Proposals for a second crossing over the Tees River in northern England have gone out to public consultation, according to media reports.
The Tees Valley Combined Authority, the local authority, said there are two options to take the A19 trunk road over the River Tees at the city of Middlesbrough.
The first – and preferred option – is a new two-lane bridge built parallel to the existing A19 viaduct to carry traffic travelling northbound. The existing structure would be widened to allow for an extra lane of southbound traffic. It would cost between €235-292 million.
The alternative solution would be to construct a new four-lane bridge costing €350 million and parallel to the existing A19 viaduct for north and southbound traffic.
The chosen route will be announced in the autumn with financing coming from the state agency Highways England. Construction would start in 2023 and expected to be finished in 2027.
Tees Valley Combined Authority said the aim is to relieve congestion on the existing six-lane bridge, a slab and girder structure which opened in 1975 and is owned by Highways England.
The viaduct is nearly 3km long but the river crossing is 1.9km. The structure consists of steel plate girders and composite concrete deck on reinforced concrete piers, none of which are in the river. The longest of the 68 spans is 178m, over the river. It carries often more than 90,000 vehicles a day.
