MOTORISTS are facing months of lane closures and speed restrictions on one of Hampshire’s busiest motorways.

From next Monday, work will start on a £5m scheme to upgrade a bridge on the M27.

Set to take seven months, the work will take place on the bridge at Junction 9 at Park Gate and will include installing a new concrete central reservation barrier. This comes as plans have been revealed to completely shut part of the motorway further west for separate work.

Steve Cobb, Highways Agency Structures Manager said the work at Park Gate was needed because the existing bridge supports and joints have come to the end of their life.

They are replacing the central reservation at the same time to minimise disruption.

Workers will resurface sections of lane three and the hard shoulder, which will involve overnight lane closures and is expected to be complete by mid-March. Then narrow lanes and a temporary 50mph speed limit will be installed.

To set this up there will be overnight closures of both carriageways between junctions 8 and 10, including the slip roads at junction 9.

The roundabout and slip roads will be closed to replace the joints.

Meanwhile work will be carried out next month on the eastbound carriageway of the M27 between junctions 4 and junction 5.

As previously reported in the Echo, the essential work over a weekend is to prevent the build up of surface water on the motorway when it rains.

The motorway will be closed between junction 4, where it meets the M3, and junction 5 near Eastleigh.

The Highways Agency has clarified that the work will start from 9pm on Saturday, March 9, through to 5.30am on Monday, March 11.

It was initially thought that the closure would be in force from 9pm on Friday, March 8.

The agency also clarified that the diversion route for drive travelling eastbound on the M27 will be via the M3 junction 12 and not at junction 13 as initially thought.