Drivers are trapped in havoc this afternoon after the simultaneous closure of two of the UK’s busiest motorways — the M25 at the Dartford Crossing and the M6 in Lancashire. Traffic queues on the M25 have stretched as far as eight miles, with the Queen Elizabeth II Bridge shut due to a police incident. National Highways traffic officers are managing the tailbacks on the southbound route, while traffic monitoring site INRIX has reported two miles of congestion before J30 on the A13 at Lakeside. It is not currently known for how long the closure will continue.
Further north, the M6 southbound between J35 and J34 is fully closed after a lorry jack-knifed at 10.15am. The collision caused a fuel spillage, and specialist equipment will need to be deployed to recover the HGV. National Highways said it is working closely with police and emergency services to support the response and manage the safety of all road users. The road is expected to stay closed for some time before it can safely reopen. Drivers have been warned to avoid the area.
“Two major motorways closed: eight-mile queues on M25 after police incident at Dartford Crossing, M6 shut by jack-knifed lorry.”