Six-mile detours on way during M6 work

A series of closures between junctions five in Birmingham and eight in West Bromwich starts tonight and continues this weekend and next while the link between two motorways will drop to one lane for a fortnight.

The £126 million scheme will eventually allow drivers to use the hard shoulder as an inside lane during peak times.

It will provide variable speed limits, which highways chiefs say will reduce congestion because traffic will flow more steadily.

Work is taking place until next summer.

To allow gantries to be dismantled and removed, the M6 northbound between junctions seven and eight and southbound between junctions 10 and seven will be closed overnight on tonight, tomorrow, next Friday and next Saturday.

Further closures of the M6 between junctions six in Birmingham and seven at Great Barr in both directions are planned for December 8, 14 and 15.

Friday night closures will run from 10pm to 8am the following morning. Closures on Saturday nights will run from 8pm through to 8am.

Work between junctions seven and eight will also be carried out on Monday, November 26, to reduce the M6 northbound to M5 southbound link to one lane.

The arrangement will be in place for two weeks while the foundations are laid for a new gantry.

Rob Edwards, Highways Agency project manager, said working at night enabled full access to the motorway while the traffic flow is lighter.

"Although the closures will be in place overnight when there is less traffic on the M6, we do advise road users to allow more time for their journeys and to follow the clearly signed diversion route, which will be available via the local road network," he added.

In total 22 gantries are to be removed, 10 of which will be refurbished off site and then reinstalled along with 20 new ones.

How it affects your journey

Three miles of the M6 northbound will be shut Fridays and Saturdays this and next weekend at night.

It will close between junctions seven at Great Barr and eight at West Bromwich.

Cars will be send on a six-mile detour along the A34 Birmingham Road, A4148 Broadway and A454 Wolverhampton Road in Walsall to rejoin the M6 northbound at J10.

Northbound M6 traffic wishing to join the M5 southbound will also follow the diversion but continue onto the A41 in West Bromwich where they will then go to the M5 junction one.

The southbound stretch will be shut from junction 10 at Walsall to junction seven at Great Barr with the same diversion route.

On December 8, 14 and 15 the northbound side between Spaghetti Junction and Junction 7 will close overnight.

Cars will be sent along the A38M Aston Expressway, then onto the A4540 New John Street West and onto the A34, which starts as High Street then becomes Walsall Road and Birmingham Road before it rejoins the M6 at junction 7.

The southbound side will also be closed and same five and a half mile diversion applies in the opposite direction.

It is expected there will be more than 600 workers involved in the £126million scheme, which will allow cars to use the hard shoulder at busy times. Most of the construction work to be finished in autumn 2013.

Work will then start from junction 10A to Essington to 13 at Stafford.