(qlmbusinessnews.com Mon 18th, 2024) London, UK —
M25 Closures: ‘On Track' Ahead of Monday Rush Hour Test
Work on the unprecedented daytime closure of a critical section of the M25 in Surrey is progressing “on schedule” for completion before the Monday morning rush hour, National Highways has confirmed.
The “unprecedented” shutdown of one of the country's busiest stretches came into effect at 9 pm GMT on Friday, with a diversion in place as a five-mile stretch between junctions 10 and 11 remains closed in both directions.
The motorway is due to fully reopen at 6 am on Monday, with National Highways reporting “good progress” on demolishing a bridge and installing a new gantry over the weekend.
“The project remains on schedule,” National Highways South East stated on X, formerly Twitter, allaying fears of potential overruns that could trigger significant disruption for commuters on Monday.
The closure, the first of its kind since the M25‘s inauguration in 1986, has been deemed “unprecedented” given the motorway's status as one of the nation's most vital and congested arteries.
Surrey Highways reported that while diversion routes were coping with the impact of the closure, pockets of congestion emerged near Byfleet and Addlestone. Earlier, there were reports of traffic buildup on the A3 and the M25 itself on the approach to the closure zone.
The shutdown is expected to impact travellers heading to Gatwick and Heathrow Airports, as well as the Channel ports. Heathrow Express services out of London experienced delays and cancellations of up to 15 minutes earlier due to overrunning engineering works.
On Saturday, two-mile queues formed leading up to the closed section, with Surrey Highways reporting delays on the diversion route between Byfleet and Painshill.
National Highways data indicates that the carriageway between junctions 9 and 11 typically carries between 4,000 and 6,000 vehicles per hour in each direction during peak weekend times. Junction 10, the busiest section of the M25, sees over 300,000 vehicles passing through daily.
The current closure is the first of five planned between now and September as part of a £317 million upgrade project, with the next scheduled for April, though exact dates have not yet been released.
As the Monday morning rush hour looms, all eyes will be on whether the work can indeed be completed on schedule, averting potential chaos on one of the UK's most critical transport arteries.
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