Lichfield Roadworks: London Road Signals Stay to December

The temporary lights on London Road will be there longer than planned. Staffordshire County Council now says the new junction near the Swinfen Interchange is expected to be complete by early December 2026. Its scheme page had said autumn. The two-way signals stay for the whole of the work (London Road scheme page).

Two other things matter this week:

• Model Farm Lane at Elford stays closed to 23 October, and the lanes around Stonnall and Lynn stay shut to 8 November. Both orders are made.
• Long Lane at Fradley is due to close from 12 October to 2 November for a gas main. That is still a proposal.

The rest of this page is what is closed today, what is coming before the end of October, the A38 at Streethay, and what parking costs at the end of the drive. Every closure below comes from the statutory traffic order, the highway authority’s own closure report or National Rail, not from a map.

What is closed right now

London Road has moved to December. The scheme builds a new signalised junction into the Cricket Lane development, with a 3 metre shared footway and cycleway on the north side. It started on Monday 23 March. Amey is delivering it for the county under a section 278 agreement with the developer, Indurent. The county says the temporary lights are not in place while the A38 is closed for HS2 work (London Road scheme page).

Elford is a decision, not a plan. The county made the order for Model Farm Lane on 1 September, so the closure to 23 October is settled (notice of 3 September).

Stonnall and Lynn is the long one. The county made that order on 25 August, it came into operation on 31 August, and the water main work is anticipated to finish on 8 November (order made 25 August 2026).

Two of today’s rows are proposals. Forge Lane in Lichfield and Syerscote Lane at Haunton were both published as notices that the county intends to make an order. We have not found a made order for either in the notices published since, so the dates may move (Express & Star notice, 17 September 2026; Tamworth Herald notice, 17 September 2026).

The Harlaston footpath closure is odd. The order came into operation on 14 July and closes about 2,426 metres of Public Footpath 8 with no alternative route. The notice expected the work to take 40 days, but it was not published until 17 September and the order runs for six months. You cannot tell from the notice whether the path is walkable today, so look for the plan displayed on site (notice of 17 September 2026).

The speed reduction across the north of the district runs to 24 August 2027, on six lanes at Clifton Campville, Haunton, Highfields and Thorpe Constantine (notice of 20 August 2026).

What has changed since 24 September

• London Road’s finish date slipped from autumn to early December 2026.
• These closures have ended: the ten London Road night closures (last night 24 September), William IV Road in Alrewas (24 September), Newlands Lane (25 September), Knowle Lane in Lichfield (30 September, one day) and Thorpe Lane at Thorpe Constantine (2 October).
• Brownhills Road at Walsall Wood reached the end of its planned night closures on 2 October.
• Six new proposals have appeared for October: Abnalls Lane, Long Lane at Fradley, No Mans Heath Road at Clifton Campville, Little Barrow Walk, Little Hay Lane and the A38 slips at Catholme. Details are below.
• Eastern Avenue finished on 23 September. The county’s Lichfield roadworks index still lists it as “in progress” on 5 October, but the county’s own news release of 23 September says it is complete (Staffordshire County Council, 23 September 2026).

What is coming next

“Proposed” means the county has published a notice that it intends, not less than seven days later, to make the order. Those dates can still change.

Long Lane at Fradley is the one to plan around. The county intends to close it from 12 October for gas main replacement, with the work anticipated to finish by 2 November. In the same notice it intends to close No Mans Heath Road at Clifton Campville from 12 to 25 October for a rising main. Abnalls Lane in Lichfield (9 October) and Little Hay Lane (14 October) are one-day pole jobs. Little Barrow Walk in Lichfield is a footway closure for pedestrians, 12 to 14 October (Staffordshire County Council notice, 24 September 2026).

Fisherwick Road at Whittington is a single day on 9 October for pole replacement, also a proposal (Tamworth Herald notice, 24 September 2026).

The A38 slips at Catholme are north of the district, near Barton-under-Needwood and about eight miles from Lichfield. A county notice lists the northbound entry and exit slips there for signage installation from 12 to 14 October, as a proposal (Staffordshire County Council notice, 23 September 2026).

The A5127 at Wall goes to 40mph on 27 October. The county made a permanent order on 8 September cutting the limit from 50mph. The documents can be seen at Lichfield Library in the Guild of St Mary’s Centre, quoting reference D5967P (notice of 10 September 2026).

