More than 96 per cent of England’s motorway and major A road network will be cleared over the next bank holiday.
National Highways contractors will lift more than 700 miles of roadworks over the King’s coronation weekend to help motorists and allow people to ‘witness this historic moment’.
. With tens of thousands of people expected to descend on London for the event, National Highways will remove roadworks where possible to help keep traffic moving.
The roadworks will be removed in the South East by 6am on Thursday, May 4, and elsewhere across the country by 6am on Friday, May 5. The roadworks will not be back in place until 12.01am on Tuesday, May 9. Routes heading towards London, such as the M40, M1 and M4, are expected to be busy, with 11 miles of roadworks on the M1 around Hemel Hempstead and Dunstable removed in time for the coronation weekend.
Andrew Butterfield, the customer services director of National Highways, said: “We know that people will want to head to London to witness this historic moment, and that’s why we have lifted as many roadworks as possible where it is safe to do so across our network. Given the size and complexity of some projects, it’s not practical to remove them for a couple of days, as taking them off and putting them back on again would cause more disruption.
“However, the good news for motorists is that 96 per cent of our network will be roadworks-free over the Coronation Bank Holiday weekend. We’d encourage people to plan their journeys before setting off and to make sure their tyres are in good condition and to make sure that they have plenty of fuel for their journey.”
Around 12.5 miles of roadworks will also be removed from the M11 around Cambridge and Harlow to help keep traffic flowing, with many people expected to use this route to access the M25 or A12 if heading towards the capital. With these routes expected to be busy, motorists should leave plenty of time for their journeys and to plan before setting off.
Richard Holden, the minister for roads, said: “National Highways has lifted hundreds of miles of roadworks across major roads, so everyone travelling to celebrate the Coronation of His Majesty King Charles III can enjoy smoother journeys across the weekend.”
