Two and a half months of closures planned for A5 outside Oswestry
One of the county's major roads will see a succession of overnight closures for more than two and a half months.
The closures will take place on the A5, outside Oswestry, as work is carried out on changes to the Mile End junction.
Shropshire Council is creating a second roundabout at Mile End as part of plans for a major innovation park off the A5. It expects the project to be finished in Spring next year.
The closures are due to start on September 13 and scheduled to finish on December 1 – although the council has stressed that all dates can move.
Signposted diversions will be in place, while there are advanced warning signs and mobile variable LED message advising motorists of the closures.
The first will take place from 8pm to 6am daily from September 13 to 17.
It will allow workers to lay service ducts across the existing A5 by the services.
From September 20 to November 4 there will again be daily closures from 8pm to 6am – enabling work to take place on the northern tie in just north of the existing Mile End roundabout
The third section is planned from November 5 to December 1, with the diversion in place from 8pm to 6am, to allow work on the southern tie in to the east.
A spokesman for Shropshire Council said that it had completed all the work it could at the site without requiring closures.
He said: "Since the spring, work has continued on ground works, diversion of utility apparatus, installation of drainage systems and more recently, the initial layers of construction that will make up the foundation for the new road and roundabout.
"All these works have been contained within the land owned by Shropshire Council with vegetation clearance works adjacent to the A5 requiring traffic management to be in place from time to time.
"Road Safety Audit sign off and technical approvals have been obtained from National Highways which provides the team the necessary authority to continue with the main works which will now forge ahead through to completion in spring 2022.
"Although the majority of the works are taking place off the main carriageway, it is necessary to have some night-time road closures."
The spokesman added: "Works will be carried out to tie-in the new alignment of the A5 at Mile End Roundabout to the existing A5 road. This will involve building up the existing road level to meet the new road level by adding extra surfacing and building up the verges, painting road markings and adding road studs.
"Once in operation, this new road alignment will help to de-congest local traffic flows at Mile End from through traffic on the A5."
Under the plans for the changes the new roundabout will sit alongside the existing Mile End Roundabout to the north.
It will have four exits and will take traffic from the A5, bypassing the existing Mile End Roundabout.
Motorists driving from Shrewsbury to North Wales – or vice versa – will be separated off to use the new roundabout to continue their journey.
