M62 junction 10 to 12 smart motorway

We're improving the 9.8-mile section of the M62 between junctions 10 and 12 by upgrading it to an all-lane running smart motorway.

Start date 2017-18

End date 2019-20

Cost £100 million - £250 million

Latest updates

13 January 2021

Technology is now operational

The testing of the technology is now fully complete, and we’re pleased to confirm that the M62 junctions 10 to 12 motorway upgrade is now fully operational. This means the technology is live and road users will now be able to experience the full benefits of the project. The upgrades will provide drivers with live information about their journeys, changes in the speed limit, lane closures and incidents ahead.

Over the next month, work to install some fencing, additional signs, and removal of the temporary CCTV and site areas are planned. This will take place overnight and will cause minimal disruption.
06 October 2020

Daytime weekend lane closures

As construction nears completion, during this final phase of work, daytime weekend lane closures will be in place throughout October 2020, starting from the 10 October.

This is to enable us to test and commission some of the new technology during sufficient traffic flows.

The lane closures will only operate over a maximum length of 6km at a time. The 50mph speed limit within our work will remain in place, with variable speed limits operating for safety purposes.

Overnight work (between 8pm to 6am)

Overnight work will continue under full carriageway closures to install and test the remaining electronic traffic signs and signals. We will also switch the upgraded street lights back on during October. There will then be a short period of time where we will inspect and adjust the lighting to address any issues.
08 June 2020

Daytime lane closures

Daytime lane closures have been in place to progress our work as much as possible, while reducing disruption to both the local community and road users.

We’ve been monitoring the traffic flows very carefully, and have observed an increase in the movements on the M62. As a result, we will be removing the daytime lane closures and reverting the carriageways back to four lanes in each direction.

For safety, the reduced speed limit of 50mph will remain in place during the next few months while we continue our work.
01 May 2020

Works for the M62 junction 10 to 12 smart motorway

Work to install the technology and electronic signage on the new overhead gantries will be ongoing. We will also carry out surfacing work on both sides of the carriageway between junctions 11 and 12. This will take place overnight, and either lane or full carriageway closures is needed to undertake the work safely.

We’ll continue to provide a free recovery service while these works take place. Drivers will be able to use one of 11 new emergency areas if they experience difficulties on the motorway. CCTV cameras will also continue to monitor the motorway 24 hours a day and control room operators will be able to reduce the speed limit to 40mph and display warning messages during incidents.

A variable speed limit of up to 70mph will be introduced on the motorway later in the year, once the new technology has been fully tested, to help improve the flow of traffic and prevent stop-start conditions.

Please remember that closures can change. For the most up to date information (including timings) check the Planned Roadworks feed. You can view on the Roadworks search page for more search options, or check our regional Twitter feed.

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Project information

Smart motorways are a technology driven approach to tackling the most congested parts of the motorway network, improving journey reliability by controlling the flow and speed of traffic. They also support the economy by providing much-needed capacity on the busiest motorways, while maintaining safety for road users and those who work on the roads.

The design features of the scheme include:

variable mandatory speed limits
driver information, including lane availability, provided through a mixture of gantries and cantilever signs
queue detection and automatic signalling system, which provides queue protection and congestion management
comprehensive low light pan-tilt-zoom CCTV coverage
refuge areas where drivers can stop in an emergency

The M62 motorway is a strategic route for local, regional and international traffic and plays a major role as a cross-country artery between the north-west, Yorkshire and Humberside. This section of the M62 carries in excess of 110,000 vehicles per day.

The M62 carries high volumes of heavy goods and other vehicles. Congestion and unreliable journey times are currently experienced at busy periods and traffic is predicted to grow.

The M62 project will relieve congestion and smooth the flow of traffic, improving journey times as well as improving the current unpredictability of journey times along this stretch of the motorway.

With this scheme, we aim to:

reduce congestion and smooth the flow of traffic to improve travel times, making journeys more reliable
support the economy and facilitate economic growth within the region. Providing much-needed capacity on the motorway will reduce the cost of delays to both commuters and business traffic
continue to deliver a high level of safety performance on the network using smart motorway techniques
minimise environmental impacts