Major upgrade for Teesside route set for early completion
A stretch of the A19 will be increased from two lanes to three by Autumn
The widening of a busy Teesside route is set to open to drivers several months earlier than planned, improving journeys for drivers across the region.
Almost a year on since work started on upgrading the A19 section between the A1027 Norton and A689 Wynyard junctions, from two lanes to three, Highways England said it plans to fully open the £70m scheme to traffic by this autumn – much earlier than next year’s original completion date.
The extra space will ease congestion and delays for the 88,000 journeys on this stretch every day*.
Residents who live near the Wynyard junction will also benefit from noise reduction because the concrete surface is being replaced by a quieter material
Highways England project manager Keith Bradley, said:
“Our construction team have pulled out all the stops and have been able to accelerate progress over recent months, along with the support of our stakeholders.
“This now means that we can reduce the length of time needed to get the road fully open to traffic.
“We were programmed to finish next year around spring or summer, so we're excited to announce that we now expect to complete by this autumn.”
The A19 Norton to Wynyard project is part of a £300m+ investment into a suite of crucial upgrades along the A19 to improve safety, cut congestion and boost access for drivers across the North East.
Other ongoing major improvements to significantly improve safety and congestion for this major route are:
• connecting the A19 with the A184 in South Tyneside by raising the A19 on a flyover and building new slip roads to link it to the A184 via the Testo’s roundabout so through traffic on the A19 can free flow.
• creating extra room on the Downhill Lane junction between the A19 and the A1290 in Sunderland. A new bridge across the A19 will join with an existing structure to form a more traditional roundabout junction.
Construction on all these projects continue at pace to meet their deadlines and information about progress and upcoming closures will be shared in advance via the project’s usual communications channels.
Over the coming weeks, the Norton to Wynyard team will be switching the traffic management to start work on the central reserve of the A19 section. To keep everyone safe, this work needs to be done overnight, with the road closed (8am – 6pm) in both directions. No road closures will take place over the Easter weekend.
When the switch is finished there will be no contraflow, with two inside lanes of the road set to open in both directions, and the team will work on the next phase of the major project, including the installation of a concrete central barrier, drainage, street lighting and road surfacing.
Clearly signed diversion routes will be available for all the work taking place and drivers are urged to visit Highways England’s dedicated page on the scheme, follow the regional Twitter feed at @HighwaysNEAST or Facebook feed by visiting here to check for updates.