Midlands Connect road strategy

[Junglecarz]

The M6 shouldn't be upgraded to a smart motorway near Junction 4 to 1 because looking at the M42 it is constantly congested because it is a smart motorway and i think very busy areas of the M6 could just do without an upgrade and just have an extra lane

[Big L]

The M6 shouldn't be upgraded to a smart motorway near Junction 4 to 1 because looking at the M42 it is constantly congested because it is a smart motorway and i think very busy areas of the M6 could just do without an upgrade and just have an extra lane

The M42 was congested before it was a smart motorway. That's why it was made smart. It's better now than it was.

[Junglecarz]

The M6 shouldn't be upgraded to a smart motorway near Junction 4 to 1 because looking at the M42 it is constantly congested because it is a smart motorway and i think very busy areas of the M6 could just do without an upgrade and just have an extra lane

The M42 was congested before it was a smart motorway. That's why it was made smart. It's better now than it was.

It is still very busy though

[Big L]

The M6 shouldn't be upgraded to a smart motorway near Junction 4 to 1 because looking at the M42 it is constantly congested because it is a smart motorway and i think very busy areas of the M6 could just do without an upgrade and just have an extra lane

The M42 was congested before it was a smart motorway. That's why it was made smart. It's better now than it was.

It is still very busy though

Well yes, but making it smart isn't about removing traffic. It is about managing traffic. And it is better to travel on now than it was before.

[Chris5156]

The M6 shouldn't be upgraded to a smart motorway near Junction 4 to 1 because looking at the M42 it is constantly congested because it is a smart motorway and i think very busy areas of the M6 could just do without an upgrade and just have an extra lane

The M42 was congested before it was a smart motorway. That's why it was made smart. It's better now than it was.

"Just having an extra lane" is not an option these days, unfortunately. Smart Motorway schemes are what we get instead of traditional widening. If the motorway needs an extra lane, the only option on the table is converting the hard shoulder to a fourth running lane as part of a Smart Motorway scheme.

[Junglecarz]

The M6 shouldn't be upgraded to a smart motorway near Junction 4 to 1 because looking at the M42 it is constantly congested because it is a smart motorway and i think very busy areas of the M6 could just do without an upgrade and just have an extra lane

The M42 was congested before it was a smart motorway. That's why it was made smart. It's better now than it was.

"Just having an extra lane" is not an option these days, unfortunately. Smart Motorway schemes are what we get instead of traditional widening. If the motorway needs an extra lane, the only option on the table is converting the hard shoulder to a fourth running lane as part of a Smart Motorway scheme.

Times change sadly

[jackal]

Midlands Connect put out this leaflet with their 2018/19 priorities, with an accompanying map:

https://www.transportxtra.com/files/70567-l.jpg

[Truvelo]

So the A46 will be grade separated throughout? Together with the Western Orbital it seems to me like a resurrection of early 90s proposals.

[SouthWest Philip]

So the A46 will be grade separated throughout? Together with the Western Orbital it seems to me like a resurrection of early 90s proposals.

Well Tewkesbury to Newark anyway, maybe as far as Lincoln one day. I think they non-primary bit south of Cheltenham should be renumbered.

Living in Evesham I can say that full dualling of the A46 between the M5 & M40 is long overdue. And if there's a possibility of the Cotswolds becoming a National Park, as has been suggested, it might be as well to get it done first! Any National Park is likely to extend over the A46 to include Bredon Hill.

[jackal]

I doubt it would be fully GSJed, at least not along the A46. For instance, you'll see the existing roundabouts at Longbridge and Stivichall are untouched on that map. This earlier briefing note gives a sense of the kind of improvements they're looking at:

https://www.midlandsconnect.uk/media/11 ... cester.pdf

[Herned]

Wow! An actual map with sensible ideas rather than a pretty report full of buzzwords and nothing meaningful. This is progress

Although why not connect the A46 to the M50?

[M56phil]

A1 to A1(M) north of Peterborough?? That'll be a huge project. Must be 60+ miles to upgrade. Can't see that happening for some time I think.

A49 Hereford by-pass is desperately needed. Let's hope it's a D2.

Western Orbital - D2? D3M?? Take your pick!

