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It has been suggested that A42 road (England) be merged into this article. (Discuss) Proposed since July 2024.

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M42
The M42 from a bridge just east of the M42/A45, looking south towards junction 6
Route information
Part of E05
Maintained by National Highways
Length	40.0 mi (64.4 km)
Existed	1976–present
History	Opened: 1976 Completed: 1989
Major junctions
Southwest end	Catshill
Major intersections	M5 motorway J3a → M40 motorway J7 → M6 motorway M6 motorway M6 motorway M6 Toll
Northeast end	A42 Appleby Magna
Location
Country	United Kingdom
Counties	Worcestershire, Warwickshire, West Midlands, Leicestershire
Primary destinations	Bromsgrove Solihull Birmingham Airport Tamworth
Road network
Roads in the United Kingdom Motorways A and B road zones
← M40 → M45

The M42 motorway runs north east from Bromsgrove in Worcestershire to just south west of Ashby-de-la-Zouch in Leicestershire, passing Redditch, Solihull, the National Exhibition Centre (NEC) and Tamworth on the way, serving the east of the Birmingham metropolitan area. The section between the M40 and junction 4 of the M6 forms – though unsigned as such – a part of Euroroute E05. Northwards beyond junction 11, the route is continued as the A42; the junctions on this section, 12–14, are numbered like a continuation of the motorway, but the road has non-motorway status from here.

History

Planning and construction

Plans for a new motorway by-passing the south and east of Birmingham, reaching Tamworth and connecting the M5 and M6 motorways, were announced in 1972.

The first section opened in November 1976 linking Birmingham Airport with the M6 motorway.

The curve around the south-eastern side of Solihull opened in September 1985 followed by the section from the M6 with the A5 at Tamworth in December 1985. The southern section of the motorway to Alvechurch just north of Redditch to form a junction with the A441 and from A5 at Tamworth with the A444 at Measham opened in 1986.

In 1987, the section to the A38 at Bromsgrove, 15 miles (24 km) south of Birmingham was completed. and then in December 1989, the motorway was completed with the opening of the link from the M5.

A planned section north of the M6 running to the M1 near Nottingham was never constructed as planned being replaced by the A42 link, a trunk road which was completed in August 1989 to link with the M1 motorway near Nottingham.

When first built, there was no direct connection between the M5 South and M42. Westbound M42 traffic similarly had no direct connection to the M5 North. Instead traffic had to use the A38 between M5 junction 4 and M42 junction 1.

Operational history

Junction 3a was remodelled to give priority to traffic operating between the now westbound section of the M42 and the extended M40 motorway, which opened in stages between December 1989 and January 1991.

The section of the M42 between junctions 7A and 9 was re-built as part of the M6 Toll works and now forms the link between the M6 and the southern end of the toll road. The M6 Toll opened in 2003.

Active Traffic Management with hard shoulder running and variable speed limits were introduced in 2006.

Since the 1980s, there have been constant plans to build a new service station on the motorway south of Birmingham Airport and the NEC, but this has yet to be built.

Features

Birmingham Outer Ring Road

Along with sections of the M5 and M6, the southern sections of the M42 form the Birmingham Outer Ring Road motorway around Birmingham. Much like the M25 around London, and the M60 around Manchester, there are areas where this orbital system does not work well. One such point is junction 3A, the link between the M42 and the M40, where traffic is often heavy in the rush hour. The intersection between the M42 and M6 is often very busy too, especially when travelling along the M6.

Managed motorways and Active Traffic Management

Active Traffic Management (ATM) was launched as a pilot scheme on the M42 operating between junction 3a and 7 with mandatory variable speed limits, hard shoulder running, better driver information signs and a new incident management system. This system allows operators to open and close any lane to traffic in order to help manage congestion or an incident. Between 2006 and 2007, journey times have decreased by 26% northbound and 9% southbound and journey time variability has decreased by 27%. Due to the success of the trial this system was later extended northbound to junction 9 of the M42 (and onto the adjacent M6 to junction 5) and southbound along the M40 to junction 15 as part of the first phase of a nationwide roll out of the rebranded 'Managed motorways; concept.

