Drivers using the A46 on the outskirts of Coventry will see preparatory work getting under way from Monday, as National Highways starts overnight works ahead of a multi-million pound overhaul of the Walsgrave junction.
The junction, which links the A46 to the B4082, is currently a three-arm priority roundabout and is a well-known pinch point for the roughly 57,000 vehicles that pass through it each day.
Once complete, the redesigned junction will allow the A46 carriageway to flow freely, giving the route more capacity to cope with future traffic growth and making it easier for drivers to join or leave the local road network.
From Monday 13 July, crews will begin setting up the site ahead of full construction. This early phase involves putting up signage, clearing vegetation, and creating temporary site access points, which will mean closing the laybys on the A46 between the Walsgrave junction and M6 junction 2.
The main construction work is due to start in September, with the upgraded junction expected to open to traffic in 2028.
Overnight closures will run from 8pm to 6am, Monday to Friday. The A46 northbound will be shut overnight between 13 and 31 July 2026, while the southbound carriageway will close overnight on 3 and 4 August 2026. Signed diversions and a 50mph speed limit will be in place while the closures are active.
National Highways project manager Emma Winter said major A roads carry a significant share of the country’s traffic and freight, and described the A46 as a key trade corridor linking the South West, the Midlands and the North. She said the Walsgrave scheme is being carried out to remove a longstanding bottleneck on the edge of Coventry, and that the upgrade should mean fewer delays, better connectivity and safer journeys for the road’s daily users.
She added that the work also supports National Highways’ wider plan to improve the A46 Trans-Midlands Trade Corridor, which is intended to back economic growth, job creation and housebuilding between the M5 and the Humber ports.
Officials say improved links along this section of road should also make it easier for local people to reach jobs further afield, with better-connected areas generally seen as more attractive to businesses and investment.
The Walsgrave scheme follows other recent upgrades in the area. The nearby A46 Binley junction was converted from a signalised roundabout into a grade-separated junction in November 2022. Walsgrave is now the last roundabout remaining on the A46 east of Coventry and north of Tollbar End junction, where a two-lane dual carriageway underpass opened in 2017.
Further details on the scheme are available on National Highways’ website at: https://nationalhighways.co.uk/our-roads/west-midlands/a46-coventry-junctions-upgrade/
