Planning Consent Granted for £100m-Plus A46 Walsgrave Junction Upgrade Near Coventry

Planning permission has been approved for a major highways upgrade on the outskirts of Coventry following the granting of a development consent order (DCO) for the A46 Walsgrave junction improvement scheme.

Transport minister Lord Hendy has signed off the application, clearing the way for the project, which forms part of the Trans-Midlands Trade Corridor linking the M5 with the Humber ports.

Although the scheme was previously estimated to cost £112m, National Highways has confirmed this figure is now outdated. With consent secured, the organisation will work alongside its main contractor, Octavius Infrastructure, to finalise detailed designs and update cost estimates. Construction is expected to begin in autumn 2026, with the upgraded junction opening to traffic in 2028.

The Walsgrave junction connects the A46 with the B4082 and currently operates as a three-arm priority roundabout. This layout is a well-known congestion hotspot. The approved design will allow traffic on the A46 to flow freely while still providing access to and from the local road network.

National Highways project manager Emma Winter said:“Motorways and major A roads are vital to keeping the UK economy moving, carrying around a third of all traffic and two-thirds of freight. The A46 is a key trade route linking the south-west, Midlands and north, which is why removing this bottleneck on the edge of Coventry is so important.

“The redesigned Walsgrave junction will cut delays by providing extra capacity, improved connectivity and safer journeys for the 57,000 vehicles that use this stretch of road every day.”

The scheme is classed as a nationally significant infrastructure project under the Planning Act 2008, meaning a DCO was required as the equivalent of planning permission before construction could begin.

Octavius Infrastructure, the project’s main contractor, was formerly the rail and highways arm of Geoffrey Osbornebefore being sold in 2021 to private equity firm Sullivan Street Partners. In November 2025, the business was acquired by consultancy group RSK.