A joint venture of Bam Nuttall / Morgan Sindall (bmJV) has been awarded the £105m construction contract.
BmJV will add the necessary capacity to 9.6km of the motorway between the junctions 39 (Durkar) and 42 (Lofthouse) by transforming the hard shoulder to a permanent traffic lane. To ease the excessive traffic flow, variable obligatory speed limits will be manifested on overhead and verge-mounted signs.
The pairing has already successfully delivered the smart motorway improvements on the M62 between junction 25 (Brighouse) and junction 30 (Rothwell).
The knowledge and experience acquired from the completed scheme has been used to ensure the efficiency of the M1 construction schedule.
The works are scheduled to commence earlier than previously planned date of 2014/15 and will be completed by September 2015.
UK Roads Minister, Robert Goodwill, remarked that “more than 113,000 vehicles use this section of the M1 every day, which means congestion is a serious problem and likely to increase significantly unless action is taken now. That is why this government has invested £120 million (US$192m) to help improve access and traffic flow on this vital economic route, with road users and businesses set to benefit sooner with work starting earlier than planned.”
Gary Crisp, contracts director for bmJV, said: “We are delighted that our previous experience gained on a range of highways schemes, including the M62, has ensured we are best placed to provide the travelling public with this improved road network earlier than originally scheduled.
“We look forward to continuing to work collaboratively with the Highways Agency to realise this vital scheme to reduce congestion and improve journey times, without reducing safety.”
