Gedling Access Road, Nottinghamshire
Product: Durafalt
Volume: 39,000 tonnes
Main contractor: Heidelberg Materials Contracting
Overview:
The Gedling Access Road project created a new 3.8 kilometre single carriageway linking Mapperley Plains to the A612 to ease congestion and improve transport connectivity. The scheme combined offline and online construction, with careful traffic management planning and high levels of coordination to minimise disruption for residents and road users. Heidelberg Materials supplied all aggregates and asphalt from internal sources, delivering durable, low‑noise, and high‑performance materials engineered for long‑term resilience.
Project description:
The Gedling Access Road is a significant infrastructure project designed to enhance connectivity and reduce traffic congestion in the Gedling area. This new 3.8km single carriageway road links B684 Mapperley Plains with the A612 Trent Valley Road / Nottingham Road, providing a vital new route for local and through traffic.
The project comprises a 3.8 kilometre single carriageway connecting the B684 Mapperley Plains to the A612 Trent Valley Road and Nottingham Road, completed in March 2022 with a total value of £3.2 million. This project combined daytime and night-time working hours to optimise progress and minimise disruption, with 80 percent of the construction completed offline to reduce the impact on existing traffic, and the remaining 20 percent carried out online to link the new carriageway to the current road network.
This intricate project involved constructing two roundabouts, prioritising durability, and resistance to deformation, and seamlessly connecting the new construct to several existing local authority roads. Managing traffic flow during integration with existing roads was crucial to minimise disruption for road users, residents, and businesses. This required careful planning and consideration of several key factors:
- Traffic Diversions and Signage: Implementing clear and effective traffic diversion plans to guide drivers safely around construction zones.
- Logistics: Due to the works tying into an existing road in a residential area, the timeliness of truck deliveries was imperative to ensure we didn’t cause unnecessary traffic delays.
- Coordination with the client: Collaborating closely with Balfour Beatty and local traffic management authorities to synchronise construction schedules with peak traffic times, minimising disruption.
All materials for this project were sourced internally from our own quarries and asphalt plants, ensuring close material quality control and reliable supply throughout. The carriageway was constructed using high-quality materials to ensure durability, longevity, and safety. We used a total of 39,000 tonnes, with AC 32 base and AC 20 binder to Clause 929 in hardstone being used for the lower layers and our BBA/HAPAS approved Durafalt 10 50pen for the surface course layer. Durafalt was identified as the most suitable material for the 40mph road speed limit and areas of stress along the carriageway. It exhibits several key properties that were beneficial to this project.
Durafalt product benefits include:
- Excellent resistance to deformation, increasing life span, particularly in high stress areas like roundabouts, reducing carbon associated with resurfacing.
- Reduced noise from tyres, beneficial in residential areas.
- Excellent spray reduction, increasing road safety.
- Excellent skid resistance in areas where higher PSV stone was utilised at traffic lights/roundabout approaches.
