Central Bedfordshire road closures: more than a dozen for motorists to avoid over the next fortnight while A421 still closed due to flooding

And two of them are expected to cause major delays – with drivers facing waits of at least 30 minutes. Another nine will cause moderate delays of between 10 minutes and half an hour.

The latest expected works list, with notes from National Highways, shows that eight closures already in place are expected to carry on this week:

• A1081, to 5am October 5, moderate delays (10-30 minutes): M1 both directions, junction 6A to junction 15 - exit and entry slip road closures, lane closures and diversion routes for electrical works on behalf of National Highways.

• A1, to 5am October 19, moderate delays (10-30 minutes): A1 southbound, Wyboston to Black Cat Roundabout - carriageway closure, lane closures, speed restriction and diversion route for drainage on behalf of National Highways.

• A5, to 11.59pm January 1 2025, slight delays (under 10 minutes): M1 both directions, junction 11A - lane closure and narrow lanes for construction improvement/upgrade on behalf of National Highways.

• A421, to 5am September 30 2025, moderate delays (10-30 minutes): M1 northbound,, junction 9 to junction 14 - carriageway closures, lane closures, diversion routes, narrow lanes and speed restriction for construction improvement/upgrade on behalf of National Highways.

• A1081, to 5am September 30 2025, moderate delays (10-30 minutes): M1 southbound, junction 14 to junction 10 - carriageway closures, lane closures, narrow lanes and speed restriction for construction improvement/upgrade on behalf of National Highways.

• A1, to 6am April 1 2027, moderate delays (10-30 minutes): A428 both directions, Crown Roundabout to Cambourne - carriageway closure, lane closure, diversion route and narrow lanes for construction - bypass/new on behalf of National Highways.

• A1, to 6am April 1 2027, slight delays (under 10 minutes): A1 / A421 both directions, Biggleswade to St Neots - carriageway closures, lane closures, narrow lanes, permanent layby closures and diversion routes for construction - bypass/new on behalf of National Highways.

• A1, from 9pm September 30 to 5am November 16, moderate delays (10-30 minutes): A1 both directions, Biggleswade North Roundabout to Georgetown - carriageway closures, lane closures and diversion routes due to sign - maintenance works on behalf of National Highways.

And a further five closures will begin over the next two weeks:

• A5, from 8pm October 7 to 6am October 12, moderate delays (10-30 minutes): A5 both directions, Thorn Roundabout to Sheep Lane Roundabout - carriageway closure and diversion route for drainage on behalf of National Highways.

• A421, from 8pm October 7 to 6am October 29, moderate delays (10-30 minutes): A421 both directions, M1, junction 13 to Marsh Leys Interchange - exit and entry slip road closures, lane closures and diversion routes for drainage on behalf of National Highways.

• A1, from 9pm October 10 to 5am October 12, slight delays (under 10 minutes): A1 southbound, Blunham to Sandy - lane closure for inspection/survey on behalf of National Highways.

• A5, from 8pm October 12 to 6am October 13, severe delays (more than 30 minutes): A5 both directions, A5120 roundabout to M1, junction 11a west roundabout - carriageway closure for Scaffolding erection on behalf of UKPN.

• A5, from 8pm October 13 to 6am October 14, severe delays (more than 30 minutes): A5 both directions, A5120 roundabout to M1, junction 11a west roundabout - carriageway closure for Scaffolding erection on behalf of UKPN.

National Highways is responsible for maintaining motorways and major A-roads, so closures of smaller roads will not be included in their schedule.

Meanwhile, the A421 remains shut in both directions between the A6 at Bedford and the M1 junction 13 near Brogborough/Marston Moretaine. Both carriageways have been closed since flooding first occurred on Sunday, September 22 when a month of rainfall fell in under 48 hours.

Efforts to clear the floodwater have been ongoing since with a fleet of 25 tankers working around the clock to remove water from the carriageway, which was estimated to be around 60 million litres in total and at its peak was 8ft deep.

Martin Fellows, regional director for National Highways in the East of England, told the BBC it could be ‘weeks’ before the road reopens.

He said: “We are taking every possible measure we can to tackle this unprecedented situation. That includes sourcing the most effective and advanced pumping equipment we can.

“The record rainfall this part of the country is continuing to experience is making a what is a difficult situation extremely challenging but let me reassure people our work will continue as all our effort and resources are focused on resolving this and getting the road open as soon as it is safe to do so.

“The progress we have made over the last week is very clear but the extent of the rainfall and runoff from the surrounding area is making this a real challenge. We will continue to do all we can but trying to put a timeline to this – when we do not yet know the condition of the road under the floodwater – is very difficult and I expect our work here will continue for the rest of this week as a minimum.

“As we are talking about removing very significant volumes of water and dispersing it in a responsible manner that does not add to the already saturated ground conditions, I think it’s important that people understand that we work very closely with our partners in the Bedfordshire Local Resilience Forum (BLRF) to ensure our work in this area continues to be safe and appropriate.”