A huge section of the M40 has been closed this morning – as drivers face a near-nine mile long diversion. National Highways confirmed the closure on the M40 between Junction 8A and Junction 6 is down to a “serious collision”.
The incident happened at 7.45pm last night involving a car and a tanker, and the road remains closed southbound today.
They said: Emergency services responded to the collision where thankfully nobody was injured but a large spillage of Bitumen was confirmed and the road closed to safely respond to the scene. Emergency services then worked with our specialist teams to safely contain a spillage of bitumen from the damaged tanker.
“A replacement tanker and specialist recovery team arrived on scene at approximately 3:40 am to transfer the remaining load of bitumen from the damaged tanker and begin recovery the tanker from the scene.
“Our engineers have assessed the road surface and confirmed significant damage. Because the bitumen has hardened on the carriageway, simple clean-up isn’t enough, the affected lanes will need to be planed and resurfaced. This work can only be done safely under a full closure.
“The road will stay closed while recovery takes place. Once the tanker is removed, we’ll reopen the road with one lane available for traffic, while lanes 1 and 2 remain closed throughout the day. Please plan journeys in advance as significant delays are likely. Emergency resurfacing will then begin overnight under a full closure.”
The diversion, which is 8.7miles long, states:
Road users are advised to follow the Hollow Triangle diversion symbol on road signs
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Exit the M40 at J8A and head onto the A418/A40.
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Join the A40/London road southbound and follow until the A329.
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At the A40/A329 turn left then immediate right to continue on the A40/London road.
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Continue on the A40 southbound to the junction with the B4009.
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At the A40/B4009 turn right onto the B4009 westbound.
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At the B4009/M40 J6 re-join the M40 southbound at J6.
If this closure impacts on your planned route, please allow extra journey time. Plan ahead, you may wish to re-route or even delay your journey.
Further information is available from National Highways by visiting our www.trafficengland.com website and travel apps, or via our regional ‘X’ feed. Our 24/7 contact centre team is also available to provide up to the minute information on 0300 123 5000.
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