National Highways is to begin work on a £60m project to reconstruct and re-lay the concrete road surface of the A11 carriageway between Spooner Row and Tuttles Interchange, as a part of its nationwide drive to revitalise concrete roads across the country.
The surface of this stretch of the A11 was laid in the 1990s. Decades of use and hundreds of millions of journeys have left the road in need of vital upgrades which will improve safety, boost ride quality and reduce noise for the 45,000 drivers who travel on this section every day.
The scheme will see National Highways completely remove the concrete road surface and some of the foundations, before then rebuilding the road with recycled material and a new asphalt road surface. It’s expected the scheme will be completed in spring 2023.
As well as resurfacing the road the project will also see replacement kerbs installed, the drainage system refurbished, safety barriers replaced, new road markings and new reflective road studs.
Martin Fellows, National Highways regional director, said: “The A11 is a vital route used by 45,000 drivers every day for work journeys and home deliveries, visits to friends and family, and the movement of goods and services. However, the road surface of this stretch is more than 25 years old and despite serving us well, is coming to the end of its life and needs reconstruction.
“We appreciate that living, working or travelling in and around Norfolk while this major construction project takes place might not be easy, and we will do all we can to minimise disruption. Upgrading this stretch of the A11 between Spooner Row and Tuttles Interchange is a massive job and it’s important to us that all road user, residents and businesses feel the benefits of a safer and quieter road as soon as possible.”
As a part of the Road Investment Strategy, National Highways is spending £400m in the next three years to improve the quality of existing concrete roads across the country.
Concrete roads make up almost 400 miles (4%) of England’s motorway and major A-road network. Mostly found along the eastern side of the country, in the North East, Yorkshire, East Anglia and the South East, there are also some smaller stretches in other parts of England. Around half of the old-style concrete roads in the East will either have repairs or be replaced during this period, including stretches on the A11, A14, A12, A120 and M11.
National Highways will run public information exhibitions later this month to raise awareness about the upcoming work. Anyone from the local or wider community is welcome to one of four events where they can see more information and get answers to any questions they may have.
For the safety of workers and motorists, National Highways will complete the vital upgrades on the A11 in stages using a single lane contraflow system.
The contraflow system will keep the A11 open during the day, but it will also reduce the capacity on the A11 between Spooner Row and the Tuttles Interchange. In order to help traffic flow during this time, National Highways will launch an information campaign to encourage road users who wish to travel along this section of the A11 as part of a longer journey, to use a dispersal route along the A1066 and the A140. This will allow them to bypass our roadworks and help traffic flow more smoothly.
Preparation work on the A11 between Spooner Row and the Tuttles Interchange will continue over the coming weeks ahead of the start of the scheme in spring 2022.
