Minister sees start of M-way work

Roads Minister Mike Penning was in West Yorkshire yesterday to mark the official start of construction work on the managed motorways scheme to cut congestion on the M62.

By The Newsroom

Published 14th Oct 2011, 07:00 BST

He was at Birkby Brow Bridge over the M62 in Gildersome, Leeds, to see the first construction work on the managed motorway scheme between Junction 25, at Brighouse and Junction 30, at Rothwell, near Leeds.

The £150m scheme, which is the first of its kind in Yorkshire, will involve the use of variable speed limits and involve opening up the hard shoulder as an extra traffic lane to ease congestion and smooth out the flow of traffic. The scheme covers a 15.5 stretch of motorway

Work will last until 2013-14 but three lanes will be kept open during the works, with speeds reduced to 50mph.

The project will see the hard shoulder strengthened. Emergency bays will also be built for those who break down. Drivers will pass one approximately every 30 seconds.