MOTORISTS are set for more disruption as a key slip road at Bowdon Roundabout is set to shut for until the winter.

Work to complete the first major phase of Highways England’s £192 million Knutsford to Bowdon A556 link road between the M6 and M56 will get underway Monday July 11.

The eastbound exit slip road at junction 7 of the M56 will close from 2am on Monday for around four months as the junction – which serves motorway and A556 drivers as well as traffic on local roads – is re-modelled.

It is expected that the road will reopen in November.

Once completed, traffic will have direct ‘free flow’ access between the A556 and M56, without having to negotiate roundabouts or traffic lights. Local drivers will have ‘easier access’ to the A556 and M56, as well as A56 Lymm and Altrincham roads, in a new layout twinning the existing Bowdon roundabout with a new roundabout at Yarwood Heath,

Highways England project manager Paul Hampson said: “The new arrangements at junction 7 will provide important improvements in their own right - giving drivers direct and swifter access between the A556 and motorway, and making it far easier for local road users to use Bowdon roundabout.

“Much of the infrastructure is already in place as regular users of the existing layout have seen for themselves and we’ll be spending the next few months tying the new link roads into the A556 and linking the new and existing roundabouts.

“Given the current layout we cannot complete this work without closing the exit slip road from the eastbound M56 and while good alternative routes are in place, we would like to thank drivers in advance for their patience.”

While the eastbound exit slip road is closed, drivers will be able to leave the motorway via junction 20 of the northbound M6 near Lymm services or at junction 6 at Hale.

Anyone seeking more information about the project, closures or diversion routes can visit the project webpage at: highways.gov.uk/roads/road-projects/A556-Knutsford-to-Bowdon-Improvement.