M61 Traffic

M61 10:34am

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Traffic incidents

The following traffic incidents and congestion for M61 have been reported by Highways England, Traffic Scotland, Traffic Wales or Transport for London (TfL) in the last two hours:

CONGESTION
Location: The M61 slip road to the M60 southbound .
Reason: Congestion.
Status: Currently Active.
Return to normal: Normal traffic conditions are expected between 10:45 and 11:00 on 24 Apr 2026.
Delay: There are currently delays of 10 minutes against expected traffic.
Nearest town: 3m from Eccles.
CONGESTION
Location: The M61 northbound exit slip at junction J3 .
Reason: Congestion.
Status: Currently Active.
Return to normal: Normal traffic conditions are expected between 09:30 and 09:45 on 24 Apr 2026.
Nearest town: 3.43m from Bolton. CLEARED @ 09:37
CONGESTION
Location: The M61 northbound exit slip at junction J3 .
Reason: Congestion.
Status: Currently Active.
Return to normal: Normal traffic conditions are expected between 08:45 and 09:00 on 24 Apr 2026.
Delay: There are currently delays of 10 minutes against expected traffic.
Nearest town: 3.43m from Bolton. CLEARED @ 08:43
CONGESTION
Location: The M61 slip road to the M60 southbound .
Reason: Congestion.
Status: Currently Active.
Return to normal: Normal traffic conditions are expected between 10:00 and 10:15 on 24 Apr 2026.
Delay: There are currently delays of 10 minutes against expected traffic.
Nearest town: 3m from Eccles. CLEARED @ 09:37


There are no current incidents in this location.

M61 Roadworks

The following roadworks have been reported by various highways agencies and official transport sources.Click on a roadworks item to view more details on the traffic map.

ROAD WORKS
Location: The M61 southbound between junctions A666and J2 from A666 to M60.
Lane closures: Lane one will be closed.
Reason: Roadworks are planned.
Status: Pending.
Schedule: Expect disruption everyday between 20:00 and 05:00 from 20 May 2026 to 22 May 2026.
Schedule: From 20:00 on 28 May 2026 to 05:00 on 29 May 2026.
Schedule: Expect disruption everyday between 20:00 and 05:00 from 1 Jun 2026 to 6 Jun 2026.
Lanes Closed: There will be one of three lanes closed.
Nearest town: 3.47m from Bolton.
ROAD WORKS
Location: The M61 southbound at junction J2 from A666 to A580.
Lane closures: Lanes 1 and 2 will be closed.
Reason: Roadworks are planned.
Status: Pending.
Schedule: Expect disruption everyday between 21:00 and 05:00 from 20 May 2026 to 22 May 2026.
Schedule: From 21:00 on 28 May 2026 to 05:00 on 29 May 2026.
Schedule: Expect disruption everyday between 21:00 and 05:00 from 1 Jun 2026 to 6 Jun 2026.
Lanes Closed: All lanes will be closed.
Nearest town: 4.01m from Bolton.
ROAD WORKS
Location: The M61 southbound at junction J2 from M61 to A580.
Lane closures: Lanes 1 and 2 will be closed.
Reason: Roadworks are planned.
Status: Pending.
Schedule: Expect disruption everyday between 21:00 and 05:00 from 1 Jun 2026 to 6 Jun 2026.
Lanes Closed: All lanes will be closed.
Nearest town: 4.01m from Bolton.
ROAD WORKS
Location: The M61 southbound at junction.
Lane closures: Lane one will be closed.
Reason: Roadworks are planned.
Status: Pending.
Schedule: Expect disruption everyday between 20:00 and 05:00 from 20 May 2026 to 22 May 2026.
Schedule: From 20:00 on 28 May 2026 to 05:00 on 29 May 2026.
Schedule: Expect disruption everyday between 20:00 and 05:00 from 1 Jun 2026 to 6 Jun 2026.
Lanes Closed: There will be one of two lanes closed.
Nearest town: 3.24m from Bolton.
ROAD WORKS
Location: The M61 southbound between junctions J4and J2 .
Lane closures: Lanes 1 and 2 will be closed.
Reason: Roadworks are planned.
Status: Pending.
Schedule: Expect disruption everyday between 20:00 and 05:00 from 1 Jun 2026 to 6 Jun 2026.
Lanes Closed: There will be two of three lanes closed.
Nearest town: 3.01m from Bolton.

M61

The M61 motorway is a 35.9 mile (58.1 km) long motorway running from the M60 in Greater Manchester, North West England to the M65 near Preston, in Lancashire. The motorway was constructed between 1970 and 1972 and was the first of the three motorways to be built around Manchester.

Over its length, the M61 traverses a variety of terrain, ranging from urban areas such as Bolton and Bury, to wide open spaces seen on the Darwen moors.

