Fears of complete gridlock around Uttoxeter while a huge stretch of the A50 was closed for the weekend proved unfounded, townsfolk have reported.

The dual carriageway was shut from 8pm on Friday, July 7, as gigantic steel beams were hoisted into place to form the base of a new bridge.

Works were scheduled to go on until 5.30am on Monday morning, but one reader said the highway was reopened at around 9pm on Sunday.

Huge steel beams that will form the spine of a bridge on A50 near Uttoxeter
Huge steel beams that will form the spine of a bridge on A50 near Uttoxeter

Uttoxeter residents had been worried diversions sending traffic through the centre of town would cause “chaos”.

Although some drivers ignored official diversions, causing heavy traffic from New Road to Tean, many were surprised how little congestion they experienced.

Our amazing time-lapse photography video shows the immense scale of the operation to put the beams in place.

An Ashbourne Road homeowner, who asked not to be named, praised Staffordshire County Council for its management of the project.

She said: “It was nowhere near as bad as we were expecting it to be. The Friday night was the worst. That wasn’t due to the volume of traffic, but the speed of the lorries coming past our house.

“They were slamming on their brakes and honking their horns, so it was a bit of a restless night. After that, there were stages when the roads were chockablock, but the congestion in town wasn’t too bad.

“People have said the other end of town was really busy, but I think everyone was expecting much worse. Credit to the council for making the best of a tricky situation.”

Reader Judy Smith said: “From the point of view of someone living alongside the A50, there was no fast traffic or noise and it was easy to get out of our property.”

Reader Kylie Gallagher said: "It was awful getting through Tean on Saturday and Ashbourne Road was terrible, along with New Road. I feel that a lot of traffic didn't use the diversion."

The A50 in Uttoxeter
The A50 in Uttoxeter

The closure saw six 47m, 45-tonne steel beams form the spine of the bridge, which is part of plans for a new junction.

It will allow easier access to the new Bramshall Meadows housing estate.

The development is likely to eventually include 750 houses and a school. Council economy boss Mark Winnington said: “It’s easy to take highly skilled work such as this for granted, but we’re talking about tolerance levels in millimetres and the photography shows how delicate and painstaking the work must be. It’s a credit to everyone involved how quickly, safely and smoothly the weekend’s work went.”

Work to build up embankments either side of the A50 and lay concrete on the beams will not effect the A50 or neighbouring A522.

Councillor Winnington said: “This has been a major piece of work which will benefit the residents of Uttoxeter and improve road connections across the Midlands. I’d like to thank residents and motorists for their patience and understanding.”

Work on the new bridge and junction is the first part of the A50 Growth Corridor Project, a £40 million plan to reduce congestion and improve safety on the dual carriageway.

The second part initially involved replacing the Little Chef and Derby Road roundabouts with grade-separated junctions, but concerns over access to businesses means it is now being re-thought.

A total of 170,000 cubic metres of recycled material will create the embankments. By the end of the work in 2018, 3,000m of replacement hedgerow will have been planted.