Traffic disruption 'inevitable' on three critical road bridges into Grimsby but the work has to be done

 

Sections in green indicate where the repairs will be carried out, starting on Monday

PHASED repairs of the three key road bridges through Grimsby and Cleethorpes starts next week.

These will be carried out on both eastbound and westbound carriageways in phases, starting with Gilbey Road bridge, next  Cleethorpes Flyover, then Alexandra Dock bridge.

North East Lincolnshire Council today announced the first phase as follows:

"From February 26, for up to two weeks, there will be overnight closures from 8pm to 6am on Gilbey Road flyover.

"Traffic will be diverted between Pyewipe and Westgate roundabouts around localised diversion routes.

"During daytime in the first week, the road over the Gilbey Road flyover (between Pyewipe and Westgate roundabouts) will be open  to normal traffic, but with a lowered maximum speed limit of 30mph.

"Once underway, the main project will involve removal of the existing carriageway surface in order to reach the lower layers so as to inspect and repair the waterproofing.

"Removing the concrete cover of the bridge deck to get to the reinforcement bars will be a noisy operation, and while sound reduction measures will be put in place, these will not completely mask the row.

"During weeks two and three, there will be a contraflow on Gilbey Road flyover.

"On both Alexandra Dock and Cleethorpes Road bridges, there will be overnight lane restrictions on a single night to allow for surveying.

Says NELC's portfolio holder Cllr Stewart Swinburn:  “These are critical elements of our highway system in North East Lincolnshire. 

"If these fail, there would be significant impacts, both economically in terms of the amount of trade that use the route, but also for local people going about their everyday lives.

"If we don’t do the repairs, the structures will only get worse, meaning larger scale repairs and potentially complete closure of the route in the future."

He adds: "Given the scale of the programme, it is inevitable that there will be disruption to the highway network." 

The  main contractors are VSL who will be working 24 hours a day to complete the project  as quickly as possible.”