M1 junction 13 to junction 16: smart motorway
We’ve improved a 23-mile section of the M1 between junctions 13 and 16 by upgrading it to an All-Lane Running (ALR) motorway to support economic growth and ease congestion in the area.
Latest updates
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01 October 2024
An update on our work this October
We've completed our upgrade of the M1 between junctions 13 to 16.
We still have some finishing work to complete, including maintenance and landscaping.
Due to bad weather, we've had to cancel our previously planned closures.
We’re currently finalising our programme of works for the week commencing 21 October. We’ll provide confirmed dates in due course.
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19 September 2024
Work from September to early October
We've completed our upgrade of the M1 between junctions 13 to 16.
We still have some work to complete, including maintenance and landscaping.
Closures
For safety, we’ll work overnight (9pm to 6am) at these dates and locations:
Monday 30 September 2024 - M1 Northbound
Lanes 1 and 2 closed between junction 13 and 15.
Junction 14 entry slip closed.
Junction 14 exit slip closed.
Tuesday 1 October 2024- M1 Northbound
Lanes 1 and 2 closed between junction 14 and 15.
Newport Pagnell Motorway Services area closed.
Wednesday 2 October 2024 - M1 Northbound
Lanes 1 and 2 closed between junction 14 and 15.
Thursday 3 October 2024 - M1 Northbound
Lanes 1 and 2 closed between junction 14 and 15.
Friday 4 October 2024- M1 Southbound
Lanes 1 and 2 closed between junction 14 and 15a.
Junction 15 exit slip lane 1 closed with switch to lane 2 closed during night.
Junction 15 entry slip lane 1 closed with switch to lane 2 closed during night.
Monday 7 October 2024 – M1 Northbound
Lanes 1 and 2 closed between junction 15a and 17
Junction 16 exit slip closed
Tuesday 8 October 2024 - M1 Southbound
Lanes 1 and 2 closed between junction 17 and 15a
Junction 16 exit slip closed
There are no planned closures between Friday 20 September 2024 and Sunday 29 September 2024.
There are no planned closures between Friday 4 October 2024 and Sunday 6 October 2024.
We will close the required lanes when traffic flows are at their lowest.
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.
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10 September 2024
Overnight closures for finishing works in September
We're still completing some finishing works, including maintenance and landscaping.
Closures
To work safely, we'll need the following overnight (9pm to 6am) closures.
We're closing lanes once traffic flows are at their lowest.
Tuesday 10 September 2024 - M1 Northbound
Lanes 1 and 2 closed between junction 15a and 17.
Junction 16 entry slip closed.
Wednesday 11 September 2024 - M1 Southbound
Lanes 1 and 2 closed between junction 17 and 15a.
Junction 16 entry slip closed.
Thursday 12 September 2024 - M1 Southbound
Lanes 1 and 2 closed between junction 16 and 15.
Junction 15a entry slip closed.
Junction 15a exit slip closed.
Friday 13 September 2024 - M1 Southbound
Lanes 1 and 2 closed between junction 15a and 14
Junction 15a entry slip closed
Monday 16 September 2024 - M1 Southbound
Lanes 1 and 2 closed between junction 15 and 14
Tuesday 17 September 2024 - M1 Southbound
Lanes 1 and 2 closed between junction 15 and 14.
Wednesday 18 September 2024 - M1 Southbound
Lanes 1 and 2 closed between junction 15 and 14
Newport Pagnell Motorway Services access closed
Junction 14 exit slip closed
Thursday 19 September 2024 - M1 Southbound
Lanes 1 and 2 closed between junction 15 and 13.
Junction 14 entry slip closed.
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.
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09 March 2023
Upgrade now fully open
The final 11-mile section of the M1 J13-16 upgrade has fully opened, with the national speed limit (70mph) restored.
We have been opening the 23-mile M1 upgrade in phases since late 2021. Completing this final section, at the northernmost section of the upgrade, means that we have now fully opened our upgrade on the M1 between Bedford, Milton Keynes and Northampton, creating an extra lane in each direction and adding technology to improve journeys and give drivers better information.
