A NUMBER of major roadworks are planned to take place across Worcestershire in 2022.

There are several big projects starting or completing during the next year across the county.

Worcestershire Highways will be busy - and there will be some disruption to people using the roads or living near by.

Jon Fraser, head of Worcestershire Highways, said: “2021 saw the completion of a number of highways and transport projects around the county and I look forward to the delivery of a number of other schemes in 2022 which will see further improvements to the highways infrastructure across Worcestershire.

"These will benefit local residents and the travelling public across various modes of transport.

"Major works will be undertaken with the minimum of disruption possible and details will be provided via our usual communication channels as the year progresses.

"Our teams and contractors will continue to work in 2022 to maintain and improve highways all over the county."

Worcestershire Highways projects going on in 2022 include:

Worcester city centre improvements

Improvements are being made to Angel Place and Angel Row in Worcester, as part of the Future High Street.

The Phase 1 works, set to start early in the New Year, will see millions of pounds in funding invested in the city centre until 2024 over a series of phases.

Phase 1 will take approximately 14 weeks with a proposed start date in early 2022.

Improvements include:

conservation kerbs and lining

new surfacing, including blockwork in Autumn and Graphite

new railings and bollards

new lighting

new seating and bins

Hampton footbridge, Evesham

The Hampton Walking and Cycling Bridge in Evesham across the Avon was identified as a requirement as part of the planning submission for the Hampton housing development to the west of the town in 2014.

The bridge would provide a direct link from Hampton to the Town Centre, schools, employment and the rail station.

The bridge would also help to tackle the lack of capacity in Evesham’s transport network that leads to congestion, poor journey time reliability and reduced air quality by providing a viable alternative to the car for short local journeys.

A38/A4104 junction improvement, Upton

Worcestershire County Council identified that the junction requires improvements to alleviate congestion problems and to provide more efficient traffic flow as well as providing a better junction for users.

The scheme will provide a new four-arm roundabout to replace the existing staggered junction arrangement, with the western A4104 approach from Upton being realigned to tie into the proposed roundabout.

Facilities will also be improved with the provision of crossing locations on all arms of the roundabout and 3m wide shared footway/cycleways.

Pershore link road

Pershore Northern Link Road will improve traffic links and tackle congestion in and around the town.

The major scheme sees the construction of a new highway and road bridge and provide a link between the A44/B4083 and B4083 Wyre Road roundabouts north of Pershore.

According to the council, the full scheme will be completed by the summer of 2022.

Blakedown Station parking

The car park at Blakedown would provide parking for up to 87 cars, including six allocated parking bays for users with reduced mobility and five electronic vehicle charging points.

It also includes parking for up to eight motorbikes and 12 cycle stands.

The proposals include improvements to footpaths to provide a safe pedestrian route from the car park to Blakedown station including an informal crossing with drop kerb across Station Drive.

Kepax Bridge, Worcester

A new multi-million-pound bridge will be built in Worcester after plans were backed by councillors.

Worcestershire County Council’s planning committee unanimously approved proposals to build a new walking and cycle bridge across the River Severn in Worcester between Gheluvelt Park and the former Kepax landfill site.

Worcester Southern Link Road completion

The Southern Link Road, first announced at the start of 2019, was due to be finished in early 2021, but flooding and Covid have both delayed the progress of the work.

Highways bosses believe the work is on track to finish in summer 2022.