Ponds an integral feature of £192M road project

A556 Dual carriageway underlines environmental credentials.

Construction is currently underway on the A556 Knutsford to Bowdon dual carriageway, where a series of ponds have been used as an integral feature.

The Highways England project will see improvements for road users with the development of new link roads and roundabout arrangements around Bowdon and junction 7 of the M56. Works are due to be completed this summer with the new bypass opening in spring of next year.

Environmental improvements have been a significant part of the design, with improved and dedicated facilities for pedestrians, cyclists and horse riders along the existing A556 road, while a unique ‘green’ bridge – for the use of farm and wild animals – crosses the new dual carriageway near Mere.

The £192M project also features four ponds running the length of the new four and a half mile road. The ponds will collect rain water and other ‘run off’ from the road surface.

As the water can be contaminated by engine oil and fuel, as well as other liquids and debris from collisions and breakdowns, the attenuation ponds are designed to slowly filter the water before it can be safely released at a controlled rate into the River Bollin.

Work on the first pond, ‘Pond D’, which is located on Yarwood Heath, is nearing completion.

Jonathan Stokes, Highways England’s A556 project manager, said: “A number of people have asked us about the pond at Yarwood Heath and why it’s being provided. The use of attenuation ponds along the new A556 will significantly reduce the amount of water currently ending up untreated in the local water courses.

“These ponds will considerably improve the environmental credentials of the link between the M56 and M6. They are sustainable and aesthetically pleasing and as well as providing filtration for day to day run-off from the new road, the ponds will act as holding tanks in the event of severe flooding or a major spillage from a collision.”

 

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