Progress report

In August 2017 we made our Preferred Route Announcement confirming that the options shown would be progressed to the detailed design phase because they reduce congestion and provide value for money. The anticipated benefits will be reviewed once further traffic-modelling has taken place, to ensure that any investment delivers value for money.

This scheme has been paused pending a review. Since the preferred route announcement of the Highways England scheme, the Great Yarmouth ‘Third River Crossing’ was awarded funding by the Department for Transport. An initial assessment commissioned by Highways England has indicated that the Third River Crossing may have a significant impact on traffic flows in Great Yarmouth, which will need to be re-assessed.

We have agreed with the Department for Transport that we will pause work on our current proposed designs and undertake further traffic modelling and assessment. Highways England will continue to work collaboratively with Norfolk County Council to reassess traffic flows in the area so that agreement can be reached as to what is required to improve the road network in Great Yarmouth.

What's next?

Traffic modelling work will take place to assess the impact of the Third River Crossing.

Timeline

Why we need this scheme

The A47 Vauxhall and Gapton junctions in northern Great Yarmouth currently experience heavy congestion during peak hours. This is due to there being few route options entering and exiting the town, and a lack of connectivity between movements within the town.

The proposed scheme will improve the Vauxhall roundabout by making it a larger and fully signalled, with a widened bridge over the railway line to accommodate the A47 southern exit and approach. The station approach will have minor improvements at the existing junction, including the addition of a dedicated right turn at the existing left turn only junction. At the Gapton roundabout traffic signals will be installed and provisions for non-motorised users will be improved.

The detail of this scheme and its impact on traffic flows will be reviewed and assessed in light of the Third River Crossing.

Aims

The aims and objectives of the Great Yarmouth junctions improvement scheme are to:

• reduce congestion-related delay, improving journey time reliability and increasing the overall capacity of the A47
• improve road safety for all road users by designing to modern highway standards appropriate for a major A road
• increase the resilience of the junctions in coping with incidents such as collisions, breakdowns, maintenance and extreme weather
• enable more reliable, reduced journey times and provide capacity for future traffic growth
• provide a safer route between communities for cyclists, pedestrians, and other non-motorised groups

The scheme in detail

The A47 Vauxhall and Gapton junctions in northern Great Yarmouth currently experience heavy congestion during peak hours. This is due to there being few route options entering and exiting the town, and a lack of connectivity between movements within the town.

The proposed scheme will improve the Vauxhall roundabout by making it a larger and fully signalled, with a widened bridge over the railway line to accommodate the A47 southern exit and approach. The station approach will have minor improvements at the existing junction, including the addition of a dedicated right turn at the existing left turn only junction. At the Gapton roundabout traffic signals will be installed and provisions for non-motorised users will be improved.

The detail of this scheme will be reviewed in once the Third River Crossing is open and its impact on traffic flows can be assessed.

Roadworks and Events for England

The latest incident information for England's motorway and trunk routes provided by Highways England