Latest news releases and updates

Colchester Bus Interchange consultation - new interchange critical to help solve city centre capacity issues

By 2040, Osborne Street Bus Station could have to cope with four times the number of buses than it is designed for. 

The creation of a new Bus Station Interchange in Colchester is critical to helping solve capacity issues within the city centre, Essex County Council’s Cabinet Member for transport has said.

Essex County Council and Colchester City Council, through their Team Colchester initiative, are currently consulting on plans to create a new facility off Queen Street, adjacent to FirstSite and the Curzon Cinema.

The proposals would see up to 25 stops provided in the city centre, as well as layover space and facilities to support coach and community transport services.

The current facility at Osborne Street provides six stops. Figures released as part of the consultation have set out that, without intervention, it could be operating at four times the capacity by 2040. This means four times the number of buses would be using the facility than originally designed for.

Stone Bridge - Installation of Temporary Steel Sheet Piles

Following our update in September, the work to replace Stone Bridge has recommenced with the installation of the temporary steel sheet piles which will support the ground around the excavations for the new bridge foundations. Read full story

St Botolph's Circus Regeneration update 26/10/26

This week, the team will be working on the reinforced concrete chambers that will sit beneath the roundabout. Having built the structures for the chambers, concrete will now be poured. Once complete, these chambers will help manage drainage on site by capturing rainwater and road run-off.

East Hill update - overnight works

Overnight works will be taking place at the Guildford Road junction on Thursday 29 October 2026.

To facilitate these works, access to East Hill, Guildford Road and Rosebery Avenue will be maintained using temporary traffic signals. Works will begin from 8pm.  Every effort will be made to minimise disruption to residents and road users.

St Botolph’s Circus update

It has been a busy time on site as the St Botolph’s Circus works continue to progress at pace.

Over the past two weeks, a number of overnight road closures have been in place. These have enabled more disruptive activities, such as the installation of ducting beneath the road surface to connect lighting and traffic signals. Undertaking this work at night has allowed the team to minimise the impact on traffic and road users.

Last week, the team completed the removal of the murals from the underpasses. These have now been safely relocated and placed into secure storage.

The installation of safety barriers around the roundabout was also completed last week. These barriers will help ensure the safety of both the public and the workforce while works continue and will enable further demolition activities within the roundabout area.

This week, the team is beginning work to create new supporting bases, which will allow water chambers to be constructed above them.

Residential road to close for trial to help stop ‘rat running’

Residents are invited to share their feedback on the scheme during a six-month consultation.

A residential road in Harlow is set to close as part of a trial scheme to help tackle ‘rat running’.

For a number of years residents have raised concerns about Old Road in Harlow being used as a shortcut between Cambridge Road and Gilden Way.

Having considered various options to address the issue and encourage drivers to use more appropriate routes, Essex County Council is trialing an experimental closure of Old Road.

The closure, which will come into effect from Monday 19 October 2026, will be in place between the junctions with Hart Road and The Hoo.

Dovercourt transformation moves forward with Kingsway upgrades

The Dovercourt public realm scheme is part of a wider multi-million pound regeneration programme.

Construction of the Dovercourt Public Realm Scheme is progressing well, with the first half of paving works now complete.

The £2.39 million project involves a series of improvements along the B1414 Kingsway. This is between Dovercourt Railway Station and the seafront.

It is part of the multimillion-pound Dovercourt Capital Regeneration Programme. This is being jointly delivered by Essex County Council and Tendring District Council.

M Group Highways were appointed by Essex County Council to construct the scheme. The works began in late June.

Significant progress has been made since then. This includes new paving laid along most of the eastern side of Kingsway. Benches, litter bins and new trees will be added later in the project.

The works have now switched to the western side of Kingsway. This is fenced off to allow the works to be undertaken safely.

The temporary one-way system on Kingsway remains in place and has moved to the other side of the road. Businesses are open as normal and access to properties will be retained throughout the works.

St Botolph's Circus Regeneration update

Work has been progressing quickly on the St Botolph’s Circus site. The recent overnight closures have helped to reduce disruption and these will continue as set out within our update.

New 90-day repair commitment for less serious road defects

Some defects that currently do not have a fixed timeframe for repair will now be fixed within 90 days

Essex County Council will commit to repair certain road defects within 90 days of them being reported to improve road safety for residents and road users.

The pledge contributes to the council’s 100 Day Plan for reforming Essex. It was agreed as part of the council’s revised Highways Maintenance and Inspections Strategies at its cabinet meeting on Wednesday, 16 September.

Under the new system, these types of repairs will be classified as D3 repairs – filtering out the higher-risk defects from the current S3 (priority 3) defect category. D3 defects will now be repaired within 90 days.

Tree removal on Station way

To facilitate the create the space required for the walking and cycling improvements on Station Way, we need to relocate the existing wall within the Wickes car park and remove four London plane trees.

This work is subject to a street tree consultation. These trees will be replaced as part of the construction works.