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M62 - Your Local History
A lot of finds were uncovered during the archaeological evaluation carried out for the M62 Junction 6 Improvement scheme so we thought it would be nice to provide an interactive website so you can see what we found.
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Better information for your journey
The National Traffic Control Centre collects real-time information on road conditions
Quick Links
Don't Cross or Walk Along Motorways
The Highways Agency aims to make more people aware of the dangers of walking or crossing our motorway. We have launched a poster and radio campaign aimed at 16-25yr olds. Hopefully with our hard hitting posters, our message will come across.
Educating tomorrow's drivers
See how we are driving through key messages about safety on our network for the drivers of tomorrow.
Meet the Ancestors
Find out about the history of roads and the work the Agency does to preserve archaeological remains.
See when traffic will be lightest
Our traffic forecaster can help get you there quicker
2. The M1 HOV Pilot
The HOV scheme is to be implemented on Junctions 7 to 10 of the M1 (see Figure 1).
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Figure 1 - The M1 Junctions 7 to 10
Junction 7 is a limited access junction, with no access to the M10 from the northbound M1, or from the M10 to the southbound M1. There is only a short distance (approximately 1km) between Junctions 7 and 8.
Currently, J7-10 of the M1 has three lanes on each carriageway, except for J9-10 northbound, which has four lanes.
The HOV lane will be implemented as part of a widening scheme (to four lanes in each direction), with the additional lane on each carriageway between Junctions 7 and 10 to be used as an HOV lane. This should increase public acceptance of the scheme, as it has been observed (e.g. in Holland) that reallocating an existing lane as an HOV lane is unpopular.
The exact design of the HOV scheme is still to be decided. However, it is expected that:
- the HOV lane will be the offside lane of each carriageway (i.e. nearest the central reservation);
- the HOV lane will operate during peak hours only;
- the HOV lane will be open to buses, motorcycles and vehicles (cars or LGVs) with more than one occupant (i.e. a 2+ lane). HGVs will not be permitted to use the HOV lane.
It is still to be decided whether any speed restriction will be imposed on the widened section of the M1 (such as the 60mph limit between Junctions 3 and 2 of the M4 in the vicinity of the bus lane). It is likely that a Variable Speed Limit system (similar to the Controlled Motorways scheme on the M25) will be implemented as part of the widening scheme. If such a system is implemented, it would provide the means to impose a speed restriction (e.g. 60mph) over the whole carriageway while the HOV lane is operational during peak periods, but to have no speed restriction at other times of day (unless an incident occurs or there are high flow levels).
If the HOV scheme is successful, it is likely to be extended to cover Junctions 10-13 of the M1. The J10-13 section is due to be widened once the J7-10 widening is complete (this is estimated to be during 2008). Any lessons learnt from the J7-10 scheme (e.g. in the design of the scheme) will be incorporated in the J10-13 scheme.
