Major motorway reopens returns to 70mph after operating at lower speeds for three years
A major stretch of the M6 motorway has fully reopened at 70mph today for the first time since work began in 2021, marking a significant milestone for thousands of daily commuters.
National Highways lifted the 50mph speed restriction between Warrington and Wigan at 7am this morning, following extensive testing of new safety technology along the 10-mile route.
The section, which runs between junction 21a at Croft and junction 26 at Orrell, had been operating with reduced speeds since October when an additional lane was first opened to traffic.
The move to restore national speed limit operations comes after the agency successfully installed new technology systems, including stopped vehicle detection.
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The £260million upgrade project saw an extra lane added to the motorway on both northbound and southbound carriageways.
The upgraded route serves as a vital transport link connecting drivers from London to the north-west and Scotland, as well as the wider trans-European route.
Around 120,000 vehicles use this stretch daily between Lancashire, Merseyside, Cheshire and Greater Manchester, making it one of the region’s busiest motorway sections.
The improvements aim to relieve congestion and create smoother traffic flow, addressing the growing transport demands in the area.
The upgraded motorway also features 22 new emergency areas, with 11 positioned along each carriageway.
These specially designed areas have been clearly marked in orange and set back from the main carriageway for enhanced safety, National Highways revealed.
Each emergency area is equipped with telephones that connect directly to National Highways control rooms.
For drivers travelling at 70mph, the improvements now see emergency stopping areas in pace approximately every 31 seconds.
The emergency areas form part of new safety measures in place to help deter drivers from breaking speed limits or ignoring Red X signals on the smart motorways.
Drivers are advised not to exit an emergency area without first speaking to National Highways, who can set warning signs and alert approaching traffic.
In the event of a breakdown, motorists should use these designated areas rather than stopping in live lanes which often leads to traffic pileup.
The upgrade has included the installation of a low-noise road surface on all lanes between junction 21a and 25, and on lanes one and four between junctions 25 and 26.
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The central reservation barrier has been upgraded from steel to concrete along the entire 10-mile stretch, providing enhanced safety and requiring less maintenance.