A groundbreaking ceremony has been held to mark the start of work on the £28.5 million project to upgrade a three kilometre stretch of the A421 into dual carriageway in order to better link Junction 13 of the M1 motorway with Milton Keynes.

The project was procured through the Eastern Highways Framework, on behalf of Central Bedfordshire Council and Milton Keynes Council. The South East Midlands Local Enterprise Partnership (SEMLEP) is contributing £23.5million from the Local Growth Fund towards this £28.5 million project, and both councils are each contributing up to £3 million. Key team members from Morgan Sindall Infrastructure, both councils and the funders, SEMLEP, attended the groundbreaking event.

Simon Smith, managing director of Morgan Sindall Infrastructure, said: “This is an important project for the local community and the wider strategic road network in the region, as around 30,000 vehicles use the road every day. We are looking forward to delivering this project that will improve access to local homes and businesses and open the area up to future development.”

Michael Williams, head of highways major contracts at Central Bedfordshire Council, said: “The new dual carriageway will help ease congestion and take traffic away from local parishes, so increasing safety and benefiting local businesses and commuters.”

The new A421 dual carriageway is expected to be finished by the end of 2020.