List of motorways in the United Kingdom

List of motorways in the United Kingdom is a complete list of motorways in the United Kingdom. Note that whilst one numbering scheme is used for Great Britain, roads in Northern Ireland are allocated their own numbers on an ad hoc basis.^[1]

Contents 1 Great Britain 1.1 M-designated motorways 1.2 Upgraded A-road designations 1.3 Former motorways 1.4 Motorways that have been renamed 1.5 Unbuilt motorways 2 Northern Ireland 2.1 M-designated motorways 2.2 Upgraded A-road designations 2.3 Unbuilt motorways 3 See also 4 Notes

Great Britain

M-designated motorways

Link	Route	Ceremonial Counties (England), Council Areas (Scotland) and Principal Areas (Wales)
M1	Nicknamed the 'gateway to the North'. The eastern north-south motorway linking London (Hendon) to Leeds and continuing north to the A1 near Garforth. The first inter-urban motorway.	Greater London, Hertfordshire, Bedfordshire, Buckinghamshire, Northamptonshire, Leicestershire, Nottinghamshire, Derbyshire, South Yorkshire, West Yorkshire
M2	From Rochester to Faversham. Bypasses the Medway Towns.	Kent
M3	Main motorway from London to the south coast. Linking Sunbury-on-Thames to Southampton.	Surrey, Hampshire
M4	The southern east-west motorway linking London (Chiswick) to Bristol and on to South Wales, terminating just beyond Pontarddulais.	Greater London, Berkshire, Buckinghamshire, Wiltshire, Gloucestershire, Monmouthshire, Newport, Cardiff, Vale of Glamorgan, Rhondda Cynon Taff, Bridgend, Neath Port Talbot, Swansea, Carmarthenshire
M5	The main motorway through South West England. Linking the M6 at Great Barr (on the Birmingham / West Bromwich / Walsall border) to Exminster near Exeter.	West Midlands, Worcestershire, Gloucestershire, Bristol, Somerset, Devon
M6	The main western north-south motorway linking the North West of England with the South. Starts at M1 near Rugby and terminates at the A74(M) at Gretna which continues to Glasgow.	Leicestershire, Warwickshire, West Midlands, Staffordshire, Cheshire, Merseyside, Greater Manchester, Lancashire, Cumbria
M6 Toll	A toll motorway bypassing a busy stretch of the M6 around the Birmingham and Wolverhampton areas from near Coleshill to Cannock.	West Midlands, Staffordshire
M8	Linking Edinburgh to the A8 at Langbank, via Glasgow and Livingston. There is a gap in the motorway between Chapelhall and Bargeddie (south-east and south-west of Coatbridge) where the road is classified as the A8.	Edinburgh, West Lothian, North Lanarkshire, Glasgow, Renfrewshire
M9	Linking the M8 just west of Edinburgh to Dunblane via Stirling and Falkirk.	Edinburgh, West Lothian, Falkirk, Stirling
M11	Linking London (Woodford) to Cambridge.	Greater London, Essex, Cambridgeshire
M18	Linking the M1 at Rotherham to the M62 near Goole.	South Yorkshire, East Riding of Yorkshire
M20	Linking the M25 at Swanley to Folkestone.	Kent
M23	Linking Hooley in Surrey (just north of the M25, and south of Coulsdon) to Crawley.	Surrey, West Sussex
M25	The London orbital motorway, numbered clockwise from Dartford around London to Thurrock. (The Dartford Crossing between Thurrock and Dartford is not classified as a motorway, being the A282.)	Kent, Surrey, Berkshire, Greater London, Buckinghamshire, Hertfordshire, Essex
M26	A short link between the M25 at Sevenoaks and the M20 before Maidstone.	Kent
M27	The south coast route running from Cadnam, west of Southampton, to Portsmouth.	Hampshire
M32	A spur from the M4 near Winterbourne to central Bristol.	Gloucestershire, Bristol
M40	The southeast-northwest motorway linking Denham, west of London, to the M42 south of Solihull.	Buckinghamshire, Oxfordshire, Northamptonshire, Warwickshire
M42	Part of the Birmingham orbital motorway, from the M5 near Bromsgrove, running around the south and east of Birmingham and continuing north towards Measham. A section near Coleshill has been replaced by the M6 Toll.	Worcestershire, Warwickshire, West Midlands, Leicestershire
