December 19, 2020 2.38 pm This story is over 39 months old

Take a tour of the Lincoln Eastern Bypass

It’s now open!
By Local Democracy Reporter

Lincoln’s £120m Eastern Bypass finally opened on Saturday.

The single carriageway 4.6 mile (7.5km) road has been a project that lasted eight years.

It starts at a new roundabout on the A15 Sleaford Road and finishes at the A158 Wragby Road.

The final project cost upwards of £120 million to finish, with £50 million coming from central government funding.

Another £37 million has come from Lincolnshire County Council, and a further £34 million was pledged from third-party developers.

It is hoped that this will become the next step towards an entire ring road surrounding Lincoln, with the Eastern bypass connecting with the existing northern relief road.

Four new roundabouts and eight new bridges were built in the project, with over 154,000 tonnes of road building material used.

More than 300 new trees and 10,000 smaller shrubs and plants have been planted to try and lessen the road’s impact on local ecology.

During the process, 250,000 ancient artefacts have been uncovered and 2.2 million tonnes of soil and earth have been moved.

Plans for a so called ‘Eastern Bypass’ in Lincoln have been discussed for generations, first being drawn up in 1951.

Since then, plans have chopped and changed numerous times, but the final result has at last been delivered.

Among the delays was primary contractor Carillion liquidating in 2018, as well as the coronavirus pandemic, among other factors, causing the completion date to be pushed back from spring 2020 to December.

General finishing touches will be added to the bypass even beyond the opening date, including laying the final sections of tarmac, installing road signs and fencing.

This work is not expected to cause a delay to road users, but will last a couple of months.

Lincolnshire County Councillor in charge of transport, Richard Davies. | Photo: Steve Smailes for The Lincolnite

Speaking of his excitement regarding the opening of the bypass, councillor Richard Davies, executive member for highways at LCC, said: “This is, without a doubt, one of Lincoln’s most anticipated infrastructure projects in decades.

“Getting this scheme built has been no easy task. In fact, since starting construction, nearly 1.4 million hours have been spent building the new bypass, along with over 150,000 tonnes of tarmac and other road building materials.”

| Photo: Steve Smailes for The Lincolnite

| Photo: Steve Smailes for The Lincolnite

| Photo: Steve Smailes for The Lincolnite

| Photo: Steve Smailes for The Lincolnite

| Photo: Steve Smailes for The Lincolnite