M5 motorway Totally Explained

Everything about M5 Motorway totally explained

ť This article is about the M5 motorway in England. See M5 for other roads numbered "M5".

The M5 is a motorway in England. It runs from the M6 at Great Barr to Exeter in Devon. Heading south from the M6, the M5 runs east of West Bromwich and west of Birmingham through Sandwell Valley. The road continues past Droitwich Spa, Worcester, Tewkesbury, Cheltenham, Gloucester, Bristol, Weston-super-Mare, Bridgwater and Taunton on its way to Exeter, ending at Junction 31. It is the primary gateway to south-west England and can get very busy in summer months, especially after 3pm on a Friday afternoon until 8pm between Junctions 15 and 24.

Construction phases

Initial construction

The first of the M5 motorway to be built was constructed as a four-lane motorway (two lanes in each direction). This section, from Junction 4 (Lydiate Ash) in the north to a trumpet junction with the M50 in the south, opened in 1963. The southern end was called a trumpet junction because of its shape: a 270 degree curved bend. There were no other exits from this trumpet junction though room was left for an extension to the south.
The motorway was extended in sections, from 1967 to 1970, northwards from Junction 4; and Frankley services was built. Much of the northern section beyond Junction 3, from about Quinton to its junction with the M6 motorway, was elevated motorway built on concrete pillars. The northern extension was a six-lane motorway (three lanes in each direction).

M42 link

In the late 1980s a new junction 4a was built as part of the M42 motorway construction project. The route of the M42 was decided as early as 1972 but, due to planning delays, approval at the Bromsgrove end wasn't obtained until 1986.

Widening the four-lane section

The first-built section of M5, from junctions 3 to 8, was widened to provide six lanes (three lanes in each direction) in the early 1990s. During this work the Northbound Strensham Services was completely rebuilt further away from the new junction. Junction 7 was also remodelled into a roundabout junction.

Addition of crawler lanes

The Avonmouth Bridge was converted to eight lanes (four lanes in each direction) in the early 2000s. Later, in 2005–2006, parts of the M5 between Junctions 17 and 20 were widened to 7 lanes (four lanes climbing the hills and three lanes descending the hills); information boards were added and parts of the central reservation was converted to a concrete crash barrier. During this stage of construction the M5 became Britain's longest contraflow system, spanning between junctions 19 and 20. The M5 contraflow was said to be the most complicated ever built in the UK as the motorway is on a split level going around the steep hills of Gordano Valley; meaning four lanes plus an additional emergency vehicle lane were squeezed into that section. Most of the contraflow had speed limits of and required six speed cameras to enforce the speed limit through the narrow lanes.

Junction 12

Junction 12 was originally a northbound exit only junction. In 2002 a southbound exit was added. The Highways Agency didn't anticipate the traffic flows through the junction and the resultant queues can now extend back onto the motorway.

Features

Notable features of the M5 include the four level Almondsbury Interchange, between the M5 and the M4 near Bristol. Another is the Avonmouth Bridge that's often a bottleneck in heavy traffic. Beyond that are the split-level carriageways, as the motorway climbs the sides of the hills above the Gordano valley, between Portishead and Clevedon. Junction 1 surrounds a surviving gatehouse from the former Sandwell Hall.
The M5 follows the route of the A38 road quite closely. The two deviate slightly around Bristol and the area south of Bristol (junctions 16 to 22). The A38 goes straight through the centre of Bristol and passes by Bristol International Airport; whereas the M5 skirts around both of them, with access to the airport from junctions 18, 19 or 22. The A38 continues south from where the M5 finishes in Devon.
Between Junction 21, Weston-super-Mare and Junction 22, Burnham-on-Sea, the M5 passes by Brent Knoll and has a long gradual curve that deviates from the straight line of the motorway. It is commonly believed that this is because it's to bypass the hill and village, but it's in fact down to an error in the compulsory land purchases made at the time which left the route of the motorway having to arch around this area.

