A NEAR-£6 million drainage project to improve the M5 motorway close to Wellington which was halted after the discovery of a dormouse nest has restarted.

The scheme began last October but stopped earlier this year when contractors discovered a dormouse nest, two blackbird nests, and a nesting jay.

Dormice have legal protection from being disturbed, which meant National Highways had to stop work and ask Natural England for a European Protected Species Licence.

Contractors under ecological supervision also had to cordon off the area containing the jay and blackbird nests and wait until the chicks had fledged before work could resume.

The project had been expected to be completed by the end of February but is now anticipated to be finished in early August.

National Highways route manager Jonathan Hill said: “In line with environmental regulations, we paused the drainage scheme after dormice habitats and nesting birds were identified on the construction site.

“Since obtaining a licence from Natural England to remove the dormice habitats, we have since resumed work on the drainage scheme and are due to complete the work by early August.”

The work has seen the use of narrowed motorway lanes and average speed cameras to enforce a 50 mph speed limit, and has resulted in a series of nighttime lane closures between junction 26 for Wellington and junction 27 for Tiverton.

It is aimed at alleviating flooding on the motorway verges and carriageway near junction 26, thereby reducing the likelihood of future wet weather-related incidents and closures.

It involves the de-silting of ditches, camera survey and proofing work, gully renewal, the replacement of blocked drainage pipes and fittings, resurfacing, and road marking.

Mr Hill said: “This is an essential scheme which will bring two-fold benefits in terms of safety and wet weather resilience, reducing the likelihood of flooding and surface water issues at this location.”