Commuters are being warned the Mancunian Way will be COMPLETELY closed for two days - the ‘final push’ before it reopens.
The inner ring road - and key city centre artery - will close on Monday and Tuesday for the final time since the now-famous sink hole first appeared 10 months ago.
The road is due to reopen completely on Wednesday, finally bringing to an end nearly a year of disruption while the £6m repair job was under way.
Transport bosses are asking people to avoid the area during busy periods and suggest those with a short commute should leave their cars at home and walk or cycle to work instead.
The final two-day closure will allow engineers to remove the contraflow system that has been in place for nearly a year.
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Engineers will also repaint road markings and inspect the road.
Diversion routes will be signposted but drivers are warned to allow extra time and avoid the city centre if possible.
Those travelling across the city should follow the ‘inner relief route diversion’ signs - while those wanting to get into the city should look for ‘city centre diversion’ signs.
Motorists are also asked to avoid rush hour travel if possible.
They are urged instead to use park and ride sites and public transport - which is also expected to be busier.
And transport bosses suggest those with shorter commuter should ‘walk or cycle.’
John Fryer from TfGM said managing traffic had been a ‘significant challenge’ aided by a control centre to adjust signal timings and minimise delays - but said the reopening was great news.
Coun Kate Chappell, Executive Member for Environment for Manchester City Council, said: “We’d like to thank the public for bearing with us during this challenging work.
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“As the damage affected a major sewer there was no alternative but for United Utilities to carry out this complex large-scale repair deep underground otherwise large parts of East Manchester would have been left without a functioning sewage system.”
The sinkhole appeared in the carriageway when a water culvert underneath collapsed.
The collapse destroyed a main United Utilities sewer and engineers were unable to repair it because of unsafe ground conditions.
The ‘only option’ viable was to build a new section of sewer, which resulted in three 15 metre-deep shafts being sunk into the ground.
United Utilities claim it’s the biggest emergency repair the company has ever undertaken.
