National Highways apologises for surprise roadworks causing traffic chaos in three Greater Manchester villages

The A57 Link Road proposals.

National Highways has apologised following unexpected chaos for motorists.

The Tameside villages of Hollingworth, Mottram, Hattersley all saw huge levels of congestion due to roadworks at Back Moor on Monday. The works were thought to be part of the A57 link road project.

The A57 link road scheme, also known as the Mottram Bypass, is estimated to be worth around £228m and has been designed to tackle congestion between Manchester and Sheffield.

A number of planned roadworks have been scheduled as part of the development process, but this morning (October 27) the gas diversion works took locals by surprise.

One local told the LDRS: “This morning a main road was closed without prior notice, resulting in significant traffic chaos. A journey of just four miles took over an hour and a half, causing immense frustration among commuters.

“Residents are growing increasingly frustrated, and communication with Tameside Council and National Highways has been inconsistent, with conflicting information about road closure permissions.

“The result is that the villages are bearing the brunt of this chaos.”

National Highways, the government body responsible for the A57 link roads project, have apologised for the disruption and have since removed the gas works diversion.

A spokesperson for National Highways said: “We would like to apologise for the disruption caused by roadworks at Back Moor today.

“The gas diversion works were not scheduled through our usual approval process, and we requested the immediate removal of the traffic management, which has now been removed.

“We are working closely with the utility provider to ensure better coordination before any future works.”