Media centre

Tuesday 19 Feb 2019

Partial closure of Northamptonshire road bridge as Network Rail completes vital safety work

Region & Route:

Eastern

Network Rail is advising motorists in Corby that Cottingham Road bridge will be partially closed for six weeks to allow work to improve safety to take place.

Beginning on Monday, 4 March, Network Rail workers will remove the current crash barrier to strengthen it, before reinstalling it at an increased height. The bridge will reopen on Saturday, 27 April.

During this time, there will be a partial road closure. Vehicles will still be able to use the bridge, however traffic lights will be in place with motorists advised to allow additional time for their journey. Pedestrian access will be maintained throughout the work.

This work needs to take place following a project which took place last year to raise the bridge as part of the Midland Main Line Upgrade. The structure needed to be raised to allow a safe distance for overhead line equipment, ahead of the line being fully electrified from London to Bedford via Kettering and Corby.

Ed Akers, Principal Programme Sponsor for Network Rail, said: “Firstly, we would like to apologise to motorists as we appreciate that this work will cause some disruption. We are doing all that we can to keep this to a minimum, such as having a partial road closure, but we do appreciate that this can still have an impact.

“Cottingham Road bridge has recently been upgraded as part of the Midland Main Line Upgrade, the biggest investment into the line since the Victorian era. We would like to thank residents, businesses and motorists for their patience whilst this final work on the bridge takes place.”

ENDS