Incidents and accidents

• A collision involving 160 vehicles occurred on 10 March 1997 in fog in Bromsgrove, Worcestershire which resulted in three deaths and 60 injuries.
• Drivers have rated the M42 as the worst motorway in England, in a 2024 survey from Transport Focus, scoring 56 per cent for overall satisfaction from road users, citing speed limits ("for no reason"), delays, roadworks and potholes.

Future work

As of 2022 work is under construction on a new junction (5A) located between Solihull junction 5 and Birmingham Airport/NEC junction 6 and 2.4KM of new dual carriageway alongside the motorway to:

• ensure the safe and reliable operation of the road network
• increase the capacity at junction 6, reducing congestion
• improve access to key businesses and locations such as Birmingham Airport and support economic growth in the area
• improve access for cyclists, walkers and other vulnerable users of the network

Junctions

This article contains a bulleted list or table of intersections which should be presented in a properly formatted junction table. Please consult this guideline for information on how to create one. Please improve this article if you can. (December 2021)

Data from driver location signs are used to provide distance and carriageway identifier information. If a junction extends over several hundred metres and both start and end points are known, both are shown.

Download coordinates as:

• KML
• GPX (all coordinates)
• GPX (primary coordinates)
• GPX (secondary coordinates)

M42 motorway junctions
mile	km	South-westbound exits (A carriageway)	Junction	North-eastbound exits (B carriageway)	Coordinates
0.0 0.9	0.0 1.4	The North West, Birmingham (W, N & C), Stourbridge, (M6) M5(N) The South West, Worcester M5(S)	M5 J4A	Start of motorway	52°20′53″N 2°04′29″W / 52.3480°N 2.0746°W / 52.3480; -2.0746 (M42, Start of motorway)
1.4 1.6	2.3 2.6	Bromsgrove A38	J1	No access (on-slip only)	52°21′20″N 2°02′45″W / 52.3556°N 2.0458°W / 52.3556; -2.0458 (M42, J1)
5.6 6.0	9.0 9.6	Birmingham (S) A441 Hopwood Park services	J2 Services	Birmingham (S) A441 Hopwood Park services	52°21′42″N 1°56′56″W / 52.3618°N 1.9489°W / 52.3618; -1.9489 (M42, J2)
8.4	13.5	Entering Worcestershire	J3	Birmingham (S), Redditch, Evesham A435	52°21′18″N 1°53′09″W / 52.3549°N 1.8859°W / 52.3549; -1.8859 (M42, J3)
8.8	14.1	Birmingham (S), Redditch, Evesham A435		Entering Warwickshire
11.7 12.2	18.8 19.7	End of variable speed limit	J3A (TOTSO NB)	Start of variable speed limit	52°20′55″N 1°48′41″W / 52.3486°N 1.8114°W / 52.3486; -1.8114 (M42, J3A)
		London, Warwick, Stratford M40		London, Warwick, Stratford M40
		Entering Warwickshire		Entering West Midlands	52°21′46″N 1°48′15″W / 52.3629°N 1.8043°W / 52.3629; -1.8043
14.2 14.5	22.8 23.3	Shirley A34	J4	Shirley A34	52°22′47″N 1°47′11″W / 52.3797°N 1.7865°W / 52.3797; -1.7865 (M42, J4)
16.5 16.9	26.6 27.2	Solihull A41	J5	Solihull A41	52°24′18″N 1°45′00″W / 52.4051°N 1.7500°W / 52.4051; -1.7500 (M42, J5)
19.9 20.3	32.1 32.7	Birmingham (E), Birmingham International , Birmingham , National Exhibition Centre, Coventry A45	J6	Birmingham (E), Birmingham International , Birmingham , National Exhibition Centre A45(W) Coventry (S & W), N.E.C. A45(E)	52°26′42″N 1°42′36″W / 52.4451°N 1.7099°W / 52.4451; -1.7099 (M42, J6)
