M54 motorway

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M54 motorway
Length	23 miles 37 km
Direction	East - West
Start	Essington
Primary destinations	Wolverhampton Telford
End	Wellington
Construction dates	1975 - 1983
Motorways joined	M6 motorway

A view of the eastbound carriageway towards central Teford.

The M54 is a motorway in Staffordshire and Shropshire, England. It can also be referred to as the Telford Motorway. The M54 is 23 miles (37km) long and connects the M6 motorway and the A5. It is part of the strategic route to North Wales.

1 Route
2 History
3 Future Plans
4 Junctions
5 See also
6 References
7 External links

[edit] Route

The road runs west from Junction 10A of the M6 motorway near Essington. It passes south of Featherstone near Junction 1 and then north of Bushbury before reaching Junction 2. It continues past Albrighton and reaches Junction 3. It then passes to the north of Shifnal. From Junction 4 to Junction 6, the road passes across the Wolverhampton to Shrewsbury railway line through the centre of Telford. Between Junctions 6 and 7, the road runs around the south of Telford before ending on the A5.

[edit] History

The M54 opened in sections^[1]:

M6 Junction 10a to Junction 5 opened in 1983
Junctions 5-7 opened in 1975

The first section of the motorway was originally planned in the 1960s as the A5 Wellington bypass^[2] and redesignated as the M54 in 1969. Construction began in 1973 and it was originally built with a concrete road surface, which was replaced around 2000 with standard blacktop tarmac. However, the remainder of the motorway which was opened in 1983 remains as the noisier concrete surface construction. Shortly after the complete route was opened, Junction 5 was changed to its current layout^[3].

[edit] Future Plans

There are proposals to add a link road to the M6 Toll^[4] which which meets the M6 at Junction 11a, whereas the M54 meets the M6 at Junction 10a. Traffic approaching the M6 can only travel southbound towards Birmingham. Currently traffic for the M6 Toll has to travel on local A roads to make the journey. Traffic heading south east along the M54 is advised to use the M6 (Toll) at peak times and Sunday evenings and is directed along the A449. Drivers can also choose to take a shorter route from Junction 1 onto the A460 northbound, crossing the M6 at J11, then turning left onto the M6 (Toll).

[edit] Junctions

M54 Motorway
Eastbound exits	Junction	Westbound exits
Birmingham, Coventry, Walsall M6	M6 J10A	Start of Motorway
Cannock A460	J1	Cannock A460
Wolverhampton, Stafford A449	J2	Wolverhampton A449
Wolverhampton (West) A41	J3	Weston, Whitchurch A41
Telford (East) A464 Kidderminster (A442) Telford Services	J4	Telford (East) A464 Ironbridge (A442) Telford Services
Telford (Centre) A5	J5	Telford (Centre) B5072
Telford (West) A518 Whitchurch (A449) Ironbridge A5223	J6	Telford (West) A518
Start of motorway	J7	Wellington B5061
Wellington B5061	J7	Road continues as A5 to Shrewsbury

[edit] See also

List of motorways in the United Kingdom

[edit] References

[edit] External links

	Motorways in the United Kingdom
Great Britain: M1 • M2 • M3 • M4 • M5 • M6 • M6 Toll • M8 • M9 • M10 • M11 • M18 • M20 • M23 • M25 • M26 • M27 • M32 • M40 • M42 • M45 • M48 • M49 • M50 • M53 • M54 • M55 • M56 • M57 • M58 • M60 • M61 • M62 • M65 • M66 • M67 • M69 • M73 • M74 • M77 • M80 • M90 • M180 • M181 • M271 • M275 • M602 • M606 • M621 • M876 • M898
A1(M) • A3(M) • A38(M) • A48(M) • A57(M) • A58(M) • A64(M) • A66(M) • A74(M) • A167(M) • A194(M) • A308(M) • A329(M) • A404(M) • A601(M) • A627(M) • A823(M)

	Northern Ireland: M1 • M2 • M3 • M5 • M12 • M22 • A8(M)	edit

Past: M16 • M41 • M63 • A18(M) • A40(M) • A41(M) • A102(M) • A6144(M) Unbuilt: M12 • M13 • M15 • M31 • M64 Future: M4 Toll