Contractors A-one+ has begun using new "innovative" machinery to carry out a resurfacing project on the A1 at Brownieside in Northumberland.

The new technology is being used for the first time in the UK and allows workers to carry out road maintenance projects in a quicker timeframe.

The machinery recycles the underlying layers of the road, churning up old surface material and combining it with new material within the body of the machine. The new material is then immediately back down on the road behind the machine.

This method allows up to 1,000 tonnes-per-hour to be resurfaced, compared to 100-tonnes-per-hour using conventional methods.

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As well as being able to resurface larger areas, there is also a 75% reduction in the amount of quarried stone used on the job, a 66% reduction in the amount of waste taken to landfill and there are 70% fewer lorry trips to and from site.

Highways England Project Manager Steve Bishop said: "There are lots of benefits to using this new way of working. It means we can resurface larger areas of road, there are fewer construction vehicle trips and the road surface is designed to last for at least 10 years, meaning that we shouldn't need to go back to carry out further repairs any time soon meaning less disruption for drivers.

"This is the first machine of its type in the UK but the process is already successfully used in the USA, France and China. We are always working with our partners to trial new technologies that will help us to minimise disruption to drivers while we carry out essential road maintenance."

Work on the road started on Tuesday, 02 August, and the project is expected to take three weeks to complete.

(LM/CD)