Roadworks Lifted to Help Drivers Make a Smoother Bank Holiday Getaway

Almost half of all major roadworks on England’s motorways and major A roads will be completed or suspended for the Bank Holiday weekend, the Highways Agency has announced.

To help drivers make smoother journeys over the busy weekend, 17 sets of roadworks will be completed and a further 18 will be suspended between 6am on Friday 23 May and midnight on Monday 26 May. Roadworks at 44 locations will remain in place for the safety of drivers and their passengers.

The move is part of the Highways Agency’s commitment to ease congestion, helping drivers to make their journeys safely and reliably.

Roads Minister Tom Harris said:

“The Highways Agency is doing everything it can to help drivers with their bank holiday journeys. As well as removing as many roadworks as possible, the Agency also provides a number of information services that will help drivers heading for an extended break or day out.

“The roads will be busy, so I urge drivers to plan their journeys using travel information available on websites and radio bulletins, and allow extra time to complete their journey safely.”

As well as encouraging drivers to plan their route and check for delays before starting their journey, the Highways Agency is also urging people to make simple checks to their vehicle’s tires, oil and water as well as topping up with fuel. Anyone pulling a caravan, trailer or horse box should make sure they carry out a proper maintenance check; especially if it has been left standing for most of the year. With a simple once-over before setting off, drivers can avoid breaking down and delaying their journey and that of other road users.

While out on the motorways, drivers will notice blue signs on the hard shoulder of many of our motorways which help drivers to identify where they are if they need to call for help on the motorway.

Over 6,000 of the signs have been installed across the motorway network. They are positioned every 500 meters along the roadside to show drivers which motorway they are on, the direction they are traveling in and how far they are from the start of the motorway. If drivers can tell the Highways Agency, emergency services, or a recovery company what information is on the sign, they will be able to find and help them or deal with any incident being reported much more quickly.

Highways Agency Traffic Officers will continue to patrol the motorways 24-hours a day throughout the weekend to deal with incidents and clear them as quickly as possible. They will be supported by our contractor’s Incident Support Units and operators in our seven regional control centers who will be monitoring the network to help keep traffic moving smoothly.

Drivers can help prepare for their journey by tuning into the Highways Agency’s Traffic Radio, available on DAB digital radio and at http://www.trafficradio.org.uk.

Over 2,500 electronic message signs will give drivers information about road conditions. A number of these now display messages that tell drivers how long it will take them to get to the next junction.

Source: Highways Agency

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