Balfour Beatty wins £108m Mottram bypass job

The contractor, in partnership with consultant Atkins, has been appointed to deliver the long-awaited dual-carriageway aimed at reducing congestion in Tameside village and speeding up journey times between Manchester and Sheffield.

Early design work on the £200m link road between the M57 and the A57 is due to start this summer and construction is scheduled to begin by spring 2023, according to Balfour Beatty.

The relief road would run north-east from junction four of the M67 to a newly created underpass in Mottram. The road would then join the A57 east of the junction with the A6018. 

The A57, which runs through Mottram, is notoriously congested and talks to create a bypass have been ongoing for many years. Residents have been lobbying for a solution to the traffic problem since the 1970s. 

The Mottram bypass is part of a wider £242m project to reduce congestion on the 25-mile route connecting the M67 in the North West across the Pennines, to the M1 in South Yorkshire. 

Phil Clifton, managing director of Balfour Beatty’s highways business, said: “Balfour Beatty and our design partner Atkins are proud to be delivering this critical project to support economic growth in the North of England. 

“We are[contributing] to the development of the local area by connecting communities and bringing additional social value through the use of local suppliers and supporting employment opportunities.”