• Final carriageway closures to complete major project on 27, 28 and 29 June 2022

Overnight carriageway closures will be in place on the M9 on Monday 27 and Tuesday 28 June, and on the M876 on Wednesday 29 June, in the final stage of the major project to refurbish Hill Bridge, which carries the eastbound M876 over the M9 at Junction 8 Kinnaird.

The project to replace bearings and safety barriers on Hill Bridge has been ongoing since November 2021, requiring a series of overnight carriageway closures and lane and speed limit restrictions on the motorway below.

Two final carriageway closures on the M9 are now required to remove traffic management from the fast lane and reinstate road markings to their previous condition. After these closures, the southbound hard shoulder will remain closed for one week, after which all traffic management and speed limit restrictions will be removed permanently:

• The northbound M9 will be closed between Junctions 8 and 9 from 20:00 until 06:00 on the night of Monday 27 June. Northbound traffic will be diverted via the M876 and the M80 southbound to turn at M80 Junction 7 Haggs, returning northbound via the M80 to M9 Junction 10 Craigforth. This diversion will add an estimated 8.3 miles and 11 minutes to affected journeys.
• The southbound M9 will be closed between Junctions 9 and 8 from 20:00 until 06:00 on the night of Tuesday 29 June. Southbound traffic will be diverted via the M80 southbound to turn at Junction 7 Haggs, returning northbound to join the M876 eastbound and continue to M9 Junction 8 Kinnaird. This diversion will add an estimated 8.3 miles and 11 minutes to affected journeys.

A final carriageway closure on the M876 is also required to remove a temporary safety barrier from the bridge:

• The eastbound M876 will be closed from 20:00 until 06:00 on the night of Wednesday 29 June. A diversion will be signposted from M876 Junction 2 to M9 Junction 7 via Bellsdyke Road, the A905 and Bowtrees Roundabout, adding an estimated 3.5 miles and 6 minutes to affected journeys.

Chris Tracey, BEAR Scotland’s South East Unit Bridges Manager, said: “The project to refurbish Hill Bridge is now reaching a conclusion and one final set of overnight carriageway closures is required on the M9 and M876. This is to allow us to carry out a number of essential tasks safely, including removing temporary road markings and concrete safety barriers.

“We thank motorists for the patience and understanding they have shown throughout this major project, which has ensured that this motorway structure will continue to provide safe and reliable service for years to come.”

Consultation has taken place with all relevant stakeholders including local authorities and Police Scotland in advance of these works to make them aware of the traffic management arrangements.

Live traffic information is available from the Traffic Scotland website and Twitter account.