Work is set to begin this summer on a ‘congestion busting’ scheme to widen and improve a section of the A1 Gateshead Western Bypass near Newcastle after the contractor was revealed on Tuesday.

Balfour Beatty has been announced by the Highways Agency as the winner of the £44M road building contract. This will see the firm widening 6km of the road between the Coal House and Metro centre junctions from two to three lanes in each direction.

The project, worth £61M in total, also involves the building of a new 1km parallel link road for north and south bound traffic between Lobley Hill and the A184 Gateshead Quays junctions.

Leader of Gateshead Council Mick Henry, said: “The A1 Western Bypass has become Tyneside’s key artery. When complete, these improvements will increase capacity, improve road safety and reduce journey times. This will make a significant difference to the daily lives of many and provide a real boost to our region’s economy.”

Work is set to complete in spring 2016.

The Highways Agency says the scheme is needed due to high volumes of traffic moving on and off the A1 at closely positioned junctions, causing heavy congestion and unreliable journey times daily in both directions.

Newcastle City Councillor Nick Forbes said: “I welcome this investment in tackling congestion and speeding up journey times. Although there will be some short term disruption while the work is carried out, the improvement will be well worth the wait.”

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