A38

The UK’s Highways England is scheduled to start a £6.4m project later this year to replace Merafield Bridge on the A38 at Plympton.

Located alongside the old bridge, the new concrete bridge will be 80m-long, 11.3m-wide and will be made of 2,503t of concrete and 401t of steel.

The new bridge will ensure the A38 and Merafield Road stays open to traffic for many years to come.

According to Highways England, the old structure will be demolished once the new concrete bridge is opened to traffic.

Work on this project is scheduled to be initiated in September and will continue until next summer.

"It is essential that the Merafield Road bridge is replaced to protect the long-term future of this vital link but it is also crucial that disruption is kept to a minimum."

Highways England official Julian Strong said: "This is a big project. We have carried out extensive planning and worked very closely with our stakeholders, including Plymouth City Council, the Plymouth and Devon Chamber of Commerce and local businesses.

"We know there may be some concerns about the impact on traffic, but we will work hard to keep disruption to a minimum and will install the new bridge as quickly as we can.

"The good news is that the extensive design work means we will keep three narrow lanes open in both directions for most of the time and access to Merafield Road will be largely unaffected."

As part of the project, the roadworks have been designed to minimise disruption to the A38, while a contraflow system will be implemented for some phases of the work.

During contraflow phases, narrow lanes will be put in place with a temporary speed limit of 50mph for the safety of road users and road workers.

Plymouth City Council leader Tudor Evans said: "It is essential that the Merafield Road bridge is replaced to protect the long-term future of this vital link but it is also crucial that disruption is kept to a minimum."

Image: The A38 passes under the M50 in Worcestershire, UK. Photo: courtesy of Bob Embleton via Wikipedia.