M45	A short spur linking the A45 south west of Rugby to the M1 south east of Rugby and north of Daventry.	Warwickshire, Northamptonshire
M48	The Severn Bridge, linking the M4 at Olveston (near Thornbury), over the River Severn, to the M4 at Rogiet (near Caldicot). This used to be part of the M4 before the Second Severn Crossing was built.	Gloucestershire, Monmouthshire
M49	A short link from the M5 to the M4 west of Bristol.	Bristol, Gloucestershire
M50	Linking the M5 north of Tewkesbury to Ross-on-Wye.	Worcestershire, Gloucestershire, Herefordshire
M53	Linking Wallasey and Chester.	Merseyside, Cheshire
M54	Linking the M6 north of Wolverhampton to Wellington west of Telford.	Staffordshire, Shropshire
M55	Linking the M6 north of Preston to Blackpool.	Lancashire
M56	Linking Manchester (Gatley) to the A5117 between Ellesmere Port and Chester.	Greater Manchester, Cheshire
M57	The Liverpool bypass running north-west from the M62 near Huyton to Switch Island between Maghull and Aintree.	Merseyside
M58	Linking Switch Island (between Maghull and Aintree, northern Liverpool) to Wigan.	Merseyside, Lancashire, Greater Manchester
M60	The Manchester Outer Ring Road, an orbital motorway, numbered clockwise from Stockport.	Greater Manchester
M61	Linking Manchester (Worsley) to Bamber Bridge near Preston.	Greater Manchester, Lancashire
M62	The trans-Pennine link - connecting Liverpool to the A63 between North Cave and Newport, west of Kingston upon Hull. There is a gap in the motorway between Winton and Simister where the road has been reclassified to become the northern part of the M60 Manchester orbital motorway. From its western terminus to J6, the M62 is not a trunk road and is under the jurisdiction of Liverpool City Council.	Merseyside, Cheshire, Greater Manchester, West Yorkshire, North Yorkshire, East Riding of Yorkshire
M65	Linking Bamber Bridge near Preston to Colne. From J10 to J14, the M65 is not a trunk road and is under the jurisdiction of Lancashire County Council.	Lancashire
M66	Linking Ramsbottom to the M60 at Whitefield.	Lancashire, Greater Manchester
M67	Linking the M60 at Denton, east Manchester, to Hattersley, east of Hyde.	Greater Manchester
M69	Linking Coventry to Leicester.	Warwickshire, Leicestershire
M73	Linking the M74 near Uddingston to the M80, south-west of Cumbernauld.	North Lanarkshire, Glasgow
M74	Linking Glasgow (Pollokshields) to the A74(M) at Abington.	Glasgow, North Lanarkshire, South Lanarkshire
M77	Linking the M8 at Glasgow (Pollokshields) to Fenwick near Kilmarnock.	Glasgow, East Renfrewshire, East Ayrshire
M80	Linking the M8 at Glasgow (Riddrie) and the M9 south of Stirling.	Glasgow, North Lanarkshire, Falkirk, Stirling
M90	Linking Inverkeithing, north of the Forth Road Bridge, to Perth.	Fife, Perth and Kinross
M96	Not open to the public, but part of the Fire Service College at Moreton-in-Marsh. Sometimes erroneously referred to as the M91.	Gloucestershire
M180	Linking the M18 at Thorne to the junction of the A15 (south of the Humber Bridge) and A180 (west of Grimsby).	South Yorkshire, Lincolnshire
M181	A spur from the M180 running to the west of Scunthorpe.	Lincolnshire
M271	Spurs from the M27 heading north to the A3057 (south of Romsey), and south to Totton.	Hampshire
M275	A spur from the M27 on Horsea Island into Portsmouth (Landport). The motorway is not a trunk road and is under the jurisdiction of Portsmouth City Council.	Hampshire
M602	Linking the M62 at Winton to Salford, just west of the centre of Manchester.	Greater Manchester
M606	A spur from the M62 near Cleckheaton into Bradford.	West Yorkshire
M621	Linking the M62 at Gildersome to the M1 near Rothwell. The motorway runs close to the centre of Leeds.	West Yorkshire
M876	Linking the M80 near Denny, north-west of Falkirk, to the A876 near the Kincardine Bridge. A short section of the motorway north of Stenhousemuir is classified as the M9.	Falkirk
M898	A spur from the M8 near Erskine to the A898, the Erskine Bridge approach road.	Renfrewshire