[jackal]

At the bottom of this page you can see summaries of these studies:

A38
A46 Tewkesbury to Leicester
Interchange Road Hub
M1 North to South Connectivity
Nottingham and Derby Hub
A5 Rugby to Cannock
Stoke Road Hub

The info seems to be from 1-2 years ago but provides useful detail.

[danfw194]

I find the 'Economic Hubs and Corridors' map interesting. They've put Leicester-Coventry as a corridor, and Derby-Nottingham as a corridor, with poor old Loughborough completely neglected. Leicester is part of the East Midlands, surely more focus should be placed on a Leicester-Nottingham corridor which would automatically include Loughborough.

[85CF380]

Don't know what South Lincs has done to upset Midlands Connect but they never get a mention. Some of the maps end at the A1, the main area map of town,s lists Ross on Wye (popn 10,000), but not Boston (35,000) - there's no mention of the A17 or A16. The area backs on to E Anglia which is meant to be a new growth area.

[danfw194]

Don't know what South Lincs has done to upset Midlands Connect but they never get a mention. Some of the maps end at the A1, the main area map of town,s lists Ross on Wye (popn 10,000), but not Boston (35,000) - there's no mention of the A17 or A16. The area backs on to E Anglia which is meant to be a new growth area.

I agree, connectivity to South Lincs has been neglected for too long. Given that it's not densely populated and is relatively flat, you'd think that road schemes should be 'easy' to plan. In a fantasy land, I'd upgrade the A17 (and A1121) to D2 standard all the way from Boston to Newark, with a new southern bypass of Newark to link it to the A1 and A46. I think there's more chance of seeing pigs fly sadly.

And of course, Boston itself is crying out for a bypass.

[Fenlander]

Dual A17 would be nice but to be honest I’d settle for a few bits of alternate S2+1 in the places where it’s eash to stick them in.
The recent roundabout works on A17 by Holbeach have put 2 lanes both on to and off them which allows faster braking/accelerating cars to easily pass slower lorries/tractors/caravans where the performance differential between them is at its greatest. You pass more vehicles on the approach to Long Sutton roundabout than on the short stretch of dual after it.

[jackal]

The Motorway Hub strategy has been published, with these recommendations:

Making best
use of existing
networks
• Further Smart Motorway [including M40, Junction 12 to 16 and
M6 between Junction 2 and the M1]
• Use of M6 Toll as
diversionary route
• Improvements to M6
junctions [2 and 3]

Harnessing
technology
• Coordinated traffic
management
• Smart digital information
• Testing HGV and demand
management strategies

Creating
modal Shift
• Strategic Park and Ride
• New mass transit routes
• Demand management

Major
investment in
the Hub
• M42 widening and junction
enhancements between
Junctions 3a to 7

Investing
in Strategic
Alternatives to
the Hub
• A46 to expressway standard
• Western Strategic
Route – M5 to M6

https://www.midlandsconnect.uk/media/11 ... 062018.pdf

[vlad]

At the bottom of this page you can see summaries of these studies:

[snip]

Stoke Road Hub

It doesn't really say what they're doing to upgrade the A50 - and it appears that the two at-grade roundabouts, at Blythe Bridge and Sudbury, are remaining.

[danfw194]

I realise that is just a strategic overview, and not a forensically detailed plan, but I find the A46 ideas a bit sketchy to say the least. Is the implication that the A46 would be expressway standard all the way from M5 J9 to M6 J2? Or is it just a case of grade-separating the two Coventry bypass roundabouts and other piecemeal improvements? 'Improved journey time of 20 minutes' isn't really conclusive. Either way, tracking so close to Coventry is a big issue when it comes to making the A46 into a major South-West to North East strategic route.

Also, there is absolutely no mention of the M54. With a lot of focus (understandably) on trying to get people using the M6 Toll, you'd think that they would at least refloat the idea of providing a satisfactory link between M6 Toll and M54 in this document.

At the bottom of this page you can see summaries of these studies:

[snip]

Stoke Road Hub

It doesn't really say what they're doing to upgrade the A50 - and it appears that the two at-grade roundabouts, at Blythe Bridge and Sudbury, are remaining.

That would be a great shame if those roundabouts were left alone. Both could easily be made into trumpet interchanges. I'm fairly sure that Aston Lane (at the Sudbury junction) doesn't need direct access to the A50 and could be rerouted slightly.