Newcastle Central Motorway inspections reveal concrete decay after Gateshead Flyover closure

Safety checks on the Newcastle side of the A167 began in January, just weeks after the flyover on the other side of the Tyne was suddenly closed off to traffic amid fears that it could collapse.

That closure, which is still in place as the flyover awaits demolition, sparked worries about other nearby infrastructure.

But councillors in Newcastle were told this week that the Central Motorway, which was built a few years after the flyover in the 1970s, is not in as severe a state of decay.

A 10-week inspection programme, which was already scheduled to take place as part of the £41.4 million restoration of both the Tyne Bridge and Central Motorway, has shown “some deterioration of known defects and some additional areas of concrete which will also require attention”.

However, Newcastle City Council transport boss Pamela Holmes said on Tuesday that she was “happy to report that, while we found additional defects, it is not on the scale of Gateshead’s issues”.

She told the council’s finance and budget monitoring scrutiny committee: “It is as we would expect from an asset of that age. We will be doing the work that is most urgent through this project.”

Roughly £9 million of the funding package for the Tyne Bridge and Central Motorway refurbishment is being put towards the motorway – significantly less than was originally planned, after inflation levels pushed up costs and led city bosses to prioritise the grade II* listed crossing’s needs.

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A Newcastle City Council spokesperson said: “Detailed inspection works have concluded on Central Motorway’s elevated viaduct, which runs from the Great North Road to the New Bridge Street roundabout, ahead of planned maintenance this summer. The initial survey results are broadly in line with our expectations of the condition of the structure and showed some deterioration of known defects and some additional areas of concrete which will also require attention. 

“Once we receive the full inspection report, we will finalise the programme of maintenance. This will include waterproofing and joint replacement to the top of the deck and concrete and drainage repairs to the underside of the deck and its supporting structure. This will be the first major upgrade to the Central Motorway in over twenty years, and it is important that these works take place to ensure we have robust infrastructure in Newcastle.”

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