Bedford roads still closed due to flooding - plus three National Highways road closures for roadworks

The A421 remains shut in both directions between the A6 at Bedford and the M1 junction 13 near Brogborough/Marston Moretaine. Both carriageways have been closed since flooding first occurred on Sunday, September 22 when a month of rainfall fell in under 48 hours.

Efforts to clear the floodwater have been ongoing since with a fleet of 25 tankers working around the clock to remove water from the carriageway, which was estimated to be around 60 million litres in total and at its peak was 8ft deep.

Martin Fellows, regional director for National Highways in the East of England, told the BBC it could be ‘weeks’ before the road reopens.

He said: “We are taking every possible measure we can to tackle this unprecedented situation. That includes sourcing the most effective and advanced pumping equipment we can.

“The record rainfall this part of the country is continuing to experience is making a what is a difficult situation extremely challenging but let me reassure people our work will continue as all our effort and resources are focused on resolving this and getting the road open as soon as it is safe to do so.

“The progress we have made over the last week is very clear but the extent of the rainfall and runoff from the surrounding area is making this a real challenge. We will continue to do all we can but trying to put a timeline to this – when we do not yet know the condition of the road under the floodwater – is very difficult and I expect our work here will continue for the rest of this week as a minimum.

“As we are talking about removing very significant volumes of water and dispersing it in a responsible manner that does not add to the already saturated ground conditions, I think it’s important that people understand that we work very closely with our partners in the Bedfordshire Local Resilience Forum (BLRF) to ensure our work in this area continues to be safe and appropriate.”

National Highways is working in close partnership with other agencies through the Bedfordshire Local Resilience Forum (BLRF). The BLRF partners including local authorities, police, fire and rescue, the Bedfordshire Local Emergency Volunteers Executive Committee (BLEVEC), which works in conjunction with statutory agencies and emergency services, and the Environment Agency are all working together to respond to the flooding affecting the county.

Relevant partner organisations working together to agree the overall response to flooding across the county, means water levels are continually monitored to ensure that the water being pumped form the A421 is not being distributed to catchment areas that are already overwhelmed. 

Martin Fellows also made an appeal to people to stay away from the area, adding: “I understand that people are curious and want to visit the scene, but I would kindly request that members of the public continue to support us by staying away from the area so our work to tackle this issue can continue to progress at pace.”

Other closures due to flooding are:

• Green Lane, Stewartby (Kimberley College can be accessed via Broadmead Road/Stewartby Way.

• High Street Great Barford, the bottom end junction with New Road up to Orchard Way.

• Harrold, Oakley, Felmersham and Radwell bridges.

Meanwhile, drivers in and around Bedford will have three National Highways road closures to watch out for this week.

And they are all expected to cause moderate delays – with motorists facing holdups of between 10 minutes and half an hour.

The latest expected works list, with notes from National Highways, shows that two closures already in place is expected to carry on this week:

• A1, to 6am November 2, moderate delays (10-30 minutes): A421 both directions, M1, junction 13 to Black Cat Roundabout - carriageway closures, lane closures and diversion routes for drainage on behalf of National Highways.

• A1, to 5am November 16, moderate delays (10-30 minutes): A1 both directions, Biggleswade North Roundabout to Georgetown - carriageway closures, lane closures and diversion routes due to sign - maintenance works on behalf of National Highways.

And one is due to begin next week:

• A421, from 8pm October 7 to 6am October 29, moderate delays (10-30 minutes): A421 both directions, M1, junction 13 to Marsh Leys Interchange - exit and entry slip road closures, lane closures and diversion routes for drainage on behalf of National Highways.

National Highways is responsible for maintaining motorways and major A-roads, so closures of smaller roads will not be included in their schedule.