M27: Delays hit motorists on Boxing Day with diversion expected to be "very busy" amid junction 10 upgrades

Drivers travelling on Boxing Day are getting stuck in queues in the vicinity of the M27 at junction 10. Huge progress is being made to move an underpass into place, with parts of the area being demolished.

The AA Traffic Map reports there are eight minute delays on the M27 westbound between junction 12 and junction 10, with an average speed of 10mph.

Ahead of Portsmouth FC’s match with Queens Park Rangers today at 3pm, and shoppers expected to travel for the Boxing Day sales, Hampshire County Council issued a warning to motorists earlier this morning.

The local authority said: “It’s expected to be very busy today on the signed A27 diversion route. Plan ahead and check before you travel to avoid delays. Consider using alternative options including the Gosport ferry which is in operation today.”

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Engineers are currently removing 24,000 m³ of material from the motorway, enough to fill roughly 10 Olympic-sized swimming pools. The motorway surface was completely removed by 3.30am on Christmas Day after work began in the early hours. Work is continuing throughout Boxing Day, with the route being closed in both directions between junctions 9 and 11.

As previously reported by The News the works are part of a major upgrade to Junction 10 which, when complete, will mean traffic can enter and exit both directions - with only one direction currently possible. The construction of the 6,000-home Welborne Garden Village has prompted the need for the works. These will continue until 4am on January 4.

Over the closure period, a giant pre-constructed concrete structure weighing approximately 8,500 tonnes - two and a half times heavier than HMS Victory - will be slid 65 metres into a trench cut into the motorway embankment, from its construction location on the northern side of the M27.