Section of Mountain Road to be Resurfaced

The Mountain Road from the Black Hut to the East Mountain Gate will be surfaced dressed later this month.

The resurfacing work is scheduled to take one week to complete, with a one-day road closure on 22nd June to remove the road markings. The rest of the work will be carried out under traffic management, with traffic escorted through the work area when the surface dressing is being carried out.

This will inevitably result in delays to journeys over the Mountain Road and drivers are requested to consider the use of alternative routes during working hours.

Minister for Transport David Anderson MHK explained ‘The work is necessary to protect the road structure and improve the surface texture. It has to be carried out during the warmer summer months for the treatment to work successfully.

'We also have to work around the TT and Manx Grand Prix, which means the work has to be done as soon as possible after TT fortnight so that the new surface has time to stabilise before the MGP.

‘One day of road closure is essential to allow the machine which removes the existing road lines to operate safely, as it has to straddle the centre line leaving no room for vehicles to pass either side.’

'During the course of the works drivers are asked to show consideration to the workforce in the road, adhere to the speed limits and follow the instructions of the traffic management operatives.’

The traffic management will involve a 20mph speed limit through the area being surface dressed, with a 50mph speed limit either side between Guthries Memorial and the Bungalow.

To avoid damage being caused to the new surface dressing, and to ensure the safety of drivers during the period when there are likely to be loose chippings, the speed limits will remain in force until 28th June.

Highway Works on Lord Street, Douglas

From 9.30am on Sunday 21st June, a section of Lord Street will temporarily become one-way in a westerly direction.

This means that traffic leaving Douglas town centre heading towards Quarterbridge or upper Douglas can still travel along Lord Street as normal.

However, traffic travelling into Douglas town centre from Quarterbridge direction will not be able to use the section of Lord Street from Ridgeway Street to Duke Street. They will be diverted left along Ridgeway Street towards Victoria Street.

Motorists are advised to plan their journeys carefully or to use an alternative route such as Circular Road or South Quay. Access to the North Quay from Lord Street will be unaffected. This one-way system will be in effect until Saturday 15th August 2009.

Reconstruction Works on Castletown Road, Rushen

Castletown Road, Rushen, will be closed to through traffic for 6 weeks from the Monday 22nd June for essential highways maintenance.

Work will commence on 22nd June to reconstruct approximately half a kilometre of carriageway and footway, between the Four Roads Roundabout and the IOM Steam Railway crossing.

Following extensive testing and investigation, the carriageway in this area failed structurally and offers reduced skid resistance and a poor ride quality. During the works the opportunity will also be taken to upgrade some of the public utility services.

The works were originally scheduled to take 12–13 weeks; however, the Works Division propose to use some new working practices, and these, in conjunction with a full road closure to through traffic, will result in a significantly shorter programme of around 6 weeks.

The initial phase (during the first 3 weeks) will see work progress from the railway crossing, up to a point adjacent to the 40 mph speed limit sign. Access to the school car park will be maintained from the Four Roads roundabout, with people being able to turn and exit to the roundabout.

On completion of this phase, the works will move to the section of carriageway in front of the school gates, up to the roundabout. During this phase access to the school will be from Shore Road, which will take a further 3 weeks.

The public will be able to park on the completed section of road and walk children up to the school gates, with room provided to turn and exit onto Shore Road.  Access will not be possible from the roundabout during this phase of the project. Prior to the start of this phase, notice will be given through the schools.

The Department of Transport apologises for any inconvenience this may cause, but hope that the public will benefit from the significant reduction in the overall length of the programme and the traffic problems that would results from traffic lights in this area. 

Signs will be displayed to advise which routes are available. If you require further information or have any queries, please contact our Assistant Engineer, Barbara Corkish on (01624) 850000.