M25 news as we speak: Motorway reopens early ahead of Monday rush hour traffic

RAC breakdown spokesperson Alice Simpson stated: “With the M25 closures and the Easter getaway both falling in March, it could be a month of double traffic trouble for drivers trying to get around London or access Gatwick and Heathrow.

“Despite fair warning, the reality is most holidaymakers seeking to use either airport will have booked their trips months ago and will have to leave a lot more time to get there – not least because the most obvious diversion routes are likely to get extremely congested.

“If you do plan to drive between the 15th and 18th, we recommend starting your car to test its battery health well in advance of travelling and remembering FORCES to check the Fuel, Oil, Rubber, Coolant, Electrics and Screen wash before making any long journey.”

Historic work on the M25 in Surrey has completed hours ahead of schedule, permitting the highway to reopen ahead of Monday rush hour traffic.

A five-mile stretch between junctions 10 and 11 was shut in each instructions on 9pm on Friday and wasn’t anticipated to reopen till 6am on Monday.

However at 10:30pm on Sunday, National Highways revealed that the highway was now open in each instructions following the profitable demolition of the Clearmount bridge.

“We’d like to say a massive ‘thank you’ to everyone for your patience during this weekend’s closure of the M25 J10-11,” it wrote on X.

“The closure was to demolish a bridge and install a huge gantry. The road’s now open again, eight hours ahead of schedule. Thank you again for bearing with us.”

Good progress has been made on the M25 in Surrey, the place engineers are bringing down a bridge in the course of the motorway’s first ever deliberate daytime closure.

A five-mile stretch between junctions 10 and 11 has been shut in each instructions since 9pm on Friday and gained’t reopen till 6am on Monday.

“We made good progress during the first night of the M25 J10 to J11 weekend closure,” NHSE posted on X at 9.05pm on Saturday.

“We will again work throughout the night to continue the demolition and gantry installations. There are minimal delays in the area at this time.”

National Highway has issued a recent plea for motorists solely to journey on the M25 and diversion route if obligatory.

Queues stay gentle on both facet of the M25 closure, traffic cameras present.

A digicam within the run-up to Junction 10 exhibits automobiles lined up tightly on the method to the diversion, as they’ve been all morning.

While the 2 cameras within the method to Junction 11 are out of motion, there seems to be lower than 2km of congestion within the lead-up to the diversion there.

The Independent’s journey correspondent Simon Calder has urged opening up half of the closed-off stretches of the M25 to cyclists and pedestrains in the course of the 4 upcoming shutdowns.

He writes: “I do not suggest that visitors should play among the bulldozers as the workers energetically pursue the Monday morning reopening deadline.

“But since several miles of motorway are entirely unoccupied, I commend properly organised walks and bike rides along the empty carriageways.

“Abu Dhabi opens its Formula One circuit regularly to pedestrians, runners and cyclists, and the M25 could provide the same temporary playground. To quote H G Wells once again, “a beautiful serenity” deserves to be appreciated.

Byfleet and West Byfleet grew to become estranged within the early Eighties. What got here between them was an 80-yard-wide chopping carrying six lanes of traffic – later “densified” to eight lanes. Over a traditional weekend, each minute a mean of 100 automobiles, lorries and buses barrel via this deep divide.

Ten miles to the north: Europe’s busiest airport, Heathrow; 20 miles southeast, the UK’s essential vacation airport, Gatwick. And wherever you need to go in Britain, in the event you can’t entry it from a motorway or A-road junction on the M25, it’s most likely not value going.

Since Margaret Thatcher opened the total circuit in 1986, the M25 has turn out to be one of probably the most crucial items of infrastructure in Europe. For the primary time, a daytime closure is happening. A stretch of the motorway southwest of London is shut for the weekend, till 6am on Monday.

The intention: to enhance Junction 10, the place the M25 meets the A3 trunk highway linking London with Guildford and Portsmouth (to not point out Chessington World of Adventures). The solely approach to do that is to shut all the five-mile stretch to Junction 11:

Traffic cameras seem to indicate little traffic on the approaches to Junctions 10 and 11, the place the diversion is in power.

The Evening Standard had reported an hour in the past that Inrix knowledge urged round 2km of traffic had been constructing to the north of the highway closure at Junction 11, close to Chertsey.