Underpass plan to get under way

Work on a £24 million plan to construct a congestion-busting underpass at a busy Black Country junction is set to start in the new year.

The Government-funded scheme will see a dual carriageway underpass constructed beneath the A41 and A4031 roundabout in West Bromwich, where The Expressway meets All Saints Way. The roundabout is one of the area's busiest junctions, carrying 63,000 vehicles a day and is a key gateway to the town centre.

Temporary road closures will be in place while work takes place, which is expected to take around 18 months.

However, bosses say the junction will remain open to traffic.

Tesco, which is masterminding the £200 million redevelopment of West Bromwich town centre, is set to pay 10 per cent of the interchange scheme's cost, which aims to ease congestion in and out of West Bromwich, with the rest funded by the Government.

The Department of Transport has agreed to provide £22.6 million towards the tunnel in July.

Sandwell Council's neighbourhoods chief, Councillor Mahboob Hussain, said: "We anticipate the main project to create the interchange is planned to start in the new year and should be completed in the summer of 2011.

"Traffic will still be able to travel through the junction during the works.

"Traffic management arrangements have been incorporated into the plans and these may include temporary lane closures and recommended alternative routes."

Investigation work was carried out on a section of the northbound A41 carriageway back in July last year when speed limits were slashed from 50mph to 30mph for exploratory works into the design to take place.