Balfour Beatty to start on £200m road scheme

Balfour Beatty has announced that it is to start work on a £200m-plus road widening scheme between the M1 and Bedford.

The firm, which was appointed to the contract on an early contractor involvement agreement in late 2005, said that design development work on the A421 scheme is now complete and it is ready to commence construction.

The Highways Agency's budget for the project is between £201m and £231m. The new road is scheduled to open in late 2010.

Ian Tyler, chief executive of Balfour Beatty, said: “We are very pleased to get construction under way on another early contractor involvement scheme with the Highways Agency.

"The opportunity afforded by this form of contract to work in partnership with the customer, the designer and other stakeholder groups in developing the scheme helps ensure the best possible project out-turn.”