Months of road closures and diversions start in January as work continues on Arlesey Relief Road

An artist impression showing the planned new junction where the road connects to Arlesey High Street.

Drivers are set for months of traffic disruption as work continues on the Arlesey Relief Road.

Planned road closures in the town start on January 9 – with Central Beds Council works planned along the route up until June.

From January 9 to February 3 High Street South will be closed between Goodwin Drive and Lewis Lane.

At the same time work on Chase Hill footpath will begin. The footpath will be closed from January 9 up until March 10, with diversions in place.

From February 6 to March 3 there will be a full road closure between Goodwin Drive to the junction of Church Lane and House Lane. Homes affected by this closure will be contacted directly.

Three-way traffic lights will be in place at High Street South (west) from March 6 to 29, High Street South (east) from March 30 to April 17, High Street North (west) from April 18 to May 19 and High Street North (east) from May 22 to June 9.

Meanwhile, the council will also be carrying out work to connect the Arlesey Relief Road to the A507 and install the new footbridge.

From February 9 to May 15 there will be four single, night time road closures, where traffic is diverted through Stotfold between 8pm and 5am. There will also be a temporary speed restriction of 30mph on the A507 between Hitchin Road and Arlesey Road, however the road will remain open throughout.

According to the council, work on the 1.4km link between Arlesey High Street and the A507 will creates access to land, known as Chase Farm, and enable the building of about 950 new homes, community facilities, and business developments in the future.

The project will also shift traffic from the busy Arlesey High Street onto the new road to ease congestion and reduce journey times for road users heading to the A507.

Dedicated cycleways and footways will sit alongside the carriageway and a new footbridge over the A507 will complete a route from Arlesey to the popular Etonbury Woods and local schools. The footbridge will also feature a viewing platform at tree canopy level for people to enjoy the woodland and wildlife. The scheme also includes the planting of over 500 new trees and hedgerows