Brixham Road Highways Works Road Closure
The road closure and diversionary works have been in place for 2 months. Feedback on the whole has been largely positive and suggests that less disruption to traffic has been experienced than originally envisaged. In the last month there have been very few reports of significant inconvenience resulting from the works. The school holiday period also passed with disruption limited to the forecasted delays.
During the working hours of 7am to 6pm Monday to Saturday, each end of the road closure is manned to stop vehicles and to answer queries or provide information to residents, manage deliveries, refuse and recycling lorries.
At all times during the closure, residents, deliveries, refuse and visitors have been afforded access to the Brixham Road properties along Brixham Road from one end of the closure only. Roadform has, and will, continue to liaise with each property and confirm access and routes on a regular basis as the works progress.
The impact of the road closure continues to be monitored closely with Torbay Council, community support groups, the public transport sector, emergency services and local businesses, and positive dialogue and reaction has ensured that the closure has been implemented successfully. Weekly meetings with Torbay Council continue to assess the closure’s status and seek to evaluate and react to any immediate concerns or third party issues.
Roadform have installed an additional temporary pedestrian crossing adjacent to the Goodrington Road shops as requested by Torbay Highways Department.
Programme
The physical 278 road widening works have progressed well in the period. De-vegetation works are complete. Persimmon has been able to retain some trees which were consented for removal. Deep drainage has now been completed, and the road widening kerb lines have been established to allow the Brixham Road widening works to progress.
The Brixham road re-levelling (to improve forward vehicle visibility), widening and drainage are now substantially complete prior to surfacing which starts next week. The onsite roundabout has been largely formed and the Hunters Tor crossing is now being constructed.
The works are still on programme to re-open Brixham Road on 31 March. After the Easter period, it is intended that the road will remain open to traffic but thereafter works will continue under traffic management until completed in mid to late May 2023.
In the past few weeks, it has been discovered that the Wales and West intermediate pressure gas main was shallower than any Wales and West record drawings or recent radar surveys suggested. The pipe rises up between two trial holes previously excavated to check its depth. The intermediate pressure gas main is required to be a minimum of 750mm below the road level but for a run of 13m it rises by between 50 and 100mm which breaches the standard tolerances allowed by Wales and West.
Wales and West have agreed to allow the construction of a non-standard concrete capping to the pipe which would mean the pipe can remain in situ and the road run over it without diverting the pipe. This design solution is being implemented and all necessary materials are on site to still achieve the end of March road re-opening, subject to exceptional adverse inclement weather.
Roadform have been working Saturday afternoons to complete specific tasks which cannot be undertaken when the site is busy and finish off tasks that could not be completed in the week. In March, Roadform will start some evening work on long days for surfacing and lining of the roads. Planning permission has been granted for these extended working hours.
Traffic Management Post Road Diversion
The diversion route is programmed to cease at the end of March 2023. After that date, traffic management will be required to complete the works as well as the Brixham Road and Windy Corner works. This will cause delays on Brixham Road due to the temporary traffic lights but, Persimmon will review the impact and timing of the works with the Highways Department to minimise disruption and install appropriate signage to manage the traffic. We will update on the timing of works and traffic management solutions in our March newsletter prior to the Easter holidays.
Overview
Persimmon and Roadform are committed to minimising the disruption caused by the road closure. They are engaging and liaising with several organisations including Emergency Services, Torbay Council, Torbay Officers, the NHS, Brixham Chamber of Commerce, Brixham Fishing Industry and local residents on Brixham Road. There have been a few issues and disruptions to individuals. Persimmon and Roadform are responding to these issues as and when they arise and will continue to do so. Persimmon are working through the project risks to mitigate them. The Brixham Road is on programme to re-open on 31 March 2023. A few progress photos are embedded below. The first four photos are taken over the last few weeks showing the extent of widening on Brixham Road and the drainage depths.
The next six photos are from this week showing the view of the works progressing south on Brixham Road with all services and drainage work are complete.
