Costain has announced that it has been awarded an Early Contractor Involvement (ECI) contract by Neath Port Talbot County Borough Council for the Port Talbot Peripheral Distributor Road (PDR).

The total construction budget for the scheme is £84 million. Design work will start in March and last for 13 months, with construction works due to begin in Spring 2010 and lasting around 36 months.

The scheme includes construction of 5 kilometres of new dual carriageway, with 5 kilometres of new side roads, including a new access for the Corus Port Talbot Steelworks. There are 4 main bridges on the scheme, the largest being the Cefn Gwrgan Bridge, which spans the main Swansea to London rail line.

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The PDR will be an important catalyst for the regeneration and economic development of the industrial areas of Port Talbot by providing direct access to the M4 Motorway. The road will also remove local traffic from the M4, reducing congestion in a restricted corridor with little scope for improvement.

Andrew Wyllie, Chief Executive, commented: "This contract is further evidence of the success of our 'Being Number One' strategy which focuses on key sectors. We remain one of the nation's leading road constructors and this contract further strengthens our portfolio of ECI highway projects."

(CD/JM)