Route

M5 Motorway
Northbound exits	Junction	Southbound exits
M6: The NORTH WEST, Wolverhampton, Birmingham (North & East), Walsall	8 of M6	Start of motorway
A41: West Bromwich, Birmingham (North West)	1	A41: West Bromwich, Birmingham (North West)
A4123: Dudley, Wolverhampton, Birmingham (West)	2	A4123: Dudley, Wolverhampton, Birmingham (West)
A456: Halesowen, Birmingham (South West & Central)	3	A456: Halesowen, Birmingham (South West & Central)
Frankley Services
A38: Bromsgrove	4	A38: Bromsgrove
M42: NEC & Birmingham Airport, Redditch (M40): London (M1): The NORTH EAST	Junction 4a	M42: Birmingham (South & East), Redditch (M40): London
A38: Droitwich Spa	5	A38: Droitwich Spa
A449: Worcester (North)	6	A449: Worcester (North)
A44: Worcester (South)	7	A44: Worcester (South)
Strensham Services
M50: SOUTH WALES, Ross	8	M50: SOUTH WALES, Ross
A438: Tewkesbury A46: Evesham	9	A438: Tewkesbury A46: Evesham
No access	10	A4019: Cheltenham
A40: Cheltenham, Gloucestershire Airport	11	A40: Cheltenham, Gloucestershire Airport
A417: Gloucester (Central)	11a	A417: Gloucester (Central)
A38: Gloucester (South)	12	A38: Gloucester (South)
A419: Stroud	13	A419: Stroud
Michaelwood services
B4509: Dursley, Charfield, Falfield, Wotton-under-Edge	14	B4509: Thornbury, Charfield, Falfield, Wotton-under-Edge
M4 E: LONDON, Bristol (M32)M4 W: SOUTH WALES, Chepstow (M48)	15 Almondsbury Interchange	M4 E: LONDON, Bristol (M32)M4 W: SOUTH WALES, Chepstow (M48)
A38: Thornbury, Filton	16	A38: Thornbury, Filton
A4018: Bristol (West) B4055: Severn Beach	17	A4018: Bristol (West) B4055: Severn Beach
M49: SOUTH WALES, Cardiff, Newport	18a	No access
A4: Avonmouth, Avonmouth Docks	18	A4: Avonmouth, Avonmouth Docks
Avonmouth Bridge
A369: Portishead, Royal Portbury Dock, Easton in Gordano	19 Gordano Services	A369: Portishead, Royal Portbury Dock, Easton in Gordano
B3133: Nailsea, Clevedon	20	B3133: Nailsea, Clevedon
A370: Weston-super-Mare, Bristol (South)	21	A370: Weston-super-Mare
Sedgemoor Services
A38: Burnham on Sea, Weston-Super-Mare, Bristol (South), Airport	22	A38: Burnham on Sea, Highbridge
A38: Highbridge A39: Glastonbury, Wells	23	A38: Bridgwater A39: Glastonbury, Wells
A38: Bridgwater, Minehead	24 Bridgwater Services	A38: Minehead, (A39)
A358: Taunton, Yeovil	25	A358: Taunton, Honiton, Yeovil, Weymouth
Taunton Deane Services
A38: Wellington, Taunton	26	A38: Wellington
A361: Barnstaple, Tiverton A38: Wellington Tiverton Parkway railway station	27	A361: Barnstaple, Tiverton Willand (B3181) Tiverton Parkway railway station
B3181: Cullompton	28 Cullompton Services	B3181: Cullompton, A373: Honiton
A30:Honiton A3015: Exeter International Airport	29	A30:Honiton A3015: Exeter International Airport
A379: Exeter A376: Sidmouth, Exmouth (A3052)	30 Exeter services	A379: Exeter A376: Sidmouth, Exmouth
Start of motorway	31	A30: Bodmin, Okehampton
A30: Bodmin, Okehampton	31	End of motorway
M5 becomes A38 from/to Plymouth and Torquay

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