27th August
The 27th August was day 222 of the M27 Widening roadworks, and I had not long got back from holiday so I hastily went out to get some photos - only to find that four days later the new lane opened. D'oh! Here's what it looked like on the 27th:
Looking west from Hill Road, and it's clear that the only noticeably incomplete thing is the hard shoulder markings.
Here you can see the message board clearly in the hard shoulder, the new noise barrier in the background and some finishing touches being applied to the bridge support.
Looking east now. Having fined an average of just one driver a day, the cameras have been taken down and national speed limit restored. All three lanes have reverted to full width.
At the crest of the hill it will be the right-hand lane which closes, which creates a problem because you can't close the right-hand lane until you've opened the new one. Hence, these temporary studs guide the (still full-width) lanes through the only incomplete bit.
If you look carefully, you can see the new liftable barrier.
