M62 Leeds: Thousands to be impacted as motorway to Manchester shuts - everything you need to know
A key cross-country motorway near Leeds will close this weekend, affecting tens of thousands of drivers.
National Highways will shut a section of the M62 in Greater Manchester from 9pm tonight (September 6) until 6am on Monday (September 9) to enable Network Rail to dismantle and remove Castleton rail bridge, which is nearly 60 years old.
The bridge carries trains running between Manchester and Rochdale over the motorway, including freight services transporting materials to and from Drax power station near Selby, North Yorkshire. Here’s everything you need to know...
What is happening?
Network Rail is investing more than £22m to rebuild a 42-metre-long, 2000 tonne railway bridge that takes trains over the M62 in Castleton, near Rochdale.
As a result, the motorway will be closed in both directions from 9pm on Friday, September 6 to 6am on Monday, September 9 and from 9pm on Friday, September 20 to 6am on Monday, September 23.
Who is responsible for these works?
National Highways, which operates the M62, is working with Network Rail to ensure the work goes as smoothly as possible but is advising drivers that the two weekend closures will affect cross-Pennine travel plans with the motorway linking Liverpool and Hull as well as Manchester and Leeds.
It is the first time in recent memory that the M62, which carries around 120,000 vehicles a day, has been closed for a whole weekend or other extended periods for planned work.
Which parts of the road will be closed?
Different closure and diversion arrangements will be in place for the westbound and eastbound carriageways.
The eastbound carriageway will be closed from junction 18 of the M62 at Simister Island interchange to junction 20 of the M62 at Rochdale, while the westbound carriageway will be closed between junction 20 at Rochdale and junction 19 at Heywood.
What traffic diversions are in place?
The diversion for eastbound drivers will use the strategic road network with drivers from the M66 or clockwise M60 and reaching Simister Island travelling to junction 21 of the M60 at Chadderton where they should then use the northbound A663 (Broadway) and northbound A627M to join the M62 at junction 20.
Drivers diverted off the westbound M62 at junction 20 will be sent back onto the motorway via Middleton - using the southbound A627(M), southbound A664 Rochdale Road and northbound A6046 Hollin Lane, re-joining the M62 at junction 19.
What rail diversions are in place?
The railway will also be closed from Friday, September 6 until the early morning of Wednesday, September 25 between Manchester Victoria and Rochdale.
Northern has warned passengers that journeys from places including Leeds and Bradford to Halifax, Hebden Bridge, Todmorden and Manchester will be affected as trains will be unable to divert and may be replaced by buses.