Catthorpe work to start in January, minister confirms

WORK on the Catthorpe interchange will start in January, roads minster Robert Goodwill confirmed yesterday (Wednesday).

The £190.7million M1 Junction 19 Improvement Scheme has been in the pipeline for around 15 years to reduce congestion, but more importantly to improve safety by replacing it with a three-level junction.

Roads between Catthorpe and Swinford will also be improved so local traffic can avoid the junction.

The current plans are based on the set scrapped back in 2010 amid huge government spending cuts.

Mr Goodwill said: “The 142,000 vehicles that pass through Catthorpe junction every day demonstrate how important this route is.

“However, the current layout of Catthorpe is unable to meet this demand, giving rise to congestion, delays, accidents and conflict between local and longer-distance traffic.

There will be direct links from the M1 southbound to A14; the M6 to the A14 in both directions, the M6 to the M1 southbound, and the M1 northbound to the M6.

The Highways Agency will hold public information exhibitions where people will be able to view detailed plans, find out more about the roadworks and how they can get journey planning advice during construction.

They will take place at Swinford Village Hall on Friday, January 10 from 2pm to 8pm and on Saturday, January 11 from 10am to 4pm.

Ivan Marriott, Highways Agency project manager, said: "These public exhibitions will be a chance for residents, businesses and road-users to find out what they can expect during construction and what benefits the scheme will bring once complete.

"We welcome the opportunity to tell people more about our scheme and answer any questions they may have."

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