The A59 between Harrogate and Skipton is expected to be closed at Kex Gill until at least July.
North Yorkshire Council said in a press release this afternoon repair work costing £750,000 will begin on April 15.
Irish construction firm Sisk, which is carrying out the nearby £68.8 million three-mile realignment, has been appointed to undertake the work. Ivor King will carry out specialist steel sheet piling.
Today’s press release said there will be extended hours and night working to allow the road to be reopened before the end of June.
Karl Battersby, the council’s corporate director of environment, said:
“We have reached a point where we can appoint a contractor and decide on the most efficient and cost-effective repair scheme, with preparatory work now underway.
“The repairs will include driving long sheets of steel into the ground to create a structural wall. Once this has been completed, contractors will fill in the excavated area between the steel sheets and the road to provide strength and stability.
“Relocating communications cables and completing drainage and resurfacing works once the area is filled also forms part of the scheme.”
The road, which runs across a rural stretch of the county on the edge of the Yorkshire Dales National Park, is deemed to be one of the most important strategic routes nationally as it provides a key link running across the country.
The damaged verge
It closed suddenly on February 2 after a crack appeared in the verge.
The council has attributed this to wet weather over the past few months but some residents have claimed it is due to the impact of the realignment on the landscape.
Mr Battersby said:
“There have been more than 10 landslips on the A59 at Kex Gill, between Church Hill and North Moor Road, so the ongoing re-alignment scheme is needed now more than ever.
“Until the road is reopened, we advise road users to follow the signed diversion route. We would again like to thank people for their patience and reiterate that we are doing all we can to complete the repair as quickly and safely as possible.”
Further details of the diversion route are available on the council’s roadworks map here.
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