Trains: two weekends with no main line service at Trent Valley

There are no main line trains at Lichfield Trent Valley on 10 and 11 October or on 17 and 18 October. National Rail lists buses replacing trains between Rugby and Stafford on both weekends. Cross-City trains from Lichfield City to Birmingham are on a different line, and West Midlands Railway is not among the operators National Rail lists for these closures (10 and 11 October; 17 and 18 October). Times, buses and the Avanti diversions are in our Trent Valley October closures story.

The A38, A5 and M6 this week

National Highways publishes a closure report covering seven days. The edition starting Friday 2 October puts these on the routes around Lichfield, all overnight:

• A38 southbound, Claymills to Branston, north of Burton upon Trent, on the nights of Monday 5, Tuesday 6 and Wednesday 7 October, 21:00 to 06:00.
• A38 northbound entry slip from the A5121 roundabout at Branston, from 20:00 on Wednesday 7 October to midnight on Thursday 8 October, for Vodafone. National Highways made the order on 23 September and a diversion via the B5016 Station Road is signed (National Highways notice, 23 September 2026).
• A5 at Ventura Park, Tamworth: entry and exit slips closed on the nights of Wednesday 7 and Thursday 8 October, 21:00 to 06:00, part of maintenance between Wilnecote and Mile Oak.
• M6 southbound, Junction 6 to Junction 5, and the A38 entry link to the M6 northbound at Junction 6, every night of the edition to Thursday 8 October, 21:00 to 06:00.

The report is re-uploaded every day, so check it before a late journey (National Highways road closure report).

The A38 at Streethay

• What: realigning the A38 so HS2 can pass beneath it, between Swinfen Interchange and Hilliard’s Cross.
• Who: HS2 Ltd and its contractor BBV JV, not Staffordshire County Council.
• Closed: the A38 northbound entry slip at Streethay since 27 March 2026, and the southbound entry slip at Hilliard’s Cross since 29 June 2026.
• Now expected to reopen: HS2 says April 2027 for the northbound slip. National Highways lists the Hilliard’s Cross closure to 1 May 2027.
• Also in place: 24-hour narrow lanes, lane and layby closures and speed restrictions between the Cappers Lane junction at Streethay and Fradley.

HS2 had planned a temporary reopening of the northbound slip in October 2026, and has dropped it. It says no temporary alignment passed an independent road safety audit, so the work will run straight through to the permanent road. HS2’s page was last updated on 28 August 2026, and it still says April 2027 on 5 October (HS2, A38 work at Streethay; National Highways road closure report).

For anyone joining the A38 northbound from the Streethay side, that is another winter and spring of the signed detour.

Rights of way: two Ridware paths could become bridleways

Staffordshire County Council has made an order that, if confirmed, would upgrade Public Footpath 0.421 in Mavesyn Ridware parish and part of Public Footpath 0.376(a) in Hamstall Ridware parish to bridleways, and add a new bridleway in Hamstall Ridware. The order can be seen at District Council House on Frog Lane. Objections must reach the county’s Legal Services Unit by 12 November 2026, quoting LSU/MN/LJ663G (notice of 1 October 2026).

Who to call about what

Lichfield District Council does not run the roads. Staffordshire County Council is the highway authority for every road in the district, and the A38 works are HS2’s and National Highways’. In practice:

• Potholes, street lights, road closures, traffic orders: Staffordshire County Council, which lists its Lichfield schemes and their status.
• Live works, including utility digs: the one.network map, which is the feed the signs come from.
• The A38 at Streethay: HS2, helpdesk 08081 434 434.
• Motorway and trunk road closures: the National Highways closure report, updated daily.
• Car parks, permits, parking fines in council car parks: Lichfield District Council.

What parking costs when you get there

What it means for you: an all-day stay in a Lichfield long stay car park costs £4.30, and the free first half hour in the short stay car parks only counts if you take a ticket. The council car parks in Burntwood are free. The council’s own city car parks page still shows an older long stay tariff of £1.50, £2.50 and £4.00; the parking amendment order and the individual car park records, such as Birmingham Road, give the current figures, and charges there apply from 7.30am to 6.30pm. Every car park, and the Sunday rules, are on our parking in Lichfield page.

The station car park at Lichfield Trent Valley is run commercially, and the alternatives are on our trains to London page.

Frequently asked questions

What roads are closed in Lichfield right now?

