Preparations for the major upgrade of the A46 Walsgrave junction are getting under way this month, as National Highways begins early overnight works ahead of the main construction phase.

The A46 is one of the UK’s major trade routes, serving millions of people, supporting jobs, and connecting inland manufacturing and distribution hubs with major ports, and the Walsgrave junction connects the A46 to the B4082 and is currently a three-arm priority roundabout, which causes substantial congestion in the area for the 57,000 drivers who use the road every day.

The new-look junction will allow for a free-flowing A46 carriageway, increase capacity to meet future traffic growth forecasts and enable drivers to enter and exit the local road network.

From Monday 13 July, National Highways will start making changes to the road to prepare the site for construction, which includes installing signage, vegetation clearance and building temporary site accesses by closing the laybys on the A46 between Walsgrave junction and M6 junction 2.  

Main construction work starts in September and the scheme is expected to open to traffic in 2028. 

Project Manager Emma Winter said: 

“Motorways and major A roads play a key role in keeping the UK economy moving, carrying a third of all traffic and two thirds of freight. The A46 is a major trade corridor between the South West, the Midlands and the North, which is why we are removing this bottleneck on the outskirts of Coventry.

“The new-look Walsgrave junction will reduce delays by delivering much-needed additional capacity, better connectivity and safer journeys for the drivers using the road every day. “This scheme also forms part of our commitment to improve the A46 Trans-Midlands Trade Corridor, supporting economic growth, employment and housing development between the M5 and the Humber Ports.”

(Picture: National Highways)