Publish date: 13 July 2021
Roadworks taking place near the Northumbria hospital
Patients are being warned that roadworks taking place during the summer could affect journeys to the Northumbria Specialist Emergency Care Hospital in Cramlington.
The work to the Klondyke bridge/underpass on the A189 is expected to last throughout the school summer holidays and those attending appointments at the hospital are advised to bear this in mind and allow enough time to get there.
From 8pm on Thursday, July 15, the two fast lanes on the A189 between the Moor Farm and Three Horse Shoes roundabouts will be closed until the morning of Monday, July 19, when a contraflow system will be in place, with a speed limit of 30mph.
Work will start on the northbound carriageway with contraflow traffic running on the southbound carriageway. After approximately three weeks, the contraflow will be swapped so that the southbound carriageway can be used while the second phase of the work takes place.
While the contraflow is in place, there will be no access on or off the A189 northbound carriageway to High Pit. The southbound ‘on’ slip will also be closed for the full duration. The southbound ‘off’ slip will be open when traffic is running on the southbound carriageway.
The contraflow system is expected to be in place for a maximum of seven weeks, during the school summer holidays, with work expected to be complete by Sunday, September 5.
There will also be full overnight closures of the A189 between 8pm and 6am from Friday, July 16, to Monday, July 19; Saturday, August 7, to Monday, August 9; Saturday, August 28, to Monday, August 30.
Signage will be in place throughout to redirect road users, including dedicated signs for emergency services and access to the Northumbria hospital.
Access will remain for emergency vehicles and there will be personnel on site to deal with any arising issues.
The first phase of these works was delivered in the summer of 2019, with the final phase due to be completed last year, but it had to be postponed due to the Covid-19 pandemic.