in the right place for a change...........maybe!
https://www.msn.com/en-gb/travel/news/j ... d891&ei=32
The £460m A417 Missing Link road building scheme enters a major new phase on Monday (January 27) as bridge structures start arriving at the site near the Air Balloon roundabout. They will be transported on large vehicles and traffic will need to be stopped on nearby roads for 10 minutes on five dates.
The bridge beams will arrive under escort and will be taken to the National Highways construction site next to the temporary mini-roundabouts on the A436 near the A417 junction. Site workers will have stop/start boards to stop traffic to ensure the structures arrive safely and to ensure the safety of people travelling.
Spending the car tax money
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Spending the car tax money
Anyone who has never made a mistake has never tried anything new. (Albert Einstein)
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Re: Spending the car tax money
I've got to say the use of Stop/Go boards are a far better way to control traffic than the ubiquitous set of temporary traffic lights...
Did I read correctly that other parts of that road have taken over 20 years to complete or is that another one?
Did I read correctly that other parts of that road have taken over 20 years to complete or is that another one?
Jim
Runner, cyclist, duathlete, Citroen AX fan and the CCC Citroenian 'From A to Z' Columnist...
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Re: Spending the car tax money
Have you seen the Botley Road, Oxford, roadworks debacle ?
"A delayed road and rail improvement project has gone "disastrously wrong" and is causing serious damage to the local community, campaigners have said.
Botley Road in Oxford has been closed under the rail bridge since April 2023 because of a £161m Network Rail scheme.
Network Rail acknowledged the delay was "frustrating" and said it was undertaking a full review.
When the rail operator first outlined its plans to expand Oxford station, Botley Road was expected to be shut over two six-month periods, with a six-month break in-between.
But in September 2023, it announced there would be no break because works ran behind schedule.
Then, last July, it said it would not reopen in October as planned. It is yet to confirm a new date."
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/czen7g5e9dpo
And now more recently.....
"Network Rail has announced that a key route through Oxford will reopen in August 2026.
It means that the Botley Road will have been closed at the railway bridge for nearly three and a half years since April 2023."
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/ce81pzewxlzo
That takes proper skill and determination to screw up a bit of civil engineering that badly.

"A delayed road and rail improvement project has gone "disastrously wrong" and is causing serious damage to the local community, campaigners have said.
Botley Road in Oxford has been closed under the rail bridge since April 2023 because of a £161m Network Rail scheme.
Network Rail acknowledged the delay was "frustrating" and said it was undertaking a full review.
When the rail operator first outlined its plans to expand Oxford station, Botley Road was expected to be shut over two six-month periods, with a six-month break in-between.
But in September 2023, it announced there would be no break because works ran behind schedule.
Then, last July, it said it would not reopen in October as planned. It is yet to confirm a new date."
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/czen7g5e9dpo
And now more recently.....
"Network Rail has announced that a key route through Oxford will reopen in August 2026.
It means that the Botley Road will have been closed at the railway bridge for nearly three and a half years since April 2023."
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/ce81pzewxlzo
That takes proper skill and determination to screw up a bit of civil engineering that badly.


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Re: Spending the car tax money
You're not wrong therebobins wrote: 25 Jan 2025, 18:48 That takes proper skill and determination to screw up a bit of civil engineering that badly.![]()
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Any works of this nature seem to take so, so long these days... HS2 seems to have been under construction since forever and very close to home here, our main road from Paggers down to the M1 (the A509) has been closed for an eternity whilst the enabling and infrastructure works for the latest expansion of Milton Keynes take place. The amount of grief it is causing at peak times is quite biblical. The anger in our town is palpable.
As part of these works, two enormous warehouses have been erected - as if MK needs any more warehouses, we have several million already - and those have gone up in an amazingly fast time measured in weeks.
Now, if only they could take years to erect unnecessary warehouses and weeks to complete road and bridge work I'm sure the country would be a lot happier...
I'm clearly missing some critical reason why here... Maybe involving rehoming an endangered species of land-lobster perhaps

Jim
Runner, cyclist, duathlete, Citroen AX fan and the CCC Citroenian 'From A to Z' Columnist...
Runner, cyclist, duathlete, Citroen AX fan and the CCC Citroenian 'From A to Z' Columnist...
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Re: Spending the car tax money
A week ago a drunk driver ploughed into the old stone bridge on the A272 in Midhurst - it's realistically the only way through the town. To give them credit, Highways were straight onto it and the road was only completely shut for just over 24 hours and we've now got temporary traffic lights and single file traffic until the bridge gets rebuilt. But.... the replacement stone for the bridge has been ordered and it'll take 2 months to get here - I think they're quarrying the stone out with a teaspoon instead of a pick
Once the stone is delivered it'll take a month to rebuild the bridge. 3 months of traffic lights and very long delays in the rush hour - what joy
We had the whole road closed through town for 3 months not so long ago when The Angel hotel burnt down. I suppose it's one way of showing our 'Green' credentials by reducing the vehicle movements through town 



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Re: Spending the car tax money
We have a potentially similar nightmare emerging here. Just before Christmas they had to close a flyover just short of the Tyne Bridge. It is over a Metro station that has had to be closed too, so no metro from South Tyneside (South Shields and Jarrow among others) and of course Sunderland.
Also making car, bus and lorry traffic over the Tyne Bridge very limited.
Seems they are going to have to demolish it, remains to be seen how they will replace it.
Affected us yesterday as we had to travel from South Shields to Blaydon and the road passed under the flyover so many diversions. Will be causing chaos for people going to and leaving work. It was bad enough before.
Also making car, bus and lorry traffic over the Tyne Bridge very limited.
Seems they are going to have to demolish it, remains to be seen how they will replace it.
Affected us yesterday as we had to travel from South Shields to Blaydon and the road passed under the flyover so many diversions. Will be causing chaos for people going to and leaving work. It was bad enough before.
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Re: Spending the car tax money
There's been a bottleneck there for as long as I can remember Jim, a dual carriageway from Swindon to Gloucester and Cheltenham became single at one roundabout through to the next at the Air Balloon pub so everything backed up at rush hour morning and evening, you could be held there for an hour on busy days and more if idiot drivers shunted each other which was quite often.CitroJim wrote: 25 Jan 2025, 18:06 I've got to say the use of Stop/Go boards are a far better way to control traffic than the ubiquitous set of temporary traffic lights...
Did I read correctly that other parts of that road have taken over 20 years to complete or is that another one?
Anyone who has never made a mistake has never tried anything new. (Albert Einstein)
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Re: Spending the car tax money
myglaren wrote: 25 Jan 2025, 19:59 We have a potentially similar nightmare emerging here. Just before Christmas they had to close a flyover just short of the Tyne Bridge. It is over a Metro station that has had to be closed too, so no metro from South Tyneside (South Shields and Jarrow among others) and of course Sunderland.
You'd need a hell of a bottle jack to lift this lot


https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cx2k05xvrl9o
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Re: Spending the car tax money
And that is one hell of a bottle jack.
It is heated too to keep it ice free in winter, except it isn't as it was too expensive to run.
I'm wondering if it was one of the infamous Paulson/T Dan Smith lashups.
It is heated too to keep it ice free in winter, except it isn't as it was too expensive to run.
I'm wondering if it was one of the infamous Paulson/T Dan Smith lashups.
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Re: Spending the car tax money
Seeing that Mammoet kit, I wonder if there's ever a job where they say : "You need WHAT ????
Nah, we haven't got anything that'll lift THAT !"
