Road closes next month for multi-million-pound railway bridge project in Crewe

Road users and rail passengers are being advised about work to completely rebuild a road bridge over the railway in Crewe.

The £5.7m Railway Upgrade Plan investment will see the bridge on the A530 Middlewich Road brought up to modern standards making it safe and reliable for decades to come.

The Network Rail work will see demolition of ‘Boulderstones Bridge’ begin on June 1. The project is scheduled to finish in October this year.

Drivers, cyclists and pedestrians are being warned this section of the A530 will be closed for the duration of the work with a diversionary route put in place.

Oluwole Osunneye, scheme project manager at Network Rail, said: “We are grateful to road users in Cheshire for their patience whilst we build a new bridge on Middlewich Road.

“This essential Railway Upgrade Plan work will bring the crossing over the railway up to modern standards making it safe and reliable for both traffic above and rail passengers below. I appreciate any work like this is disruptive while it takes place, but the complete renewal of this bridge now will reduce the need for future maintenance meaning fewer traffic and train delays in the years to come.”

Network Rail has been working with highways teams at Cheshire East Council, car manufacturer Bentley, whose factory is close to the work, and the nearby Leighton Hospital, to try to minimise any traffic disruption caused by this essential railway bridge renewal.

Councillor Craig Browne, deputy leader of Cheshire East Council, said: “Over the last few months we have been having a number of discussions with Bentley, Network Rail and Leighton Hospital as we sought to reduce the impact Network Rail’s closure of the A530 Middlewich Road for bridge works will have on residents and road users in Crewe.

“We welcome the decision from Bentley to delay the permanent closure of Pyms Lane, which I know has been an area of concern for some, especially during the coronavirus pandemic. This will not now go ahead as originally intended as a result of additional temporary traffic management measures we have asked Network Rail to provide to help manage traffic on local roads including Pyms Lane, Sunnybank Road and Minshull New Road.  These will be monitored to assess the impact of the bridge closure and to satisfy ourselves that it will not cause significant adverse impacts to our residents and businesses.

“Throughout these essential works, we will be constantly reviewing the diversion route and working with Network Rail to achieve the best outcome for everyone.”

Construction of the new bridge will start in August, when the railway will need to be closed for nine days between 15-23 of that month.

Passengers are advised to plan their journeys ahead of the work by checking www.nationalrail.co.uk or with their train operator to see how their journey will be impacted.

This major bridge replacement follows the successful £11m bridge refurbishment scheme of another railway bridge in Crewe at Sydney Road in September last year.

Meanwhile, passengers should continue following Government guidelines around the use of public transport, and only travel if they have to.

People making such journeys should visit www.nationalrail.co.uk for the latest information. ​