The Morgan Sindall and BAM Nuttall joint venture, bmJV, has been awarded two contracts worth a total of £322 million to deliver part of Highways England’s smart motorway programme.

The first contract, a two stage design and build contract worth £104 million, is to upgrade 10 miles of the M62 between Warrington (J10) and Manchester (J12). bmJV, supported by design partners WSP and AECOM, commenced the design phase in December 2017, with works planned to start on site from spring 2018.

In addition, the second contract, worth £218 million to bmJV, will see the M27 between junctions 4 and 11 converted to create permanent dual 4-lane all lane running along the 15-mile stretch. The design phase will commence in January 2018 with bmJV supported by design partners SWECO/Mott Macdonald and WSP. Construction will begin in spring 2018.

Both contracts have been awarded under Highway’s England’s Collaborative Delivery Framework, the largest ever for the improvement of England’s motorways and A roads, representing the government’s commitment to investing in infrastructure to boost the economy. bmJV was awarded a place on the framework in 2014.

Paul Gott, managing director of Highways at Morgan Sindall, said; “These contracts mark the start of two more prestigious projects for bmJV. The established relationship between our two companies enables us to provide the best possible service to enhance the capacity and reliability of the UK’s strategic road network in order to improve journeys for road users.”