Contractors are due to close sections of the M60 and M62 next week to continue work on a £202 million smart motorway upgrade project for Manchester.

Stretches of the motorway will be shut overnight for six nights to install temporary narrow lanes on the M60 between junctions 15 (M61 interchange) and 18 (M66/M62 interchange).

In addition, the closures will allow the removal of supporting posts for overhead gantries on the M62 between junctions 19 (Heywood) and 20 (Rochdale).

The 40 metre wide gantries each weigh 130 tonnes and were removed before Christmas as part of the project, which will see the hard shoulder converted to an extra lane between junctions 18 and 20 of the M62.

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The temporary narrow lanes between junctions 15 and 18 of the M60 will allow engineers to install technology at the side of the motorway needed to monitor the flow of traffic.

The anticlockwise side of the M60 will be closed overnight between junctions 18 and 17 on 11 January, and between junctions 17 and 14 on 12 January.

The clockwise carriageway will then be closed overnight between junctions 14 and 17 on 13 January, and between junctions 17 and 18 on 14 January

In addition, the M62 will also be closed overnight in both directions between junctions 19 and 20 on Saturday 09 and Saturday 16 January.

All of the closures will take place between 10pm and 6am, with clearly-signed diversions in place.

Highways England's project manager, Paul Hampson, said: "The smart motorway scheme is a major upgrade to tackle congestion and reduce journey times.

"The extra lane on the M62 will increase capacity between the North West and Yorkshire, and the variable limit will tackle stop-start conditions by keeping vehicles moving."

(LM)