CHELMSFORD drivers have been asked to be vigilant when using the Army and Navy flyover and A1114 over the coming days as vital road surfacing work is carried out.

The work is part of a £66 million investment to improve the county’s highways and surface roads in danger of deteriorating.

Commuters have been experiencing delays as road surfacing works have overran.  

The flyover has also been forced to close for safety reasons, and incidents on nearby routes aggravated traffic issues.

Work is planned along the A1114 Essex Yeomanry Way between the Army and Navy and the Baddow slip road. 

Further stretches of the A1114 are scheduled for road surfacing work later this week, weather permitting.

It may be necessary to close the Army and Navy flyover tonight for safety reasons so drivers are being asked to check signs carefully as they leave Chelmsford towards the A12.

An Essex Highways spokesperson said: “We apologise to drivers who were delayed by urgent works to improve the A1114 southbound carriageway.

“This work is crucial to keeping road surfaces safe and to prolong the life of the road. We understand commuters’ frustration but this is short-term pain, for a long-term gain.

“We are currently rolling out the largest-ever programme of road surfacing across the county and, with the rain already this summer, we need to work as fast as we can."

Engineers are using a road surfacing process called ‘surface dressing’ which offers a long-lasting and skid-resistant surface by binding chippings to a sticky bitumen layer.

The process is usually undertaken during the summer months as it is weather dependent and can be affected by low temperatures, meaning work cannot be undertaken overnight, and during rainfall.

It requires motorists to drive at 20mph or below for a short period to allow the surface to bed in. This summer’s unseasonably high rainfall has delayed some planned works.

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