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M5

M5 Traffic News

M5 Motorway · Birmingham (M6 J8) → Exeter

M5 traffic at 04:57 on Monday 12 October: road closed northbound until 06:00 · 1 live incident · 3 closures tonight.

🔵 Motorway Road Closed 🚨 1 incident 🚧 9 roadworks · 20 soon ⏱ Updated 04:57
161 miles long
31 junctions
Regions: West Midlands, South West
Home › Traffic › Roads › M5

🚨 Live M5 Incidents & Roadworks

Auto-refresh 3 min 1
🛑 ROAD CLOSED
M5 northbound Jct 24 to 23 - carriageway closed
Northbound · Closed until 06:00 9 hours
Diversion: Diversion via A38
M5 southbound Jct 21 carriageway closure between the exit and entry slip (163/8 to 164/1)
Southbound · Closed until 06:00 8 hours
Diversion: Diversion via - M5 Jct 21 exit and rejoin M5 via Jct 21 entry
All M5 closures & diversions →
🔴 Road Closed on the M5 📍 1 incident · 🚧 9 roadworks
Share M5 status: 💬 📘 X
🐌 Minor 4min
M5 Southbound J23–J24
near Bridgwater
↓ Southbound
Reported 02:54 · 2h ago
📢
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📹 Latest M5 videos

2 clips · 31K followers on TikTok
M5 ACCIDENT INVESTIGATION | NB | CLOSED J4 (Bromsgrove / Lydiate Ash / A38 / A491) – J3 (Quinton / Halesowen / A456) WORCESTERSHIRE / WEST MIDLANDS | NEAR: Redditch | Dudley | Kidderminster | Stourbridge First reported before 22:00 BST | 06-OCT-26 Ongoing as of 06:00 BST | Expected clear
M5 COLLISION | NORTHBOUND | CLOSED | SOUTHBOUND ALSO AFFECTED | BETWEEN J4 (BROMSGROVE / A38 / LYDIATE ASH) & J3 (HALESOWEN / A456 / QUINTON) WORCESTERSHIRE / WEST MIDLANDS | NEAR: Bromsgrove / Lydiate Ash / Frankley / Rubery / Halesowen / Quinton REPORTED BEFORE: 22:00 BST | ONGOING AS O
Follow @uk_traffic_updates for live M5 incident videos →

🗺️ M5 Traffic Map — Where It's Happening

Tap a pin for full incident detail. Live positions from National Highways.

📊 How busy is the M5?

The M5 carries up to 150,612 vehicles a day at its busiest stretch (J5–J6), including 15,176 HGVs — the 8th busiest motorway in Britain. Official Department for Transport counts, 2025.

150,612
🚗 vehicles a day · J5–J6
15,176
🚛 lorries a day
2025
📅 DfT count year
10.1% HGVs
share of traffic on the busiest stretch
Busiest stretch of each motorway — vehicles a day
M25 212,636
M6 187,521
M56 179,634
M1 162,446
M8 158,065
M4 156,491
M5 150,612
View as table
RoadBusiest stretchVehicles/dayHGVs/dayHGV share
M25 near J14 212,636 14,853 7%
M6 J20–J21 187,521 23,492 12.5%
M56 J3–J4 179,634 7,547 4.2%
M1 near J9 162,446 19,151 11.8%
M8 J16–J17 158,065 7,214 4.6%
M4 near J4 156,491 6,249 4%
M5 ◀ J5–J6 150,612 15,176 10.1%
Source: Department for Transport road traffic statistics, average annual daily flows 2025. Official counts, updated yearly.

📈 M5 Journey Pulse — when incidents actually happen

Measured from 244 incidents recorded on the M5 since February 2026: the riskiest window is 12:00–15:00, when 22% of incidents start. Right now (04:00) you're outside the peak window.

