Road in UK

The UK Government is planning to invest a total of £608m in road improvement projects in Cheshire and Greater Manchester.

Construction will begin shortly to improve the ‘A’ road network in the region as part of the government’s £24bn Action for Roads programme.

The £208m Smart Motorway project along the M60 and M62 has already started and is expected to be completed by 2017.

The £191m Cheshire project was also launched recently, which includes construction of the A556 dual carriageway between Bowdon and Knutsford.

"This is really good news for road users across Greater Manchester because it will ultimately mean less congestion, more reliable journey times and improved safety."

The project includes drainage repairs, replacement safety barriers, renewal of signs, road studs and resurfacing of the roads to improve road safety and to provide smoother journey across Greater Manchester and Cheshire.

The improvements are part of the government’s £700m investment in the north-west with plan to resurface 80% of the motorways and major ‘A’ roads by 2021.

The Highways Agency North major projects director Jeremy Bloom said: "This is really good news for road users across Greater Manchester because it will ultimately mean less congestion, more reliable journey times and improved safety."

The agency’s north-west regional director Alan Shepherd added: "We are well aware of how frustrating drivers find roadworks but I would like to reassure everyone that all our work is planned very carefully to cause as little disruption as possible."

Image: Cheshire motorway, part of the £303m road improvement project. Photo: courtesy of the UK Goverment.