22.1 22.6	35.6 36.4	No access (on-slip only)	J7	The North West, Birmingham (C & N) M6(N)	52°28′26″N 1°42′41″W / 52.4738°N 1.7115°W / 52.4738; -1.7115 (M42, J7)
		Entering West Midlands		Entering Warwickshire	52°28′28″N 1°42′41″W / 52.4744°N 1.7114°W / 52.4744; -1.7114
22.7 22.9	36.6 36.8	No access	J7A (TOTSO SB)	London (M1), Coventry M6	52°28′53″N 1°42′37″W / 52.4815°N 1.7103°W / 52.4815; -1.7103 (M42, J7A)
		London (N & E) (M1), Coventry (N & E) M6		No access (on-slip only)	52°29′28″N 1°42′54″W / 52.4912°N 1.7151°W / 52.4912; -1.7151 (M42, J7B)
24.5	39.4	Birmingham (Central, E, N & W) M6(N)	J8	No access (on-slip only)	52°30′33″N 1°43′32″W / 52.5091°N 1.7255°W / 52.5091; -1.7255 (M42, J8)
		No access (on slip only)	J9	The North West, Cannock, Lichfield M6 Toll	52°31′45″N 1°43′47″W / 52.5293°N 1.7296°W / 52.5293; -1.7296 (M42, J8A)
26.7	42.9	Start of variable speed limit		Kingsbury A4097, Lichfield A446	52°32′20″N 1°43′35″W / 52.5388°N 1.7263°W / 52.5388; -1.7263 (M42, J9)
		The North West M6 Toll, Coleshill A446, A4097		End of variable speed limit
32.4	52.2	Nuneaton, Tamworth A5, Lichfield (A38) Tamworth services	J10 Services	Nuneaton, Tamworth A5 Tamworth services	52°36′12″N 1°38′30″W / 52.6033°N 1.6416°W / 52.6033; -1.6416 (M42, J10)
		Entering Warwickshire		Entering Leicestershire	52°40′19″N 1°33′40″W / 52.6720°N 1.5612°W / 52.6720; -1.5612
39.7	63.9	Start of motorway	J11 Services	Burton upon Trent, Measham A444	52°41′20″N 1°32′55″W / 52.6890°N 1.5485°W / 52.6890; -1.5485 (M42, J11)
40.0	64.4	Nuneaton A444 Non-motorway traffic		End of motorway Road continues as A42 towards East Midlands Airport	52°41′34″N 1°32′50″W / 52.6929°N 1.5471°W / 52.6929; -1.5471 (M42, J11)
Notes Distances in kilometres and carriageway identifiers are obtained from driver location signs/location marker posts. Where a junction spans several hundred metres and the data is available, both the start and finish values for the junction are shown.
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi       Incomplete access

Coordinate list

1. 52°20′56″N 1°48′35″W / 52.3488°N 1.8097°W / 52.3488; -1.8097 (Junction 3a) Termination point M40
2. 52°28′39″N 1°42′39″W / 52.4774°N 1.7109°W / 52.4774; -1.7109 (Junction 7) Southern M6 / M42 intersection
3. 52°29′01″N 1°42′38″W / 52.4837°N 1.7106°W / 52.4837; -1.7106 (Junction 7a) Northern M6 / M42 intersection
4. 52°41′37″N 1°32′49″W / 52.6935°N 1.5470°W / 52.6935; -1.5470 (Junction 11) J11, A42

See also

• List of motorways in the United Kingdom
• Category:M42 motorway service stations

References

1. "'Extra lane' plan to be extended". BBC News. 25 October 2007. Retrieved 31 December 2007.
2. "M42 death crash driver wins back his licence". Archive.worcesternews.co.uk. 10 November 2001. Archived from the original on 1 July 2012. Retrieved 6 November 2010.
3. "M42 motorway rated England's worst in driver survey". bbc.com. Retrieved 15 October 2024.
4. "Works to create new slip roads on M42 to begin". Solihull Observer. Retrieved 5 July 2024.
5. "M42 junction 6". nationalhighways.co.uk. National Highways. 19 May 2020. Retrieved 6 July 2024. Text was copied from this source, which is available under an Open Government Licence v3.0. © Crown copyright.
6. Driver Location Signs, M42 J1-7 (map) – Highway Authority, 2009