In terms of road safety, the M61 motorway scores above the national average for England and Wales, with an average collision rate of 1.37 per 100,000 vehicle km. The accident rate for the motorway is slightly above average for motorways in the UK, with an accident rate of 34 per 100,000 vehicle km. However, compared to the national average, the M61 has a much lower fatality rate, with a fatality rate of only 0.91 per 100,000 vehicle km, significantly below the national average of 3.2 fatalities per 100,000 vehicle km.

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LEGAL NOTICE

Please remember that it is against the law to use your mobile phone, tablet or any electronic device without a hands-free kit whilst driving.If you're caught by the police using any device that can send or receive data whilst driving or riding a motorcyle you'll get an automatic fixed penalty notice, 6 points on your licence and a fine of £200.A court could also disqualify you from driving.

Elsewhere on the web:

National Highways TrafficNational Highways England

Official source of traffic updates.

Transport for LondonTransport for London (TFL)

Transport for London's (TfL) portal for transportation in London.

Traffic WalesTraffic Wales

The Welsh government's traffic information service for Wales.

Traffic ScotlandTraffic Scotland

Live traffic conditions and news for Scotland's road network.

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Location: slip road to the M60 southbound .

Due to: Congestion.



Normal traffic conditions are expected between 10:45 and 11:00 on 24 April 2026.

Delay : There are currently delays of 10 minutes against expected traffic.
Nearest town: 3m from Eccles.

53.52--2.36

Location: northbound exit slip at junction J3 .

Due to: Congestion.



Normal traffic conditions are expected between 09:30 and 09:45 on 24 April 2026.
Nearest town: 3.43m from Bolton.

53.54--2.39

Location: northbound exit slip at junction J3 .

Due to: Congestion.



Normal traffic conditions are expected between 08:45 and 09:00 on 24 April 2026.

Delay : There are currently delays of 10 minutes against expected traffic.
Nearest town: 3.43m from Bolton.

53.54--2.39

Location: slip road to the M60 southbound .

Due to: Congestion.



Normal traffic conditions are expected between 10:00 and 10:15 on 24 April 2026.

Delay : There are currently delays of 10 minutes against expected traffic.
Nearest town: 3m from Eccles.

53.52--2.36

Location: southbound between junctions A666and J2 from A666 to M60.

Lane Closures : Lane one will be closed.

Due to: Roadworks are planned.

Status : Pending.

Schedule : Expect disruption everyday between 20:00 and 05:00 from 20 May 2026 to 22 May 2026.

Schedule : From 20:00 on 28 May 2026 to 05:00 on 29 May 2026.

Schedule : Expect disruption everyday between 20:00 and 05:00 from 1 June 2026 to 6 June 2026.

Lanes Closed : There will be one of three lanes closed.
Nearest town: 3.47m from Bolton.

53.54--2.39

Location: southbound at junction J2 from A666 to A580.

Lane Closures : Lanes 1 and 2 will be closed.

Due to: Roadworks are planned.

Status : Pending.

Schedule : Expect disruption everyday between 21:00 and 05:00 from 20 May 2026 to 22 May 2026.

Schedule : From 21:00 on 28 May 2026 to 05:00 on 29 May 2026.

Schedule : Expect disruption everyday between 21:00 and 05:00 from 1 June 2026 to 6 June 2026.

Lanes Closed : All lanes will be closed.
Nearest town: 4.01m from Bolton.

53.53--2.39

Location: southbound at junction J2 from M61 to A580.

Lane Closures : Lanes 1 and 2 will be closed.

Due to: Roadworks are planned.

Status : Pending.

Schedule : Expect disruption everyday between 21:00 and 05:00 from 1 June 2026 to 6 June 2026.

Lanes Closed : All lanes will be closed.
Nearest town: 4.01m from Bolton.

53.53--2.38

Location: southbound at junction.

Lane Closures : Lane one will be closed.

Due to: Roadworks are planned.

Status : Pending.

Schedule : Expect disruption everyday between 20:00 and 05:00 from 20 May 2026 to 22 May 2026.

Schedule : From 20:00 on 28 May 2026 to 05:00 on 29 May 2026.

Schedule : Expect disruption everyday between 20:00 and 05:00 from 1 June 2026 to 6 June 2026.

Lanes Closed : There will be one of two lanes closed.
Nearest town: 3.24m from Bolton.

53.55--2.39

Location: southbound between junctions J4and J2 .

Lane Closures : Lanes 1 and 2 will be closed.

Due to: Roadworks are planned.

Status : Pending.

Schedule : Expect disruption everyday between 20:00 and 05:00 from 1 June 2026 to 6 June 2026.

Lanes Closed : There will be two of three lanes closed.
Nearest town: 3.01m from Bolton.

53.54--2.42