National Highways announce £51.6m A19 upgrade near Sunderland to support the regional economy and provide access to the International Advanced Manufacturing Park (IAMP), to the north of Nissan’s motor manufacturing plant
The £51.6m A19 upgrade is the latest National Highways improvement to open to traffic in the North East.
The A19 upgrade is part of the government’s initiative to build back better from the pandemic, and level up regions across the country.
It also follows last year’s opening of the A19 Norton to Wynyard and A19 Testo’s improvements.
National Highways marked the milestone by cutting a ribbon to open a new pedestrian, cyclist and equestrian footbridge over the main carriageway.
Key stakeholders, including delivery partners Costain, scheme designers Jacobs, Sunderland City Council and South Tyneside Council also attended.
A19 upgrade will provide a fantastic boost for the North East’s economy
Minister for roads, Baroness Vere of Norbiton said: “I’m delighted to see this multi-million-pound scheme open for traffic.
“Our funding will provide a fantastic boost for the North East’s economy, make it easier for millions of people in the region to get around, and is a great example of how this Government is levelling up the country by enabling better access to opportunities and employment.”
‘Improvements will make a major contribution to the region’
National Highways chief executive Nick Harris also commented: “This is the third upgrade of the A19 we have been able to open to traffic in the last eight months and another important milestone in the substantial investment being made in the North East’s major A roads.
“The International Advanced Manufacturing Park is predicted to create up to 7,850 new jobs and attract £295 million of investment by 2026/27. Having the infrastructure in place to support that is key.
“These improvements will make a major contribution to the region, from providing better journeys to and from the region’s ports and Teesside airport, to improving journey times for local people who can get home more quickly and safely to their families or to and from their workplace.
“Our roads are not only the lifeblood of our economy, but they also support local as well as national businesses, and are vital to enable our emergency services to support local communities.”
The A19 Downhill Lane project has seen the construction of a full roundabout at the junction and improvements made to the existing A19.
Alongside this, new traffic signals have been installed at the junction, a new road bridge has been installed and a bridge provided for walkers, cyclists and horse riders.
The A19 upgrade encourages drivers to stay on the strategic road, more suited to moving larger volumes of traffic, and off the local highway network, improving the environment for those that live and work in the area.
More than half a million people-hours were worked on the A19 Downhill Lane project, with 60 per cent of the workforce made up of locally-based staff.
£3m of savings were achieved by delivering the project at the same time as the work on A19 Testo’s Junction.
£150,000 was saved reusing materials such as the stone from the site access roads at Testo’s.
Just under 600 steel columns were installed as part of the foundations for the new road bridge, which is 37 metres long and 14.5 metres wide.