Upgraded A-road designations

Link	Route	Ceremonial Counties (England), Council Areas (Scotland) and Principal Areas (Wales)
A1(M)	The parts of the A1 between London and Gateshead that have been upgraded to motorway. There are six sections of the A1 that have been upgraded: From the M25 at South Mimms to near Baldock; From Alconbury (near Huntingdon) to Peterborough; From Blyth (near Worksop) to Adwick le Street, Doncaster; From Darrington (near Pontefract) to the junction with the A64 (near Tadcaster); From Wetherby to Dishforth (near Ripon); From Barton (near Darlington) to Birtley, Gateshead.	Hertfordshire, Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire, Nottinghamshire, South Yorkshire, West Yorkshire, North Yorkshire, County Durham, Tyne and Wear
A3(M)	Linking Horndean to Havant.	Hampshire
A38(M)	A spur from the M6 at the Gravelly Hill Interchange (Spaghetti Junction) to central Birmingham, also known as the Aston Expressway. It has no central reservation, but uses a tidal flow system: the number of lanes open in each direction varies according to prevailing traffic conditions.	West Midlands
A48(M)	Linking the M4 near Castleton to Cardiff (St Mellons).	Newport, Cardiff
A57(M)	Known as the Mancunian Way, forms the southern part of Manchester's inner ring road, running from a junction on Deansgate to the A635 near Piccadilly Station. It is elevated and runs through the centre of the campus of UMIST, now part of the University of Manchester. It also passes through the Manchester Metropolitan University, just South of the John Dalton building, and north of the Union building.	Greater Manchester
A58(M)	The western part of the Leeds inner ring road, running from Wellington Road (A58) to join the A64(M) at the junction with Claypit Lane (also A58).	West Yorkshire
A64(M)	The eastern part of the Leeds inner ring road, running from the A58(M) at the junction with Claypit Lane (A58), to York Road (A64).	West Yorkshire
A66(M)	A spur from the A1(M) near Cleasby joining the A66 heading into Darlington.	North Yorkshire
A74(M)	Linking the M74 at Abington to the M6 at Gretna.	South Lanarkshire, Dumfries and Galloway, Cumbria
A167(M)	An urban motorway in central Newcastle upon Tyne running from just north of the Tyne Bridge to just north of Newcastle University.	Tyne and Wear
A194(M)	Linking the A1(M) at Birtley (near Gateshead) to A194 near Wardley, leading to the Tyne Tunnel.	Tyne and Wear
A308(M)	Linking the M4 junction 8/9 to the A308 near Bray.	Berkshire
A329(M)	Linking Bracknell to Winnersh near Reading, crossing the M4.	Berkshire
A404(M)	Linking the M4 junction 8/9 to the A4 at Maidenhead Thicket.	Berkshire
A601(M)	A spur from the M6 at Carnforth to the A6 near Warton. The southern part is single carriageway.	Lancashire
A627(M)	Linking Rochdale and Chadderton, crossing the M62.	Greater Manchester
A635(M)	Forms a small part of the Mancunian Way for 0.3 miles before becoming the A57(M). It isn't signposted and is the UK's smallest motorway.[2]	Greater Manchester
A823(M)	A spur from the M90 near Rosyth to the A823 south of Dunfermline.	Fife

Former motorways

Roads which used to be motorways but have been downgraded:

Link	Route
M10	A short spur linking St Albans to the M1 near Hemel Hempstead. Now part of the A414.
M15	The designation for the Ringway 2 upgrade of the A406 (North Circular Road) and A205 (South Circular Road). Only the section between junction 4 of the M11 and Redbridge Roundabout was built to motorway standard and was initially signed as M11 because the section built, at the time, only led to and from the M11. When the route was extended to Beckton, this section of M11 was redesignated as the A406 (The North Circular).[3]
M41	The London West Cross Route, a spur from the London Westway (A40(M)) and the only part of the western section of the London Motorway Box to be built, now A3220.[4]
A18(M)	A spur from M18. Mostly now part of M180, although a section has been abandoned.
A40(M)	The London Westway, now the A40.[4]
A41(M)	The Tring bypass, now the A41.[5]
A46(M)	A spur towards Leicester from M1 at junction 21, now part of the A5460.[6]
A102(M)	The London East Cross Route, in two sections: Hackney Wick to Old Ford (now the A12); Blackwall Tunnel to the Sun-in-the-Sands roundabout (now the A102[4]). Was the eastern section of the London Motorway Box.
A329(M)	The northern third of the A329(M) from Winnersh to Reading, now the A3290. Downgraded to permit Reading council to dedicate one lane for buses.
A6144(M)	Formerly the longest single-carriageway motorway spur in the United Kingdom from the M60 north of Sale towards Carrington. Now just a spur of the A6144.

