Sector - Transport & Infrastructure

M6 Junction Ten upgrade project officially commences

18 Feb 20

A sod-cutting event, which was attended by local councillors, politicians, and project managers, has officially kicked-off construction of upgrades to Junction Ten of the M6 recently, marking the start of effort to finally improve the congestion bottleneck in the area which has inconvenienced motorists for so long.

Going into further detail, the M6 Junction Ten upgrade project has been commissioned by Highways England and the Walsall Council with support from the Black Country Local Enterprise Partnership at a cost of £78M, with the appointed contractor for the scheme named as John Sisk and Sons.

Furthermore, the primary focus of the project itself is to increase the road capacity at the roundabout in Walsall so as to lessen the traffic bottleneck, this will include the widening of the roundabout lanes from two lanes to four in addition to the replacement of the existing motorway bridges at the junction which are currently more than 50 years old.

The Deputy Leader of Walsall Council, Councillor Adrian Andrew stated: “We have already carried out local upgrades at key junctions on local roads including Bentley Mill and Darlaston as these routes will take extra traffic while the roadworks take place on the roundabout.”

The Highways England Project Manager, David Reed added: “We know how important this scheme is for drivers, local businesses and the community who have been enduring the congestion at this busy junction for so long. This scheme will tackle the congestion and delays to improve safety and journey times for drivers.

“Work is now getting under way and, while we will keep disruption down to a minimum, we do know it will affect people. So, we are holding these events to answer any questions and listen to any concerns. We would welcome as many people as possible coming along to one of these three information events.”