Overnight road closures and diversions as ‘essential’ roadworks near completion

Maintenance work on the A46 Six Hills road – which began 10 months ago – is finally nearing completion, National Highways said, but disruption is expected as work winds down.

The website said maintenance work is almost complete on the southbound carriageway, meaning a 40mph speed limit that was in place to protect the workforce and motorists has been reinstated to the normal speed limit on that section of the road. A speed limit of 40km/h will remain in place on the northbound carriageway until the works are completed.

From this week, the highways agency said there will be overnight closures on the northbound carriageway between the A606 and A607 junctions from Monday to Friday between 8pm and 6am. A clearly signed diversion route would be in place through Melton Mowbray along the A606 and A607, they added.

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The website warned motorists that on Tuesday 18 June and Wednesday 19 both the northbound and southbound carriageways will be closed overnight between the A606 and A607 junctions. This is to complete the work which was affected by the recent heavy rains, preventing them from laying concrete, they added.

The work, between Six Hills and Widmerpool, is being carried out to extend the life of the existing carriageway while minimizing future unplanned interventions, the government body said.

The work, which started in September 2023, is expected to finish in August at a cost of £16 million, the website said. To minimize disruption, they said they would work overnight during quiet periods.

On its website, National Highways said: “We are sorry for the disruption this work may cause to your journey and encourage motorists to plan ahead and allow extra time when travelling. All closures are subject to change at short notice due to unforeseen circumstances or poor weather conditions. Please check the National Highways website or the X (formerly Twitter) (@HighwaysEMIDS) account before traveling for the latest information.”

The website explained the scheme between Six Hills and Widmerpool to improve the road surface and reduce the amount of unplanned works required to keep both the northbound and southbound carriageways operational.

The scheme involved replacing concrete bays, rebuilding and sealing the joints between them, repairing localized patches, retexturing, resurfacing the road and replacing road markings and studs, it added.

Benefits highlighted by the scheme included making the road safer for all users, extending the life of the existing carriageway until it can be completely rebuilt and minimizing the number of unplanned interventions required to keep the carriageway in service.