No planned lane closures on A55 until September

The Welsh Government has said there will be no planned daytime roadworks involving lane closures on the A55 between J11 Bangor and the English borders until at least September 2019.

Minister for Transport and North Wales, Ken Skates said today’s news was in no small part down to the hard work of Welsh Government officials, agents and contractors which has already resulted in there being no lane closures during the day due to improvement works since the end of October 2018.

The last work which meant some lanes had to be closed was the essential work to the westbound carriageway of the Kneeshaw Lupton Bridge in Llanddulas.

Before these works there had been 532 days since the previous routine daytime lane closures on the A55 between Junction 11 and the English border, dating back to April 2017.

Urgent work will continue to take place whenever and wherever necessary during this period to ensure the safety of all road users.

Ken Skates said: “Today’s announcement means there will have been no planned daytime lane closures on the this section of the A55 for nearly a year which is a clear demonstration of the Welsh Government’s commitment to keeping this vital route running as smoothly as possible.

“The important action we have taken as a responsible government will continue to benefit the travelling public and the North Wales economy as a whole. It also shows how we are planning to keep our road network moving efficiently which is more important than ever as we leave the EU.

I would like to thank officials, agents and contractors who work tirelessly to ensure work can take place at night when the road is at its quietest and fully functioning during the daytime when thousands of vehicles are on the move.

“I completely understand how important the A55 is to North Wales as well as people travelling to and from the rest of Wales, the UK, Ireland and Europe and we have invested significantly in the route to improve its resilience and safety and provide a positive travelling experience. We are committed to improving North Wales transport infrastructure further still and more than £600 million worth of investment is already earmarked including for the A55, A494 and A483.

“Essential improvement work on the A55 westbound near Llanddulas was completed ahead of schedule and I’d once again like to thank all road users for their patience whilst this was carried out. This year’s essential works programme is currently being developed and officials will make every effort to ensure disruption is kept to a minimum.

“Daytime work is unavoidable at times, but as today’s news shows, we will continue to do all we can to ensure planned work on A55 will be completed overnight or under narrow dual lanes whenever possible.”