Mott MacDonald JV to work on A63 design scheme

The Mott MacDonald Grontmij joint venture (MMG JV) has been invited to develop design proposals for the £160 million upgrade of the A63 Castle Street in Hull.

MMG JV has been appointed by the Highways Agency to develop proposals for the scheme, which is intended to reduce journey times to the Port of Hull, ease congestion and improve safety on the city centre section of the A63.

The 1.5km dual carriageway runs in an east-west direction to the south of Hull city centre and is one of the busiest sections of road in the whole of East Yorkshire.

The route provides an important link between the M62, Humber Bridge and Port of Hull, but also acts like a barrier between the city centre to the north and developments, tourist and recreational facilities to the south.

The proposed scheme improvements consider lowering the level of the road into a cutting, widening the existing eastbound carriageway and the provision of footbridges at discrete locations to facilitate access needs.

The MMG JV will develop cost, preliminary design, construction and related environmental proposals to support the planning process that will act as the foundation towards facilitating the construction of the scheme.

This package of work has been awarded as part of the Highways Agency’s Project Support Framework - Lot 1, Integrated Highway Engineering and Technology Design Consultancy, of which the MMG JV was appointed to in April 2011.

Stephen Russell, operations director and MMG JV Lot 1 director, said: “Both Mott MacDonald and Grontmij have strong track records of working closely with the Highways Agency, therefore combining our capabilities in the Mott MacDonald Grontmij joint venture will deliver further added value. We look forward to working with them on this scheme and applying our knowledge and expertise to drive this project forward.”

This phase of work is part of detailed design and development.