View as table
HourIncidentsShare
00:00–01:00 2 0.8%
01:00–02:00 4 1.6%
02:00–03:00 2 0.8%
03:00–04:00 6 2.5%
04:00–05:00 5 2%
05:00–06:00 10 4.1%
06:00–07:00 11 4.5%
07:00–08:00 7 2.9%
08:00–09:00 10 4.1%
09:00–10:00 12 4.9%
10:00–11:00 6 2.5%
11:00–12:00 10 4.1%
12:00–13:00 ◀ peak 17 7%
13:00–14:00 ◀ peak 18 7.4%
14:00–15:00 ◀ peak 19 7.8%
15:00–16:00 15 6.1%
16:00–17:00 9 3.7%
17:00–18:00 18 7.4%
18:00–19:00 11 4.5%
19:00–20:00 20 8.2%
20:00–21:00 14 5.7%
21:00–22:00 9 3.7%
22:00–23:00 4 1.6%
23:00–00:00 5 2%
Measured from 244 incidents recorded by this site since February 2026 (planned roadworks excluded). Recomputed nightly from our incident archive.

🧭 Along the M5

🔀J15
Almondsbury Interchange
Meets the M4 at the four-level interchange
🛍️J17
Cribbs Causeway
The Mall regional shopping centre, just off J17
🌉J18–J19
Avonmouth Bridge
1.4km crossing of the River Avon
🎨J23–J24
Willow Man
12m willow sculpture beside the southbound carriageway

⚠️ Most Dangerous M5 Junctions

Based on DfT STATS19 police collision records. The M5 has 909 recorded collisions at 37 collision hotspots, involving 1,370 casualties (30 fatal). Take extra care here.

#1
nr Cullompton
62 collisions · 88 casualties · 3 fatal · 11 serious
Severe Blackspot
#2
J29
50 collisions · 75 casualties · 3 fatal · 9 serious
Severe Blackspot
#3
J23
26 collisions · 33 casualties · 3 fatal · 3 serious
Severe Blackspot
#4
J14
27 collisions · 50 casualties · 2 fatal · 6 serious
Severe Blackspot
#5
J24
29 collisions · 43 casualties · 2 fatal · 4 serious
Severe Blackspot
#6
nr Weston Super Mare
24 collisions · 41 casualties · 2 fatal · 4 serious
Severe Blackspot
🔍 See the full M5 collision blackspot map →

🛒 Journey Essentials

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❓ M5 Traffic — Frequently Asked Questions

Q: Is the M5 closed today?

Yes — the M5 is closed right now: M5 northbound Jct 24 to 23 - carriageway closed, until 06:00.

Q: Is there traffic on the M5 today?

The M5 is closed right now: M5 northbound Jct 24 to 23 - carriageway closed, until 06:00. Check the live feed above for every closure on the route.

Q: What is the worst time to use the M5?

The M5 is typically busiest during morning rush hour (07:00–09:00) and evening rush hour (16:30–19:00) on weekdays.

Q: Are there roadworks on the M5 right now?

There are currently 9 active roadwork schemes on the M5. Check the live feed above for exact locations and durations.

Q: What roads connect to the M5?

The M5 connects to: M6, M42, M50, A38, M4, A303.

Q: How many vehicles use the M5 every day?

Official Department for Transport counts (2025) record 150,612 vehicles a day on the M5's busiest stretch (J5–J6), 15,176 of them HGVs. The full breakdown and comparison chart are in the traffic statistics section above.

Q: How busy is the M5 compared with other motorways?

The M5 has the 8th busiest motorway stretch in Britain at 150,612 vehicles a day (DfT 2025), behind the M25's 212,636 a day at the top.

Q: What time of day is the M5 worst for incidents?

Measured from 244 incidents recorded on the M5 since February 2026, the riskiest window is 12:00–15:00, when 22% of incidents start. The quietest is 00:00–03:00. Incidents on the M5 typically clear in about 50 minutes.

📊 M5 Status Summary

1
Active incidents
0
Severe/serious
9
Roadworks
04:57
Last updated
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ℹ️ M5 Road Details

Length
161 miles
Junctions
31
From
Birmingham (M6 J8)
To
Exeter
Type
Motorway
AM Rush
07:00–09:00
PM Rush
16:30–19:00

📍 Key M5 Locations

Birmingham Worcester Cheltenham Gloucester Bristol Taunton Exeter

Junction

DfT STATS19 police collision records

0
Collisions
0
Fatal
0
Serious
0
Slight
🔍 Full blackspot map →
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