as we can.
• Using techniques and machines designed to minimise vibration.
• Taking measures to reduce the amount of dust we produce.
• Ensuring we keep in constant contact with our neighbours throughout the project to keep them informed of the details as work progresses.

For road users we will minimise disruption and ensure their safety during construction by:

• Keeping three lanes in each direction available between 6am and 8pm; where we need lane or carriageway closures, we will plan these wherever possible to be at night when fewer people use the motorway.
• Not having contraflows i.e running some of the traffic in opposing directions on one carriageway of the M1 - this will be safer and help traffic run more smoothly through the roadworks.
• Operating a 50mph enforced speed limit through the roadworks – because the hardshoulder is closed and lane widths reduced during the works. This makes it safer for the workforce and drivers by giving drivers more time to react to traffic conditions ahead.
• Monitoring the route by CCTV, and dispatching free recovery vehicles as soon as we see a breakdown or accident. Vehicles and their occupants will be taken to local motorway service areas e.g. Tibshelf or Trowell.

Keeping Your Children Safe

We hope that you will work with us to ensure that we achieve our goal of a safe site. We are particularly concerned that children understand the dangers associated with a construction site and that you will help us to discourage them from entering the site to explore or play.

Keeping You Informed

• There will be signs erected throughout the site giving contact details in the case of emergency.
• Please tell us of any concerns that you have about our work so that we can do our best to resolve them quickly.
• You can raise other issues or queries by using the contact details set out below.

Highways Agency Information Line - 08457 50 40 30 or ha_info@highways.gsi.gov.uk