Morgan Sindall has won a £16.9m contract to build a highways and waste distribution depot for Central Bedfordshire Council.

Above: Site of the new depot

Work on the new Thorn Turn facility in Houghton Regis, Dunstable, has already begun. The contract includes the construction of a domestic waste recycling centre and a depot for the council’s highways team.

The main building on the 14-acre site will include modular offices for 60 staff from Highways England, a maintenance workshop for seven vehicles and a large dry storage area. The building will also house fuel and salt stores and will be used to provide support for works at the Dunstable Northern bypass (A5 M1 link) which is currently under construction.

The household waste distribution centre will include two small office buildings for around 10 staff, a retail unit and a 250-vehicle car park.

Completion is expected in summer 2017.

“The new highways and waste distribution depot will provide a key service for the area and much-needed office accommodation and vehicle maintenance space for the council,” said Morgan Sindall area director Neil Franklin. “The centre will also provide an essential facility for storing road-salt and house the council’s gritting fleet during the winter months.”