Model Farm Lane at Elford is closed until 23 October, and Footherley Lane, Mill Lane and Lynn Lane around Stonnall are shut until 8 November. Both HS2 entry slip roads on the A38 are closed: northbound at Streethay to April 2027 and southbound at Hilliard’s Cross to May 2027. London Road has two-way temporary lights until early December.

When will the London Road roadworks in Lichfield finish?

Staffordshire County Council says the new junction near the Swinfen Interchange is expected to be complete by early December 2026. The two-way temporary signals stay until then.

What roads are closing near Lichfield in October?

Abnalls Lane in Lichfield and Fisherwick Road at Whittington on 9 October, Long Lane at Fradley from 12 October to 2 November, No Mans Heath Road at Clifton Campville from 12 to 25 October and Little Hay Lane on 14 October. All of those are proposals. The A38 northbound slip at Branston closes from the evening of 7 October, and that order is made.

Are there trains at Lichfield Trent Valley in October?

Not on 10 and 11 October or 17 and 18 October. Buses replace trains between Rugby and Stafford. Cross-City trains from Lichfield City are on a different line.

Is the speed limit changing on Birmingham Road, Wall?

Yes. Staffordshire County Council made a permanent order on 8 September reducing the A5127 Birmingham Road at Wall from 50mph to 40mph, commencing on 27 October 2026.

Why are the A38 slip roads at Streethay closed?

HS2 is realigning the A38 between Swinfen Interchange and Hilliard’s Cross so the railway can pass underneath. The northbound entry slip at Streethay has been closed since March 2026 and is expected to reopen in April 2027, after a planned temporary reopening in October 2026 was cancelled. National Highways also lists the southbound entry slip at Hilliard’s Cross as closed, from 29 June 2026 to 1 May 2027.

What is the diversion for the closed A38 slip road?

Follow Cappers Lane, join the A38 by the southbound off slip road to Swinfen Island, then use the roundabout to rejoin the A38 northbound. The route is signed for the duration of the works.

Who do I report a pothole to in Lichfield?

Staffordshire County Council, not Lichfield District Council. The county is the highway authority for every road in the district. The district council runs the car parks and the parks.

Is parking free in Lichfield?

The first 30 minutes is free in the city’s short stay car parks if you take a ticket. The council car parks in Burntwood are free, with a 24-hour maximum stay. On Sundays and bank holidays every city car park charges £2.10 all day.

Sources

• Staffordshire County Council, London Road new access, checked 5 October 2026, for the early December completion, the works, contractor and funding.
• Staffordshire County Council notice, 24 September 2026 for Knowle Lane (order made 22 September), and the Abnalls Lane, Long Lane, No Mans Heath Road, Little Hay Lane and Little Barrow Walk proposals.
• Staffordshire County Council notice, 23 September 2026 for the A38 Catholme slip proposal.
• Staffordshire County Council notice, 1 October 2026 for the Ridware bridleway modification order.
• Tamworth Herald notice, 17 September 2026 for the Thorpe Lane order, the Syerscote Lane proposal and the Harlaston Public Footpath 8 closure.
• Express & Star notice, 17 September 2026 for the Forge Lane, Lichfield proposal.
• Tamworth Herald notice, 24 September 2026 for the Fisherwick Road, Whittington proposal.
• National Highways notice, 23 September 2026 for the A38 Branston northbound slip order and the B5016 diversion.
• Staffordshire County Council notice, 10 September 2026 for the London Road night closures, Newlands Lane and the A5127 Wall 40mph order.
• Staffordshire County Council notice, 3 September 2026 for the Model Farm Lane and Haselour Lane order.
• Staffordshire County Council notice, 27 August 2026 for the Footherley Lane, Mill Lane and Lynn Lane order.
• Staffordshire County Council notice, 20 August 2026 for the year-long speed reduction in the north of the district.
• National Highways road closure report, edition from 2 October 2026, for the two A38 HS2 slip closures, the Claymills to Branston, Ventura Park and M6 Junction 6 night closures.
• HS2, A38 work at Streethay for the northbound closure, the cancelled October reopening, the April 2027 date and the diversion.
• Staffordshire County Council, Eastern Avenue completed, 23 September 2026.
• National Rail Enquiries engineering works for 10 and 11 October and 17 and 18 October.
• Lichfield District Council parking amendment order and Birmingham Road car park record for tariffs.

Roadworks move and temporary orders take effect only when the signs are out. Check the live map on the day. Checked 5 October 2026.