National Highways issues update on major A57 Link Roads scheme

Progress is being made on the £228m A57 Link Roads scheme, with National Highways cautioning drivers about temporary closures, traffic lights, and diversions.

As the new school term begins, motorists are being told to expect disruption, including two-way temporary traffic lights at key points along the route.

From Monday, September 8, “traffic signals on Roe Cross Road will be rearranged to allow utility works to take place between 7.30am and 6pm, with two-way traffic lights in operation.”

The government-owned organisation overseeing motorways and major A-roads is continuing clearance and preparatory works around Four Lanes, Old Road, Tollemache Close, and Old Hall Lane in Mottram. Current activity includes tree removal, environmental surveys, and utility upgrades, with this phase due to wrap up by late October.

This week, Old Hall Lane has been closed at its junction with Tollemache Close for safety reasons. A diversion is in place via Hall Drive, while pedestrians are being escorted safely through the area by traffic marshals.

At the same time, work is under way to build a temporary link road between Roe Cross Road and Old Road. Ground preparation for a stable base will continue over the coming weeks.

Further south, at Woolley Bridge, vegetation clearance is ongoing, with a lane closure and temporary traffic lights operating between 9am and 3.30pm. National Highways is also installing boundary fencing and has promised that “extensive replanting” will take place once the project is finished.

National Highways warned that all closures and diversions may be altered at short notice.

What the scheme includes

The A57 Link Roads programme will see:

• A new dual carriageway from the end of the M67 through a Mottram underpass to the A57 east of Back Moor.

• A new single carriageway connecting Mottram Moor to Woolley Bridge.

• The scheme – first proposed more than six decades ago – was approved last year following the dismissal of legal challenges.

  
  

In May, a groundbreaking ceremony near the M67 roundabout marked the official start of the build, attended by local leaders including Stalybridge and Hyde MP Jonathan Reynolds, who described the development as “transformational for the area.”

National Highways, alongside delivery partner Balfour Beatty, has been running public information sessions – including a stall at the Mottram Show – to keep the community informed.

Once completed in 2028, the project will include:

• Two new junctions: Mottram Moor Junction and Woolley Bridge Junction.

• Improvements to the existing M67 junction four.

• Five new structures, including the Roe Cross Road Overbridge, the Mottram Underpass, and the River Etherow Bridge.