External links

• The Motorway Archive – M42

Download coordinates as:

• KML
• GPX (all coordinates)
• GPX (primary coordinates)
• GPX (secondary coordinates)

v t e Motorways in the United Kingdom
Great Britain	M1 M11 M18 M180 M181 A1(M) A167(M) A194(M) A1077(M) M2 M20 M23 M25 M26 M27 M271 M275 M3 M32 A3(M) A38(M) A308(M) A329(M) M4 M40 M42 M45 M48 M49 A48(M) A404(M) M5 M50 M53 M54 M55 M56 M57 M58 A57(M) A58(M) M6 M6 Toll M60 M61 M62 M65 M66 M67 M69 M602 M606 M621 A64(M) A66(M) A627(M) M73 M74 M77 A74(M) M8 M80 M876 M898 A8(M) A823(M) M9 M90
Northern Ireland	M1 M2 M3 M5 M12 M22 A8(M)
Former	M10 M41 M63 M85 A18(M) A40(M) A41(M) A102(M) A601(M) A6144(M)
Unbuilt	M12 M15 M16 M31 M64 M4 relief road
Junctions ( Category)	Almondsbury Broxden Catthorpe Charing Cross, Glasgow Denton Island Handy Cross Longbridge Lydiate Ash Scotch Corner Spaghetti Junction Switch Island Thorney Thorpe Thurcroft
Bridges	Auchenshuggle Avonmouth Bromford Don Friarton Gathurst Kingston Medway to Nowhere Ouse Rakewood Scammonden Prince of Wales Severn Thames Thelwall Tinsley Queensferry Usk Weaver
Related articles	National Highways Traffic officers South Wales Trunk Road Agent Traffic officers Transport Scotland DfI Roads Preston By-pass Smart motorway Motorway service area List
Category Commons

v t e Transport in Worcestershire
Road	Motorways M5 M42 M50 A-roads A38 A44 A46 A422 A435 A441 A442 A448 A449 A456 A491 A4025 A4536 Service stations Frankley services Hopwood Park services Strensham services Other Icknield Street List of settlements on the A38
Rail	Main lines Cross-City Line Cross Country Route North Warwickshire Line Birmingham to Worcester via Bromsgrove Line Birmingham to Worcester via Kidderminster line Cotswold Line Closed lines Oxford–Worcester–Wolverhampton line (Dudley to Wolverhampton section) Stations Alvechurch Barnt Green Blakedown Bromsgrove Droitwich Spa Evesham Great Malvern Hagley Hartlebury Honeybourne Kidderminster Malvern Link Pershore Redditch Worcester Foregate Street Worcester Shrub Hill Wythall Closed stations Astwood Bank Aston-under-Hill Beckford Bengeworth Bredon Eckington Foley Park Halt Hinton Littleton and Badsey Malvern Wells Ripple Upton-on-Severn Wadborough Heritage stations Arley Bewdley Kidderminster Town Northwood Halt Heritage railways Severn Valley Railway Under construction Broadway Gloucestershire Warwickshire Railway
Buses	Routes Worcestershire bus route 144 Companies Diamond West Midlands First Midland Red Other Bus transport in Bromsgrove
Waterways	Rivers River Arrow River Avon River Severn River Stour River Teme Canals Droitwich Canal Leominster Canal Staffordshire and Worcestershire Canal Worcester and Birmingham Canal Other Diglis Basin Hampton Ferry Tardebigge Engine House Tardebigge Locks
Footpaths	Long-distance footpaths Cotswold Way Monarch's Way Severn Way Worcestershire Way Wychavon Way
Cycle paths	Route 5 Route 54

• Motorways in England
• Transport in Leicestershire
• Roads in Warwickshire
• Roads in Worcestershire
• Roads in the West Midlands (county)