Transport Secretary opens £61M A1 upgrade

Millions of drivers will benefit from a new £61M A1 upgrade, which was opened yesterday by Transport Secretary.

Transport Secretary Patrick McLoughlin officially opened a new £61M road scheme near Gateshead yesterday, which will help tackle congestion and increase road capacity in the area.

The scheme will benefit the 116,000 drivers that use the A1 every day, and comes as part of the government’s £15Bn Road Investment Strategy, which is transforming the road network and improving connections between cities.

The Highways England scheme covers a 4 mile stretch of the A1 from Coal House (junction 67) to Metro Centre (junction 71).

Drivers are now able to use an extra lane in each direction as well as two new local link roads.

The project has created over 300 jobs, with 97% of the construction works required coming from the North East.

Secretary of State for Transport Patrick McLoughlin said: “This major upgrade to the A1 is part of the most ambitious, far-reaching road investment strategy for decades.

“It will not only benefit those who use the road every day but deliver jobs and opportunities, benefiting families across the North of England.

“Schemes like this are a crucial part of our plan to create a Northern Powerhouse, connecting our cities and towns and ensuring economic growth is spread more evenly across the UK.”

A total of eight miles of extra lanes have been added to the A1, and two new parallel link roads have also been created along a third-of-a-mile stretch between Lobley Hill and Gateshead Quays.

Resurfacing has been carried out over 150,000 square metres and 12 miles of new kerbs has been laid, made from recycled plastic bottles.

A new footbridge has been installed over the A1 at Chiltern Gardens, which is suitable for cyclists as well as pedestrians and the footpath at the eastern side of the bridge has also been upgraded. A new 600 metre cycle track has been created crossing the footbridge and linking up with the local cycle network.

Highways England Project Manager Lynne Biddles said: “The extra lanes will benefit the thousands of drivers who use the route every day, and the new link roads will mean local traffic will have a dedicated route between Lobley Hill and Gateshead Quays.

“We would like to thank drivers and the local community for their patience while this work has been taking place, and are pleased they can now benefit from the completed upgrade.”

Gareth Prior, General Manager at the Metrocentre said: “We are confident that the improved access and egress will not only benefit our retailers and shoppers but also the wider North East in terms of vitality and viability as this is a main local and arterial route for the region.”

 

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