M62 Eccles Interchange lane boost 11/01/2011
The M62 at Eccles, one of the busiest junctions on the region’s motorway network, is to benefit from a £3.1m Highways Agency scheme to increase lane capacity – boosting safety and reducing queues.
The project will improve the M62 eastbound approach to Eccles Interchange at Greater Manchester where Junction 12 of the M62 meets junction 12 of the M60.
Preparatory work began yesterday (Monday, January 10) with the project due for completion in April. It will provide an extra running lane for the eastbound M62 connections with the M60 entry slips.
Some 60,000 vehicles use the eastbound carriageway of this section of the M62 every day – either to get onto the M60 or to travel onwards onto the M602 and into Manchester city centre.
The work will convert a section of the eastbound M62 hard shoulder into an extra running lane about two miles west of Junction 12.
The new lane will help extend the two dedicated lanes onto the slip road for the clockwise M60. It will also allow traffic wanting to join the anti-clockwise M60 to be filtered and separated much earlier – providing a dedicated lane ahead of the anti-clockwise entry slip road for the first time.
Drivers on the eastbound M62 heading straight on into Manchester via the M602 will also benefit from a reduction in the number of vehicles braking and lane changing late to get onto the exit lanes to join the M60.
Traffic management along the M62 to aid the works will include:
- occasional overnight closures of the exit slip road at Junction 12
- one full overnight closure of the main carriageway in both directions to enable a gantry to be installed
- daytime hard shoulder closures on both carriageways and narrowed running lanes on the eastbound
- various overnight lane closures
The majority of the work will be done overnight between 9pm and 5am during the week and 9pm and 10.30am at weekends. Some work, requiring hard shoulder closures, will be done during the day.
Most of the time the national, 70mph, speed limit will remain – although towards the end of the scheme some hard shoulder running along the eastbound carriageway will be needed during the night time and the speed limit will be reduced to 50mph.
Closures and diversions will be publicised in advance. Progress reports will be posted at www.highways.gov.uk and motorway users can also register for alerts.
When the eastbound exit slip road is shut drivers wanting to join the M60 will be sent down to junction 2 of the M602 to turn around and use the entry to the M60 from the westbound M602. When the whole carriageway is closed overnight – potentially very briefly – drivers will be diverted via the M6, M56, A5103 and M60 as appropriate.
Matt Sweeting, the Highways Agency’s Regional Performance Manager, said, “This is great news for everyone using this busy interchange. Converting a short section of the hard shoulder along the M62 will provide much-needed extra capacity and should reduce accidents and queues.
“The extra lane will reduce the congestion we get in the area at peak times and provide smoother journeys for Manchester-bound drivers often caught behind traffic trying late to get off the main carriageway onto the exit slips.
“Regular users of the interchange will know that it is one of our busier commuter junctions and we have worked hard to minimise inconvenience and disruption by ensuring work takes place overnight.”
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