Highways England is asking motorists, residents and businesses to give their views on the design of a new £282m junction on the M42 near Solihull.
The scheme plans to improve traffic flows at junction 6, which provides access to Birmingham International Airport and nearby venues like the National Exhibition Centre (NEC – pictured).
A public consultation on the preferred route, which was announced in August, will run from 9 January until 19 February 2018.
Senior project manager Jonathan Pizzey said: ‘We want to make sure that local people and other stakeholders have a say in the project.
‘We’ll be taking all comments into consideration as we complete the design, prior to making a planning application later in 2018. All comments will be considered, and we will provide a report identifying how they have influenced the design.’
The project will see the creation of a new 2.4km dual carriageway link road – aligned to the west of Bickenhill – between the A45 Clock Interchange and a new junction on the M42 south of junction 6 located north of Solihull Road.
There are also plans to improve traffic flow at the M42 junction 6 roundabout – a well-known bottleneck – by providing dedicated left turn links between the M42 and A45 at the NEC and the north east side of the roundabout.
Highways England said this will benefit motorists by reducing congestion and improving journey times around the junction, as well as access to and from the motorway.
The scale of the scheme means that it requires a Development Consent Order (DCO). Highways England said it hopes to receive DCO approval from the transport secretary in 2019. Construction is expected to start in 2020 and completion is due in 2023.
Highways England said it will continue to work closely with all stakeholders through the detailed design and statutory process to ensure their views and ideas are incorporated into the design ‘where appropriate’.