Essential work on distributor road to build new roundabout

More than 6,000 residents and businesses are being given advance notice of essential summer work on the North and East Melton Mowbray distributor road (NEMMDR).  

A full closure is needed for the building of a new roundabout on the A606 Burton Road.  

There will be a seven-day closure of the road for eight weeks from Monday, 1 July with a scheduled re-opening on the evening of Sunday, 25 August.  

The county council, and contractors Galliford Try, say partial lane closures have been ruled out as excavations of over 1.2m deep are required to completely remove the existing road under and either side of the new roundabout.   

Information about the closure is being sent to residents and businesses over the next few days and there have also been special briefings with district and parish councillors.  

Access for pedestrians and cyclists will be available throughout the closure and temporary lighting will be provided on the section through the construction site.  

Burton Road was previously closed to traffic in January this year for essential work on utility services close to what will be roundabout No.6 of the distributor road.  

However, diversions and additional signs put in place to advise drivers of official, alternative routes were ignored by some cars and HGVs, who used narrow, rural roads to pass through small villages.  

So, this time, the council is installing traffic monitoring cameras at Little Dalby, particularly to deter HGVs.  

Other measures which the council and contractors have put in place include: 

• Close liaison with emergency services, public transport operators;
• Over 6,000 letters distributed to properties close or nearby to the work;
• Warning signs ahead of the closure;
• Local temporary weight restrictions and 30mph speed limits;
• Following the closure, the county council will survey local diversion rotes and repair any damage;
• Provide temporary taxi service for access to primary health care and shopping to replace regular bus services. 

We’ve listened to what people have told us about the previous closure, so we’ve put additional measures in place. If we do become aware of HGV operators ignoring the official diversion route and driving through small villages, we’ll pass on the information to the police. 

We’re giving as much notice as we can about the road closure so people can plan and start to familiarise themselves with the diversion routes, for example. We’ve also met with councillors from the Burton & Dalby parish as well as Melton Borough Council to guide them through the work.

The building of the Burton Road roundabout is another vitally important part of this major road scheme. We’re doing what we can to minimise disruption with a summer schedule, but we do know that some disruption on existing roads is unavoidable.

We thank residents for their continued understanding as we build the distributor road, which will ultimately reduce congestion and support growth in the local area.

Person:Janna Walker, assistant director for highways

Details of the road closure, including diversion routes, can be found on the forthcoming road closures section of the county council’s website at leicestershire.gov.uk/nemmdr 

Any construction-related enquiries should go to Gino Salvatore on 07918 640481 or email gino.salvatore@gallifordtry.co.uk