Drivers and train passengers have been warned to brace themselves for disruption this weekend, when massive beams for a bridge to carry the Northern Distributor Road will be lifted into place.

Plumstead Road and the Norwich to Sheringham railway will have to shut, so the beams which will span the rail route can be hoisted into place.

Bosses at Norfolk County Council said the 1,000 tonne crane needed to lift each pair of 36.7 metre beams have arrived, along with 10 support wagons, today (Friday).

Plumstead Road will shut at 8pm tomorrow (Saturday), between Thorpe End and Little Plumstead, to create a safety zone around the crane. Lifting is expected to start in the early hours of Sunday morning and is scheduled to be completed by 10pm the same day.

A spokesman for Norfolk County Council said: 'Lifting is expected to start in the early hours of Sunday morning and if all goes well could be complete well before the 10pm completion target.

'The road will reopen as soon as it is safe to do so after the beam lifts and associated works have been completed, but no later than 6am on Monday 10 April. If good progress is made, this could be during the day on Sunday 9 April.

'During the closure of Plumstead Road the main diversion will be along Salhouse Road. Access to Thorpe End will be maintained from the west (city direction).'

The Bittern Line railway will also be closed on Sunday, with trains replaced by buses. They will operate as normal again on Monday, but will again be replaced by buses on Easter Sunday, which is a reserve day in case the work cannot be completed this Sunday.

The replacement buses will run from Norwich Railway Station having the same departure as the trains, although pick-ups from stations will be later.

Buses leaving at 36 minutes past the hour serve all stops. Buses leaving at 45 minutes past the hour stop at Hoveton/Wroxham, North Walsham, Cromer and Sheringham.

From Sheringham Railway Station, the bus departures will be at 9am, 10.15am, 11am, 12.15pm, 1pm, 2.15pm, 3pm, 4.15pm, 5pm, 6.15pm, 7pm and 8.15pm, with the last bus for Norwich leaving at 9.42pm. The bus picks up at Cromer 15 minutes after leaving Sheringham.

Buses leaving on the hour will serve all Bittern Line stops. Those leaving at 15 minutes past the hour will stop at Cromer, North Walsham, Hoveton/Wroxham and Norwich.

The 12.5 mile road, once built, will stretch from the A47 at Postwick to the A1067 Fakenham Road. The £178.5m road has been assigned the road number of A1270.