Late night and early morning drivers face potential disruption when an £110,000 improvement scheme begins on the M66 later this month.

The Highways Agency project will tackle potholes and other wear and tear of the carriageway.

It will be undertaken overnight between Tuesday, September 17, and Thursday, October 10, and includes the closure of the north-bound or southbound carriageway for up to 10 nights each.

All of the work on the motorway will be carried out between 10pm and 5am each night or until 7am on Saturday and Sundays.

Phase one of the work — along the southbound carriageway between junction one at Ramsbottom and junction two at Bury — involves resurfacing and renewing studs and road markings.

A second phase of work will take place on both the southbound and northbound carriageways, between the motorway at its junction with the A56 Whalley Road, Edenfield, and Junction Two at Bury. This will involve renewing road markings and road studs.

During both phases, overnight closures will be needed, with diversions in place between junctions one and two, using the A56 Whalley Road through to Walmersley Road, and the A58 Rochdale Road.

Jakub Malaj, of the Highways Agency, said: “This is routine main-tenance to tackle wear and tear along these sections of the M66 around Bury. The repairs will provide safer and smoother journeys for drivers.

“The work is being done overnight and, while carriageways will be closed, a good diversion will be in place along the A56 — although we do advise drivers to leave a little bit of extra time to complete journeys.”