A59 Northway / Dover Road / Liverpool Road South Junction Improvement
Update - January 13, 2020
A E Yates Ltd have been appointed the main civils Contractor for the junction improvement scheme and have progressed works across the junction since starting early November.
A E Yates Ltd have located their site offices in the car park of the former Motor Range site and will be using this site for the duration of the works. The current completion date is still the end of March 2020 and motorists are advised to expect some delays and extended journey times during these works however we will be taking all steps possible to reduce disruption where possible.
Please note the following forthcoming important dates / activities:- Week Commencing 13th January: The main traffic signals across the whole junction will be switched to temporary signals. This arrangement is expected to last until early March when the new permanent traffic signals will be commissioned.
Week Commencing 13th January: Following the switch to temporary signals, the outbound lane from Liverpool Road South to Northway will re-open. It is worth noting the current restriction on the Northway southbound right turn into Liverpool Road South will still be in force, but all other manoeuvres in and out of Liverpool Road South will be allowed.
Week Commencing 13th January: Following the opening of the Liverpool Road South outbound lane, the inbound lane from Northway to Dover Road will be closed (i.e no traffic will be allowed to turn into Dover Road) – traffic will be diverted up to the Hall Lane junction. This will be expected to be in operation until mid-February. Outbound traffic from Dover Road will be maintained.
Week Commencing 13th January: Works to the frontage of the former Motor Range site will re-commence following additional statutory diversion works. This will require the continued closure of the nearside lane on Northway. Further localised closures will be necessary for resurfacing works before the end of the scheme and these dates will be advised in due course.
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In advance of the main civils works necessary diversions of statutory undertakers apparatus, namely BT, Virgin Media and Scottish Power have taken place along the frontage of the former Motor Range site during the summer holidays and these are expected to be completed by the end of September. Gas diversion works are programmed for week commencing Monday 16th September and the Council have been advised by Cadent (who are undertaking the diversion works) that this will involve the closure of the A59 / Liverpool Road South junction for a period of 9 weeks with signed diversions in place.
Tenders for the main civils works have now been received and assessed and a Contractor is expected to appointed shortly. The main civils works are expected to commence early October 2019 with an anticipated duration until March 2020.
Unfortunately the main civils works will at times disrupt the flow the flow of traffic through this junction and the works will involve various lane / road closures over the course of the scheme. Once the Contract has been awarded further updates with regards to road closures will be posted.
Motorists are advised to expect some delays and extended journey times during these works however we will be taking all steps possible to reduce disruption.
The Council has obtained £2.35 million of funding from the Liverpool City Region (LCR) Combined Authority for a major highway improvement scheme at the A59 Northway / Dover Road / Liverpool Road South traffic signal controlled junction. The A59 Northway is part of the City Region’s Key Route Network (KRN) and the funding has been provided to reduce traffic congestion and improve safety and accessibility on the KRN.
The proposals are intended to improve traffic flows through this key location on a major commuter route, particularly during the evening peak period.
The scheme includes widening the road on the northbound approach to the junction to provide a longer right turn lane to Dover Road. The widening will also mean that a shared use pedestrian / cycle path can be provided connecting to the existing regional cycle route network between Maghull and Aintree through Switch Island. Upgraded signal controlled crossing facilities will be provided across Liverpool Road South and the A59 Northway for pedestrians and cyclists.
The Dover Road arm of the junction will also be widened slightly to provide a separate left turn lane for vehicles heading towards Switch Island, as well as a straight on / right turn lane. In addition, signal controlled crossing facilities to allow pedestrians to cross Dover Road will also be provided.
The proposed layout for the junction is shown in the plan provided below.
| A59 Junction Plan 1 - General Arrangement |  (pdf 235KB) |
In order to widen the road, a strip of land will be required from the old Motor Range site to the south of the junction. Sefton Council has been negotiating with the landowner to acquire the land needed. The timeframe to complete land negotiations can be very difficult to predict but if the land can be obtained, the construction works are planned to be on site in early summer 2019.
In order to change the use of this strip of land to highway there is a requirement to submit a planning application. This is being prepared and is expected to be submitted shortly. Part of the planning process requires Sefton to inform the residents and wider community of the plans.
The planned start date for the works will take advantage of the school holidays in summer 2019. There are also works to divert the gas, BT, Virgin Media and electricity mains supplies that are being programmed in for late spring 2019, to be completed before the main works start.
Local residents who live on the Alt estate (the area bounded by A59 Northway and Hall Lane and the canal and railway line), who will be affected during the construction of the works, will be notified in advance once the start dates for both the mains supplies diversion works and the main scheme work are known. A main priority of the appointed Contractor will be to ensure that any traffic management measures required for constructing the works will minimise disruption in that area as far as possible.
Further updates will be provided as the scheme progresses.
Any queries about the scheme or requests for information can be submitted to transport.planning@sefton.gov.uk