Roadworks Lifted for Coronation

National Highways is lifting more than 700 miles of roadworks over the Coronation weekend of His Majesty King Charles III to help motorists enjoy smoother journeys.

More than 96 per cent of England’s motorway and major A road network will be free from roadworks over the holiday period.

The roadworks will be removed from National Highways roads in the Southeast of the country by 6am on Thursday 4 May and elsewhere across the country by 6am on Friday 5 May. The roadworks will not be put back in place until 12.01am on Tuesday 9 May.

The King will be crowned alongside Her Majesty, the Queen Consort during the ceremony.

With tens of thousands of people expected to descend on London for the special occasion, National Highways will be removing roadworks where possible to help keep traffic moving.

Routes heading towards London such as the M40, M1 and M4 are expected to be busy with 11 miles of roadworks on the M1 around Hemel Hempstead and Dunstable removed in time for the Coronation weekend.

To help keep traffic flowing, some 12.5 miles of roadworks will also be removed from the M11 around Cambridge and Harlow with many people expected to use this route to access the M25 or A12 if heading towards the capital.

With these routes expected to be busy, motorists are being to advised to leave plenty of time for their journeys and to plan before setting off.

National Highways Customer Services Director, Andrew Butterfield, said: ‘We know that people will want to head to London to witness this historic moment and that’s why we have lifted as many roadworks as possible where it is safe to do so across our network.

‘Given the size and complexity of some projects it’s not practical to remove them for a couple of days as taking them off and putting them back on again would cause more disruption. However, the good news for motorists is that 96 per cent of our network will be roadworks-free over the Coronation Bank Holiday weekend.

‘We’d encourage people to plan their journeys before setting off and to make sure their tyres are in good condition, and to make sure that they have plenty of fuel for their journey.’

Minister for Roads, Richard Holden said: ‘National Highways has lifted hundreds of miles of roadworks across major roads, so everyone travelling to celebrate the Coronation of His Majesty King Charles III can enjoy smoother journeys across the weekend.’

National Highways says simple checks are a way to make sure the vehicle is roadworthy. Things to consider are:

• Tyres: Ensure tyre pressures are suitable for the load and check the condition of tyres, including the spare. Look out for cuts or wear across the whole tyre including sidewall.
• Engine oil: Check oil levels regularly and top up if needed. Take your car back to the garage if you’re topping up more than usual.
• Water: Always keep your screen wash topped up with a good ratio of water and screen wash to maximise the cleaning efficiency so you can clear debris or dirt off your windscreen easily.
• Lights: If your indicators, hazard lights, headlights, fog lights, reverse lights or brake lights are not functioning properly, you are putting yourself and your family at risk. In addition, your vehicle may fail its MoT.
• Fuel: Before setting out make sure you have enough fuel to get to your destination. Running out of fuel can put you, your family and other road users at risk unnecessarily.

If you experience problems with your vehicle and you can’t leave the motorway you should always try to go left – to an emergency area, a hard shoulder, motorway services or slip road hard shoulder.

But if that is not possible and you have stopped in a live lane or feel your life is in danger you must stay in your vehicle with your seatbelt and hazard lights on and call 999 immediately.

Live updates on traffic flow can be found at www.trafficengland.com.

For more information related to checking your tyres, please go to highwaysengland.co.uk/tyrechecks.