Work starts on M1

Mar 13 2008 by Clive Bond, Huddersfield Daily Examiner

MAJOR improvement work will lead to possible delays on the M1 near Huddersfield over the spring and summer.

The motorway will also be shut for two nights while an old footbridge is removed and replaced with a new one.

The project to replace the footbridge over the M1 starts today and will disrupt traffic heading from the south to the Huddersfield turn-off at West Bretton at junction 38.

The footbridge is one mile south of junction 37, the Barnsley turn-off. The existing concrete structure will be replaced with a new steel 55m-long footbridge.

The work will also remove concrete barriers along the hard shoulder and carry out maintenance to the drainage system, road surface and safety fencing.

Most of the work will be done between 7am and 5pm, Mondays to Fridays.

During these times there will be hard shoulder closures in both directions at peak times and traffic will be reduced to two lanes in each direction at off-peak times.

To demolish and replace the bridge there will be two overnight closures of the M1 between junctions 36 and 37.

The first will be from 9pm on Saturday, March 29 to 9am on Sunday March 30. The second overnight closure will be in July.

During both closures there will be fully signed diversion routes in place.

Highways Agency project manager Andrew Brown, said: “Lane closures will be limited to off-peak times to limit any delays.”