Highways Agency - Safe roads, Reliable journeys, Informed travellers

Current Progress

The contract to transform the M62 in West Yorkshire to a managed motorway was awarded on Tuesday 12 July to a joint venture consisting of the contractors BAM Nuttall and Morgan Sindall (bmJV). Work started on 13th October 2011.

Work has been progressing well since our last update and we are now ready to expand our works into the second section between Junction 26 and Junction 27.  We have already been carrying out some works in this section on the westbound carriageway, such as site investigations and drainage works, and we are now ready to start the more significant works such as the construction of bases for the new gantries and new emergency refuge areas.

In order to start this work we will be installing the permanent traffic management of hard shoulder closures, narrower lanes and varioguard safety barrier in the New Year.  This traffic management allows us to keep 3 lanes open in both directions during peak periods as well as providing a safe working area to carry out the works.  In order to ensure the safety of road users and road workers a 50mph speed restriction will be enforced. Please note that this speed restriction is currently on the westbound carriageway. We have recently received a large number of calls about our speed restrictions through these works. You can see our response to this question under Impact on your Journey.

The installation of the permanent traffic management between Junction 26 and Junction 27 will start on the 4th January 2012 and will continue for just over a week, weather permitting. In order to keep disruption to a minimum the installation will take place overnight between 20:00pm in the evening to 06:00am the following morning.  In order to carry out the installation safely we will need to close lanes and slip roads overnight; diversion routes will be clearly sign posted. If you need to travel on this section of the M62 at these times please allow more time for your journey; especially if you need to be at your destination at a specific time.

What is happening?
The Highways Agency is working to improve the M62 between junctions 25 and 30.

Managed motorways are a new technology driven approach to the use of our motorways. They will help to increase motorway capacity and relieve congestion, where and when it is most needed.

Managed motorways deliver benefits at a significantly lower cost, and with less impact on the environment during construction than conventional motorway widening. Find out more about Managed motorways.

When and where is this happening?
We are carrying out our works in a phased, link by link, approach to minimise disruption to the travelling public. The current programme for starting works in each link is as follows: 

• Link 1 Junction 27 to 28 - October 2011
• Link 2 Junction 26 to 27 - November 2011
• Link 3 Junction 25 to 26 - March 2012
• Link 4 Junction 29 to 30 - June 2012
• Link 5 Junction 28 to 29 - August 2012

In addition to constructing the scheme in a phased approach we will also be opening the new managed motorway in phases. The first 2 links will become fully operational in summer 2013, with the remaining entering into operation by autumn / winter 2013.

To find out more about our phased approach please view our What Happens Next (450KB JPG) plan.

The M62 Junction 22 to 23 and Junction 24 to 25 Lighting Refurbishment Scheme is also happening in the vicinity.

Why is this happening and what will it cost?
The M62 provides the strategic Trans-Pennine east west route across the north of England, connecting Yorkshire & the Humber region to Merseyside, Lancashire and Greater Manchester. It is an important international route forming part of Euroroute 22 between Dublin and Russia. It is also an important on a local route, connecting the conurbations of Bradford and Leeds, both of which are important commercial centres.

This work is needed on the M62 between J25 and J30 as the route is used by over 144,000 vehicles per day and suffers from heavy congestion and unpredictable journey times; especially during peak periods. Congestion on the motorway and strategic road network in England costs an estimate £3 billion every year, with 25% of this resulting from incidents.

We are investing £150m to implement managed motorways on the M62 between J25 and J30. These investment will make journeys more reliable, improve safety and generate economic benefits. A Business Case for the scheme can be found on the Publications page.

How will the scheme be carried out?
Managed motorways uses technology, improved signage and new infrastructure to control congestion by varying speed limits and create additional capacity during peak periods by allowing the hard shoulder be used as a running lane.

The completed scheme will allow the hard shoulder to be used as a running lane from junctions 26 to 28 and from junctions 29 to 30 eastbound. The section between Junction 28 and 29 is already 4 lanes and so we do not need to create additional capacity. Due to complicated merges and diverges between junctions 25 & 26 and between junctions 30 & 29 westbound we will not be able to use the hard shoulder as a running lane. Instead we will turn the hard shoulder in a permanent running lane to make these sections of the M62 permanent 4 lanes. This is known as controlled all lane running.

Where hard shoulder running and controlled all lane running is in operation we will be creating emergency refuge areas approximately every 800-1000 meters. These emergency refuge areas provide vehicles a dedicated safe place to stop in the event of a breakdown, away from live traffic. The refuge areas have emergency telephones and are monitored by our Regional Control Centre cameras so that we can send assistance if required.

How will this impact on my journey?
Managed motorways involve significantly less disruption to road users than conventional widening schemes. However while we will try to minimise disruption, some delays will be unavoidable.

The traffic management we are installing on the motorway is designed to allow us to carry out our works safely whilst at the same time maintaining 3 lanes in both directions. In order to keep disruption to a minimum we will only carry out works that require lane or road closures at night from 8pm in the evening to 6am the following morning.

The permanent traffic management we will install for the scheme is hard shoulder closures, narrower lanes and varioguard safety barrier. In order to ensure both the safety of road workers and drivers a 50 mph speed restriction will be enforced. This permanent traffic management and speed restriction will only be installed on the sections we are working in. 

We will be providing regular progress updates during the construction of the scheme works to update you on how works are progressing.

What are the benefits?
Implementing managed motorways on the M62 in West Yorkshire will improve safety; make journeys more reliable and, by doing so, create economic benefits for the region and the country as a whole. Our economic assessment of the scheme has concluded that every pound we invest in improving the M62 between J25 to J30 will generate approximately six pounds in economic benefits in return.

We already have evidence of the benefits that a managed motorway scheme can bring. The first managed motorway scheme opened to traffic on the M42 motorway in 2006. Recent analysis of the data gather since opening has found that journey time reliability improved by 22 per cent and reduced emissions by up to 10 per cent due to traffic flowing more smoothly. In addition, personal injury accidents have reduced by more than half (55.7%) since hard shoulder running was introduced. There was also an overall reduction in the severity of accidents with zero fatalities and fewer seriously injured.

How do I find out more information?
More information will be posted on this project page as it becomes available. You can subscribe to be alerted when updates are made.

If you have any queries about this project you should contact the Highways Agency Information Line by emailing ha_info@highways.gsi.gov.uk or calling 0300 123 5000.

Progress at a Glance

Activity	Month/Year	Status
Scheme Design Stage	March 2010 to July 2011	Completed
Public Information Exhibition	April 2011 and September 2011	Completed
Start of Works	October 2011	Current
Construction Starts	13 October 2011	Current
Construction Complete	Winter 2013	Planned

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