Sections of the M53 in Merseyside will be closed through the night for much of the next few weeks as work on a new bridge continues.
The southbound carriageway will be closed overnight between junctions 2 and 3 while work takes place to install the steel beams and panels.
A diversion will take drivers along Upton bypass, the A551 (Arrowe Park Road) and the A552 (Woodchurch Road).
Drivers heading northbound will also need to leave and then re-join the motorway at junction 2 to avoid travelling under the bridge.
Closure times:
- Friday, January 8 and Saturday, January 9, 8pm-7am
- Monday, January 11, until Friday, January 15, 8pm-5am
- Monday, January 18, 8pm-5am
Highways England is installing the bridge to carry the southbound entry slip road onto the motorway at junction 2, Moreton Spur.
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Eight steel beams will be swung into position to help create a new bridge.
Temporary narrow lanes and a 50mph speed limit will remain on the M53 past the bridge throughout the project for the safety of drivers and workers.
A temporary platform will also be installed around the beams so that drivers can continue to use the motorway as normal while contractors are working on the bridge over the next few months.
The original 50-year-old bridge was demolished last year due to its ageing condition, which would have required an HGV weight restriction to be introduced in the future.
Highways England used six giant remote-controlled transporters to remove the 800-tonne bridge from the M53 in August.
Vikas Baloch, assistant project manager at Highways England, said: “We’ve been working hard since the summer to get the site prepared for the new bridge, and we’re now ready to lift the eight steel beams into place this weekend which will form the new bridge deck.
“Drivers travelling along the motorway over the next few months will see the bridge gradually take shape and our new temporary structure will allow us to work safely, minimising the need for overnight closures of the motorway.
“The new bridge will be suitable for all types of vehicles and we expect it to be used by hundreds of thousands of drivers over many years to come.”
