MORE misery is on the way for motorists on Teesside, who can expect more than a year- and-a-half of contra-flow.

Cones will be set in place on the A66 in the new few weeks, when work begins on the removal of a bridge.

The Surtees Bridge, which carries the A66 over the River Tees, near Thornaby, no longer meets all engineering standards required to take the latest 40-tonne heavy goods lorries.

There are concerns about the condition of the concrete bridge supports below the water line and the ground conditions of the east embankment.

A new bridge will cost £14.3m and will have three lanes, including access to the unused slip roads of the South Stockton link road, allowing the new road linking Ingleby Barwick to Stockton, to be fully opened to traffic.

Contractor Edmund Nuttall was yesterday appointed by the Highways Agency which manages the road, to carry out the work.

A 30mph limit will be enforced during the 17 months it will take to remove the bridge and construct the new span, a section at a time, with the traffic flow restricted to contra-flow.