Busy Bloxwich route closed as rail bridge gets rebuilt
A busy road will be closed for three months as a rail bridge is rebuilt for the electrification of the main Walsall to Rugeley rail line.
The bridge on Broad Lane, Bloxwich, needs to be raised as part of the £30 million plans to speed up the line and improve signals and platforms
A road closure and diversions for 12 weeks are being planned in November, leading to fears there will be extra traffic forced into residential areas.
The route is used by motorists travelling between Bloxwich and Essington and from traffic coming off the M6.
Bloxwich councillors Fred Westley and Patti Lane have raised concerns about extra congestion and drivers being forced onto residential estates.
They fear that traffic will be diverted along Turnberry Road and Cresswell Crescent when access to the railway bridge is shut off.
It is expected to be take place in mid-November, subject to all funding for the project being confirmed by the Department for Transport. It has also led to concerns businesses could lose out on much-needed income.
Sunny Gill, owner of H&S Food Store on Broad Lane, said: "It will definitely impact on our trade, the Christmas business was something I was relying on quite heavily.
"This is my bread and butter, it is the wrong time of the year."
Councillor Westley said: "I don't think they realise what a bottleneck it is going to create. When there is an accident or a problem on the M6 traffic comes off and then along Broad Lane."
Network Rail spokesman Ben Herbert said: "As soon as details are confirmed, we will be working to notify local residents and businesses about the closure."
