M5 closure: Drivers stuck for hours in freezing temperatures - 8 Dec 2017

[whole diary]

[Chris from Nailsea]

From the BBC^» (British Broadcasting Corporation - home page):

M5 closure: Drivers stuck for hours in freezing temperatures


Some motorists said they were stuck on the closed motorway for more than four hours

Drivers were left stuck in vehicles for several hours in freezing temperatures as the M5 was shut in both directions.

It followed "concerns for the welfare of a man" on a bridge at junction 28, near Cullompton, at about 16:00 GMT, police said.

Just after 20:40, Devon and Cornwall Police said the man had been moved from the bridge and the road was reopening.

The closure caused traffic jams stretching back for seven miles (11km) from the bridge, in mid-Devon.

Highways England confirmed the motorway was "fully open" at 21:43 after work to move broken down vehicles.

Many people were stranded in their cars for hours and some posted on social media to say they risked running out of fuel on the motorway.

Forecasters had predicted temperatures in the area would be going down to -1C during the night.

[JayMac]

A30/A303/A38/A358 bore the brunt.

I drove from Taunton to Chard, via a stop in Honiton, during the disruption. The major alternative routes were extremely busy. I took to the back roads over the Blackdown Hills.