Nightmare M5 roadworks set to be completed by Christmas
The long-running M5 roadworks scheme which has brought two years of misery for motorists is due to be completed by Christmas.
Work on the Oldbury viaduct, which has resulted in major delays, is nearing completion and is now into the final stages.
It was originally due to finish in spring this year before the completion date was put back to autumn. Highways England now say the job will be done in December.
Three 22-ton gantries spanning the motorway are being installed and will provide drivers with real-time traffic information. A further three have been refurbished in one of the final tasks for workmen on the project between Junctions 1 for West Bromwich and 2 for Oldbury.
All concrete repairs on the central reservation have now finished with waterproofing and other work taking place until the end of November.
Once that is complete, bosses at Highways England said it will take another week to remove the roadworks, meaning three lanes of traffic will once again run in both directions.
It will then take a further two weeks to remove restrictions at M6 Junction 8.
Despite the removal of the works, project managers said the temporary speed limit would need to remain in place while the new gantry technology is tested.
The £100 million scheme at the Oldbury viaduct, one of the largest and most expensive ever carried out on UK motorways, has been ongoing since 2017.
It saw the introduction of a contraflow which put all traffic onto one side of the M5, with two lanes running in each direction. A 30mph speed limit was then introduced for safety reasons, further adding to disruption at one of the busiest sections of the motorway network.
Highways England senior project manager, John Thompson, thanked drivers for their patience and said: “We’re pleased motorists will soon benefit from three lanes of traffic in each direction.
“We’ve completed significantly more concrete repairs than we anticipated – which demonstrates why this work was so important.
“We would ask motorists to ensure they adhere to the speed limit once the roadworks have been removed because we need to carry out some technology tests on the new gantries that have been installed during this work.
“We understand the level of disruption this project involves, and we’d like to thank motorists, businesses and residents for their continued patience.”
