Motorists face significant disruption on the Isle of Wight’s busiest route later this year, with lengthy lane closures on the dual carriageway confirmed as part of a major 6-month bridge maintenance project beginning in September.
Island Roads has confirmed that work on Medina Way in Newport will get underway on 28th September, with the project expected to continue for approximately 6 months. As previously reported by Island Echo, the major works had originally been expected to begin in September 2025 but were pushed back by 12 months.
The biggest impact for motorists will come when the dual carriageway is reduced to a single lane in one direction for around 5 weeks at a time.
A southbound lane closure is currently expected to begin in mid-November, before a planned break in the works over Christmas and New Year. A northbound lane closure is then expected from mid-January, again lasting approximately 5 weeks.
Importantly, the northbound and southbound restrictions will not be in place at the same time. One carriageway will remain unrestricted while work takes place on the other bridge deck. Nevertheless, the restrictions are expected to cause delays on a route which carries around 28,500 traffic movements every day.
The project will see all 16 existing bridge bearings replaced and 2 additional bearings installed.
Bearings sit between the bridge deck and its supports, allowing the structure to safely expand, contract and move as a result of traffic and changes in temperature.
Replacing them is no straightforward task. The bridge deck will have to be temporarily lifted and supported using specialist jacking systems while the existing bearings are removed and their replacements installed.
Detailed structural assessments have found that while the bridge is supported on the temporary jacks, it cannot safely accommodate the traffic loadings it would normally carry – making the lengthy lane restrictions necessary.
Project Manager Luke Ward has said:
“Medina Way Bridge is the largest highway bridge structure managed by Island Roads and replacing the bearings is a highly complex engineering operation.
“The bridge supports around 28,500 traffic movements daily and, unlike many maintenance activities, these works require the bridge deck to be temporarily lifted and supported on specialist jacking systems while the existing bearings are removed and replaced.”
The jacking operations themselves will be undertaken during phased nighttime closures.
Further phased nighttime closures will be needed for other elements of the scheme, including localised resurfacing and the installation of movement joints.
Luke has added:
“We fully appreciate that reducing Medina Way to a single lane in one direction will cause delays and disruption. However, these restrictions are a direct consequence of the temporary structural limitations that exist while the bridge is supported on jacks and the bearings are being replaced.
“We have carefully considered alternative options, but there is no reasonably practicable way of carrying out these works safely without implementing temporary lane closures.”
The scheme has been in development for the past 2 years, with specialist bridge engineers carrying out detailed inspections and assessments and considering how the bearings could be replaced while keeping traffic moving.
Medina Way has played a pivotal role in moving traffic through Newport for more than half a century. The relief road first opened to traffic in 1975, transforming journeys through the county town and providing the key north-south route that remains heavily relied upon today.
