A MAJOR motorway used by 130,000 vehicles daily will begin a series of closures tonight – with drivers braced for six months of chaos.
National Highways is repairing a stretch of the M5 running through Devon this autumn.
The M5 will begin a series of closures tonight[/caption]
Motorists have been urged to plan their journeys and allow extra time while engineers patch up the road surface.
You can read a full list of the exact dates each junctions will close in the box below.
A National Highways spokesperson said: “We understand that road closures are frustrating.
“By closing the road and installing a contraflow, we can get this essential repair work done safely and quickly.
“This will cause less disruption overall. We’ll be starting this work after the main summer holiday time.
“We’ll make sure three lanes are open in each direction for October half term, to minimise disruption.”
“Our work will finish before Easter 2025. We’ll provide more information as our work progresses.
“Early next year we’ll move traffic to the northside side to allow us to work on the southbound carriageway.
“This work is subject to favourable weather conditions, for example heavy rain may affect the progress.”
The spokesperson added: “Please remember that closures can change at short notice.
“You can check the latest information on our daily closures page or find live travel information on our Traffic England site.
“Our travel alerts give details of live incidents on our network.”
Full list of closures and diversions
Monday September 16 to Tuesday October 1 – overnight lane closures on the M5 around junction 27 (Tiverton) between 8.30pm and 6am each night. At least one lane will remain open in each direction.
Wednesday October 2 & Thursday October 3 – the M5 will be closed southbound between junction 26 (Wellington) and junction 28 (Cullumpton) between 8.30pm and 6am each night. Traffic will be diverted via the A38 & B3181.
Friday October 4 & Saturday October 5 – the M5 will be closed northbound between junction 28 (Cullumpton) and junction 26 (Wellington) between 8.30pm and 6am each night. Traffic will be diverted via the B3181 & A38.
Saturday October 5 to Thursday October 24 – from 6.00am on Saturday 5 October, a lane will be closed on the northbound M5 around junction 27. Three lanes will be open southbound, with traffic using the hard shoulder.
Friday October 25 to Monday November 4 – three lanes will be open in each direction over half term. Traffic will use the hard shoulder in both directions while we work in the middle of the road.
Tuesday November 5 to Friday November 15 – the southbound M5 will be closed between junctions 26 (Wellington) and 28 (Cullumpton) from 8.30pm to 6am each night. A diversion will be in place via the A38 and the B3181.
