Drivers face a new bout of travel disruption in the new year, with the announcement that Mauricewood Road will be closed for twelve weeks.

Midlothian Council has lodged a road traffic order signalling their intention to close Mauricewood Road between Boyd-Orr Drive and Belwood Road for approximately three months from Monday 16 January.

The major thoroughfare, which connects the A702 and A701, only reopened recently following a closure in November for utility works. However, the road will once again be blocked up to facilitate the creation of a small three-arm roundabout, to the northwest of Boyd-Orr Drive, into Taylor Wimpey’s new Greenlaw Mill housing development. Additional site investigation works will also be undertaken during the lengthy closure.

Grouting works for the new roundabout have already commenced on site but it has emerged that Midlothian Council served an enforcement order to halt engineering works in the new development, until a field drain, or similar drainage intervention, was created to deal with water run-off from the site. Residents had contacted the council with concerns that their properties were at risk from flooding due to the preparatory works along their rear boundaries.

This announcement clarifies what is set to be a bothersome year for Penicuik’s commuters. Upon completion of the roadworks at the entrance to Greenlaw Mill, the major infrastructure works to deliver a £4.7M new roundabout on the A702, at its Mauricewood Road junction, will get underway. Farrans and Scottish Water have been working since early this year to divert water mains away from the proposed site of the new junction, with work set to complete by March 31 2017. Once this preliminary work is complete, Farrans will commence the creation of the new roundabout. It is still unknown how much disruption will be caused by this and whether the A702 can remain open throughout, however, should the key route from Edinburgh to the M74 require closure, all traffic will be routed through Penicuik itself, likely causing much disruption for residents.

During the three month roadworks on Mauricewood Road, a diversion will be in place via Belwood Road and the A701. Local access will be maintained for residents in Mauricewood Stables. There will be local access from the A701 into Greenlaw Mains and Mauricewood but no through route to the A702.

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