Motorways that have been renamed

Link	Route
M16	Originally to be the northern section of the M25 but was renumbered prior to opening.
M63	Merged with parts of the M62 and M66 to form the new M60 Manchester orbital motorway.
M85	Now M90 J10-11. Previously the M90 carried on along the spur into Perth, leaving the main route ahead as the M85[7]
M531	Now the southern section of the M53.[8]
A20(M)	Now the M20 from J5-8.[9]
A423(M)	Originally A4(M)[10] and then part of the M4. Now the A404(M).[11]
A6127(M)	Now the A167(M)[12]

Unbuilt motorways

There have been many plans for motorways in the UK that have not been built. Below is a list of plans that were not built (not exhaustive):

• M12 in 3 forms^[13]:
  • From the London end of the M11 to Brentwood;
  • From the London end of the M11 to Maplin Sands Airport (also not built);
  • From the M25 (in the vicinity of the M11) to Chelmsford.
• M13, from East London to Maplin Sands airport passing south of Southend.^[14]
• M17 Castle Donington bypass, a short spur off the M1;
• M31, a bypass of the busiest section of the M25, cutting the corner for traffic from the West.^[15]
• M59, M58 junction 2 to south of Preston.^[16]
• M64, between the M6 south of Stoke-on-Trent and the M1 near Derby. Mostly built as the A50.
• M601, which would have entered Manchester from the M62 (now the M60) in the Irwell Valley at Clifton near Pendlebury.^[17]
• M650, Airedale Motorway from near Silsden to Shipley.^[18]
• A6(M) (or M66 extension), which would have formed an eastern bypass for Stockport.^[19] As of March 2006, this is still under the planning stage as part of the SEMMMS (south east Manchester multi modal study) project (though not as motorway).
• A556(M), which would have cut the corner between the M6 and M56 near Warrington.^[20]
• Chippenham Spur, off the M4^[21]
• Strensham - Solihull motorway, a link between the M50 and M42 or M69^[22]

Many cities had urban motorway plans, most of which were not built. London,^[23] Newcastle,^[24] Liverpool,^[25] Manchester/SELNEC and Glasgow^[26] all had extensive plans.

Following the completion of the M74 and M80 motorways in 2011, the only new motorway under construction in the UK is the A1(M) Dishforth to Leeming extension which is set to open in 2012. The only other new motorway currently being planned in the UK is the 6 mile M8 Baillieston to Newhouse completion project.^[27]

Northern Ireland

M-designated motorways

Link	Route	Council areas
M1	Linking Belfast to Dungannon.	Belfast, Lisburn, Craigavon, Dungannon and South Tyrone
M2	In two sections, one linking Belfast to Antrim, and the other bypassing Ballymena. The section in between was planned, but never built.	Belfast, Newtownabbey, Antrim, Ballymena
M3	Linking the M2 in north Belfast to the A2 Sydenham Bypass in east Belfast.	Belfast
M5	Linking the M2 in north Belfast to Newtownabbey.	Belfast, Newtownabbey
M12	A spur from the M1 near Derrymacash to the north of Portadown.	Craigavon
M22	Linking the M2 at Antrim to Randalstown.	Antrim

Upgraded A-road designations

Link	Route	Council areas
A8(M)	A spur from the M2 near Glengormley to the A8 north-west of Newtownabbey.	Newtownabbey

Unbuilt motorways

The following motorways were planned, but never built.

• M11, from the M1 going through Lisburn and then crossing the M1 again and ending at Newry^[28]
• M23, from the M2 to Derry^[28]

There were also urban motorway plans for Belfast^[29][30]

See also

• List of numbered roads in the British Isles
• Motorways in the Republic of Ireland

Notes

Roads in the United Kingdom Articles Road numbering schemes: Great Britain Motoring taxation Driving Road signs Zones A road lists : 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Northern Ireland B road lists : 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Northern Ireland Other lists Anomalously numbered roads Junctions Motorways Primary destinations Unused roads