M6 lane plan would speed east-west link
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• The Government is considering widening the first three junctions of the M6 near Coventry as part of plans to improve the UK's east/west motorway links.
Hauliers delivering in and out in East Anglia from the rest of the country will be the principal beneficiaries of the scheme that, if given the final go-ahead, will upgrade the
most southerly section of the M6 where it joins the 414.
CM understands that earlier this summer the Highways Agency appointed consultants to examine the viability of adding an extra lane in each direction and the introduction of an active traffic management (ATM) system.
ATM schemes. which are already
due to be piloted on the M42 in two years time. involve the use of variable speed limits, programmable electronic signals that can marshal traffic and the optional use of the hard shoulder during periods of extreme congestion.
If the road widening project wins government approval. it is very likely that it would face oppo
sition from environmental groups who are generally opposed to road building.
For this reason alone, the construction of the extra lanes would be unlikely to begin for at least four years.