News releases and highways newsletters

Essex County Council’s Park & Ride (P&R) to recommence

Essex County Council’s Park & Ride (P&R) will recommence services from Monday 12 April 2021 from Sandon and Colchester and  Monday 17 May from Chelmer Valley.  The Broomfield Hospital Shuttle service remains suspended until further notice.  Initially a reduced timetable will be in place.

The sites will provide services between 7am-7pm Monday to Saturday, but passengers are advised to check the website or social media before traveling for any updates or changes, which could occur due to essential operation reasons.

The services will be operating in line with current government social distancing requirements and therefore there may be a slightly longer wait to board a vehicle due to reduce capacity onboard. Passengers are advised to be patient and follow advice from service staff.

Chelmer Valley Park and Ride to reopen in May

The Chelmer Valley Park and Ride site is set to reopen on Monday 17th May 2021.

The Broomfield Hospital Shuttle service remains suspended until further notice.

North Hall Road – Project progress

Our recent investigations have established there are a number of utility services in the vicinity of North Hall Road, including Openreach cables and water main running alongside the river.  Gigaclear cables have been identified in the adjacent carriageway and we are aware of a major pipeline in the area. This information will support our future investigations, as well as design and construction works as the apparatus will need to be avoided to protect supplies to surrounding properties, as well as the safety of our workforce.

Cust Hall Bridge – works complete

We are pleased to confirm the remaining work at Cust Hall Bridge as part of the bridge reconstruction are now complete. The temporary traffic lights which were in place on Gainsford End Road have been removed.

Highways Highlights - March 2021

The March 2021 edition of Highways Highlights has now been published.

The newsletter for all things highway in Essex.

In the March 2021 edition:

• Clearer, easier Essex Highways website
• Successful Braintree area rural road grass verge cutting trial
• New measures to protect children on roads outside schools

Tindal Square drainage CCTV works

Overnight CCTV works are due to take place in the vicinity of Tindal Square and the High Street from 8pm on the 12th April to 5am on the 13th April.

This work is critical in the development of the proposals for Tindal square and will involve undertaking CCTV of the drainage and utility pipes under the road surface.

Coronavirus: Essex Highways Status update

Although some restrictions in England, including the ‘stay at home’ rule, have eased since 29 March in line with government guidelines there is a continuing need to follow the latest travel rules.

Please minimise the number of journeys you need to make and where possible continue to work from home.

If you have to travel, stay local and avoid travelling at the busiest times. If you haven’t been out locally for a while, you might like to consider using safer, greener, healthier ways to get around locally, such as walking or cycling. And travel abroad is generally prohibited.

If using public transport like trains, buses and taxis, please follow their additional rules – continued social distancing and use of masks remains necessary.

Ipswich Road Resurfacing

The first phase of night time resurfacing works has now been completed, with the northern section of Ipswich road roundabout and adjoining roads resurfaced and lined.

The second phase of works on the southern section is now underway.

The road closures required in this final phase are Ipswich Road south from Fenwick Drive to the roundabout, St Andrew's Avenue from the Harwich Road roundabout heading towards the Ipswich Road roundabout and Cowdray Avenue from the Ipswich Road roundabout heading west.

All other roads will remain open.

Harwich road south will remain open for these works so buses will now be able to divert through this area.

The southern section of works are planned for 5 nights but we will of course try our best to complete this as quickly and safely as possible. Read full story

A120-A133 Link Road virtual exhibition launched

In the coming weeks, the proposals for the A120-A133 Link Road will be submitted to Essex Council (as the highways authority). The planning process will last for 16 weeks and will include a planning consultation allowing all interested parties to give their views.

All of the documents submitted to planning will be available to view and details on where to see these will be provided below once available.

Ahead of this, we are pleased to be showcasing the scheme proposals in our virtual exhibition.

Junction improvements could form first part of economy-boosting plan to upgrade A127

A series of junction improvements are being investigated to enhance the A127 in south Essex and boost the region’s economy, ahead of aspirations for further major upgrades in the future.

The A127 forms the central corridor through the south of the county, providing a key strategic link between London and Southend and connecting large centres of population and industry with London Southend Airport.

More than 80,000 vehicles a day use some sections of the A127 – making it the busiest non-trunk road in Essex and busier than parts of the M11. The dual carriageway is close to capacity at peak times, resulting in regular congestion and delays, which have a negative impact on the economy and road safety.