M62 motorway to close at Rochdale for two weekends in September

The M62 motorway will be closed in both directions at Rochdale from:

• Friday 6 September 9pm to Monday 9 September 6am
• Friday 20 September 9pm to Monday 23 September 6am

We're working with Network Rail to ensure the work goes as smoothly as possible. However, we're advising drivers to avoid this section of the M62 if possible.

Plan ahead and use alternative routes

If you're heading across the Pennines over the two weekends, make sure you plan ahead. Check traffic conditions before setting out and consider alternative trans-Pennine routes including

• A69 between Carlisle and Newcastle
• A66 Penrith to Scotch Corner
• Manchester to Sheffield link (M67/A57/A628/A616).

Closures and diversions

Due to the timings of the work over weekends, different closure and diversion arrangements will be in place for the westbound and eastbound carriageways.

Eastbound closure

The eastbound carriageway will be closed from junction 18 of the M62 at Simister Island interchange to junction 20 of the M62 at Rochdale.

Eastbound diversion

Eastbound drivers from the M60 or M66 will:

• follow the M60 from junction 18 (Simister Island) to junction 21
• at M60 junction 21, take the A663 northbound to join the A627 at junction 1
• take the A627 north, rejoining the M62 at junction 20

Westbound closure

The westbound carriageway will be closed between junction 20 at Rochdale and junction 19 at Heywood.

Westbound diversion

From M62 junction 20, Westbound drivers will:

• take the A627(M) Southbound
• at A627(M) Slattocks interchange, head west to the A664 Rochdale Road
• take the A664 Rochdale Road West toward Middleton
• at Middleton, take the A6046 Hollin Lane Northbound
• rejoin the M62 at junction 19

Map of Eastbound and Westbound diversion routes.

M62 junction 19 and 20 overnight closures

Between the first and second weekend closures, the M62 will be closed nightly (9pm to 6am) in both directions between junctions 19 and 20.

A clearly-signed diversion will be in place for:

• Westbound drivers - by the A627(M), A664 and A6046
• Eastbound drivers - by the A6046, A664 and A627(M)

Please remember that closures can change at short notice. You can check the latest information on our daily closures page or find live travel information on our Traffic England site. Our travel alerts give details of live incidents on our network.

We also post information on @HighwaysNWest and @HighwaysYorks – our regional feeds on X.

Find out more on our M62 Castleton Bridge page.