£23m St Anne’s Road bridge opens in Denton after three-year project

A new £23 million motorway bridge has officially opened in Denton, marking the long-awaited completion of a major three-year infrastructure scheme in Greater Manchester.

National Highways and its delivery partners celebrated the opening of the new St Anne’s Road motorway bridge with a ribbon-cutting ceremony led by four pupils from nearby St Anne’s Primary School. The event was joined by the Reverend Philip Brierley from St Anne’s Church, who also delivered a short blessing of the bridge.

The new structure crosses the M67 and provides unrestricted access for all road users and pedestrians, including improved eastbound access to the motorway. It replaces the previous ageing bridge, which assessments showed required extensive repairs. Replacement was identified as the safest, most practical and cost-effective solution.

National Highways Project Manager Mangat Bansal said the opening marked the culmination of years of complex work.

“It has been a privilege to deliver this scheme and work with the local community,” he said. “Replacing the motorway bridge is the culmination of a lot of hard work, presenting unique engineering challenges with the bridge carrying vital utility services including water, gas, electricity and telecommunications to customers across a wide part of Greater Manchester.

“We thank the local community for their patience and understanding whilst the bridge has been closed for construction.”

Joining the schoolchildren at the official opening were members of the project team, civic dignitaries, school staff and invited guests.

Year Six pupils from St Anne's Primary and the Reverend Philip Brierley are joined by members of the bridge team and invited guests to celebrate the opening of the bridge at the opening ceremony.

The scheme was delivered by National Highways in partnership with Tilbury Douglas. Project Director Carlos Garcia Ferrer said: “This has been a great scheme to deliver. All those involved in the project, including our teams, supply chain partners and contractors, have showcased a high level of technical expertise throughout and can be proud of their achievement.

“A measure of their professionalism is the attainment of ‘Excellent’ ratings in recent successive Considerate Constructors Scheme results, leaving a lasting positive legacy through their community engagement initiatives.”

These initiatives included raising thousands of pounds for blood cancer research charity DKMS, making regular donations to Hyde Morrisons’ Foodbank, and sponsoring local school and community events. The project achieved a final Considerate Constructors inspection score of 48 out of 50, with inspectors praising its “exemplary plans for community engagement” and its “effectively driven” approach to carbon reduction.

Environmental measures formed a key part of the scheme’s contribution to National Highways’ Net Zero Carbon Plan. These included recycling demolition materials, sourcing suppliers within a 30-mile radius that operate carbon-reduction policies and installing a solar-powered CCTV security system on site.

Year Six pupils from St Anne’s Primary, from left, Annabella, Eva, Nathan and Joshua, with the Reverend Philip Brierley declare the bridge open.

The project involved several major engineering milestones, including the demolition of the original bridge deck using long-reach excavators, realignment of abutment walls, and the installation of multiple steel beams weighing more than 250 tonnes in total to support the new deck and carry essential utility services.

Mr Bansal confirmed the demolition and construction works were completed to programme, in line with the original three-year timetable.

As well as meeting modern safety standards, the new bridge will improve journey reliability both locally and on the M67 by reducing the need for unplanned maintenance closures. It can also accommodate heavy vehicles, removing previous load restrictions, while new barriers and improved facilities enhance safety and accessibility for cyclists and pedestrians.

Several partners supported delivery of the scheme, including HW Martin, Concrete Repairs Limited and Amey Consulting, with the team also working closely with Tameside Metropolitan Borough Council’s highways department to manage local diversions.