A MAJOR motorway is set to close for an entire weekend causing travel chaos as thousands will be forced to use diversions.
Motorists planning to use the M4 next month will be frustrated to learn that a stretch of the motorway will be fully closed off for a number of days.
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Major disruption is set to hit north of Bristol over the weekend of March 21.
When and where?
Drivers will be impacted from 7pm on Friday, March 21, to 6am on Monday, March 24.
The motorway will be closed in both directions between junctions 18 (Bath) and 19 (M32).
It comes as officials demolish the A432 Badminton Road Bridge.
National Highways has warned of severe disruption with up to 4,000 vehicles using this section of motorway every hour over peak weekend travel periods.
Diversions and travel advice
While there will be diversions in place to avoid the closure, drivers are urged to entirely avoid the area.
National Highways has also suggested drivers plan their journeys for different times to avoid busy periods and if possible, the closure time.
Those travelling westbound will be given the following diversion:
- Exit the M4 at junction 18 and from the roundabout take the A46 towards Bath
- At the A46/A420 junction past Pennsylvania, take the A420 towards Warmley
- At the A420/A4174 junction in Warmley take the A4174 to the M32
- Join the motorway at junction 1 and head to the M4 junction 19
Drivers travelling eastbound should follow this diversion in reverse.
Meanwhile, cyclists and pedestrians who cross over this motorway section using the road bridge will no longer be able to do so from March 7.
As National Highways prepares to demolish the bridge, its closure will be put in place before the motorway is affected.
There will also be an exclusion zone put in place around the bridge and the public are reminded to not attempt to access the site.
National Highways Route Manager Sean Walsh said, “This is one of the busiest sections of motorway in the South West which is why we are giving drivers as much notice as possible so they’re able to plan their journeys well in advance.
“We carefully plan our schemes to limit any inconvenience, but sometimes it’s not possible to carry out the work that’s needed without a closure.
“Our message for anyone who plans to travel on the M4 around Bristol is to avoid the area if you can – if that’s not possible, allow yourself plenty of extra time to complete your journey via our signed diversion routes and expect delays.”
M25 Chaos
The news comes as drivers are also facing a string of disruptions on the country’s busiest motorway after a nine month delay thanks to “extreme weather.”
Millions of car journeys will be thrown into chaos as National Highways pushes ahead with efforts to improve the M25 causing eight-days of closures.
The motorway will first face disruption between February 21 and February 24, as all J10 entry and exit slip roads are closed.
The section will then be closed, in both directions, between J10 and J11, from 7-10 March and 21-24 March.
Over the course of these closures, old bridges will be demolished and removed.
Closures will begin at 9pm on Friday and the roads will only reopen at 6am on Monday.
The A3 northbound will face disruption between 11-14 April, alongside the Cobham roundabout.
