M62 smart motorway work to start on Monday 14 July

Smart motorway as work gets under way on Monday 14 July

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Work to upgrade the M62 near Rochdale to a smart motorway will begin on Monday 14 July.

The latest technology will be installed to monitor traffic levels, provide traffic information to road users, and ease congestion by using variable speed limits on overhead message signs.

The hard shoulder will also be permanently converted into an extra lane on a five-mile stretch of the M62 between junctions 18 and 20 to provide extra capacity.

Starting on Monday, the first stage of the project will see engineers carry out site surveys and ground investigation work. Some sections of the hard shoulder will be closed although vehicles will be able to get through the cones in an emergency. A free vehicle recovery service will also be provided for anyone who breaks down within the coned off areas.

From Monday 21 July, a temporary steel barrier to protect road workers will be installed in the hard shoulder between junction 18 of the M62 at the M60/M66 interchange and junction 20 at Rochdale. At the same time a 50mph speed limit will be introduced on the M62 section, to ensure the safety of the workforce and motorists.

The temporary speed limit, enforced with temporary average speed cameras, will then gradually be extended across the length of the smart motorway route over the following weeks.

All of the lanes on the motorway will remain open during the day throughout the roadworks but some overnight closures will be required later in the project.

Once completed, in autumn 2017,  new electronic signs will warn drivers of changes in the mandatory speed limit, lane closures, and incidents ahead.

New CCTV cameras will also be used to monitor traffic levels from the Highways Agency’s Regional Control Centre at Newton-le-Willows in Merseyside.

Emergency refuge areas will be created on the section of M62 without a hard shoulder and the overhead signs will be used to display a red X to close lanes during incidents, allowing emergency vehicles to get through.