On motorways where the hard shoulder has been converted to a traffic lane, there is a whole system of inter-related features, working together to help keep traffic moving safely. They include:
Variable speed limits to help keep traffic moving, reducing frustrating stop-start traffic and making journeys quicker
Clearly signed and orange-coloured emergency areas set back from the road and with telephones linking directly to our control rooms
Detection systems to monitor traffic for changes in flows and speeds, including stopped vehicle detection to spot stopped vehicles and get help on the way more quicklyCCTV cameras that our operators are able to move and zoom to monitor and manage congestion and incidents, where notified. The system has the ability to see 100% of the carriageway
Signs and signals to provide better information and that can alert drivers to hazards ahead and display Red X signals to close lanes to other traffic when a stopped vehicle is identified
Enforcement cameras to deter the minority who break speed limits and ignore Red X signs
All this is overseen and joined up by our dedicated teams in the control rooms and on the road, who are here to help motorists 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.
Benefits
You can read more about the main features of smart motorways, and advice and guidance on safer driving and what to do in an emergency on our ‘Driving on motorways’ page.
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05 December 2022
Phased opening of upgraded sections continues
Today a 4.2-mile section of the M1 north of junction 14 at Newport Pagnell services (to Cattle Creep, near Hartwell) fully opened, with the 70mph national speed limit restored.
On motorways where the hard shoulder has been converted to a traffic lane, there is a whole system of inter-related features, working together to help keep traffic moving safely. They include:
- Variable speed limits to help keep traffic moving, reducing frustrating stop-start traffic and making journeys quicker
- Clearly signed and orange-coloured emergency areas set back from the road and with telephones linking directly to our control rooms
- Detection systems to monitor traffic for changes in flows and speeds, including stopped vehicle detection to spot stopped vehicles and get help on the way more quickly
- CCTV cameras that our operators are able to move and zoom to monitor and manage congestion and incidents, where notified. The system has the ability to see 100% of the carriageway
- Signs and signals to provide better information and that can alert drivers to hazards ahead and display Red X signals to close lanes to other traffic when a stopped vehicle is identified
- Enforcement cameras to deter the minority who break speed limits and ignore Red X signs
All this is overseen and joined up by our dedicated teams in the control rooms and on the road, who are here to help motorists 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.
Next steps
A further 4.5-mile section to junction 15 for Northampton is set to fully open in early 2023. Together, these make up the second section of the M1 upgrade.
The third and final section of the upgrade, between junctions 15 and 16, began its phased opening last month, with four lanes in each direction at 60mph, and is expected to fully open by March 2023.
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15 November 2022
More new lanes open to traffic
The final stretch of our upgrade of the M1 started its phased opening from today.
An extra, fourth lane is being made available over the next four nights to drivers in both directions on a 6.5-mile section of the motorway between junction 15 (Northampton) and junction 16 (the Upper Heyford Interchange). The whole section is due to have the additional lane open by 6am on Friday morning.
Drivers travelling through this section will see a 60mph speed limit in place, temporary additional CCTV from the roadworks, and a free recovery service alongside the new permanent systems while final technology tests are carried out.
This can only happen when there aren’t roadworks, and when drivers are able to use all lanes of the upgraded carriageway.
The scheme is opening in sections; a fourth lane opened on the 9.4-mile stretch between Newport Pagnell Services and junction 15 (Northampton) in September. Both sections are expected to fully open, with the national speed limit restored, in the coming weeks.
Drivers will now be able to use 46 new emergency areas if they need to stop in an emergency.
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22 September 2022
New lanes open to traffic
From today (Thursday 22 September), 4 lanes on the 9.4 mile stretch between Newport Pagnell Services and junction 15 (Northampton) are now available to traffic with a 60mph speed limit in both directions.
Once construction is complete, and before we fully open our motorway upgrades, new technology, which includes stopped vehicle detection, is tested. This means it is finely adjusted to suit the particular environment of the road where it has been installed. This can only happen when there are no roadworks, when drivers are able to use all four lanes of the upgraded carriageway.
Safety measures which have been in place during the roadworks, such as the 60mph reduced speed limits, and a free recovery service for drivers who get into difficulty, continue. The temporary CCTV used during the roadworks also remains in place, working alongside the new permanent CCTV installed as part of the upgrade.
Once testing shows the system is performing satisfactorily the maximum speed is increased to the national speed limit of 70mph. We expect this to happen next month.
The first section of the upgrade, a 7.6 mile stretch between junction 13 and Newport Pagnell services, opened earlier this year. We expect the final remaining link of the upgrade, the 6.5 mile section between junction 15 and junction 16 (Upper Heyford Interchange) to start its phased opening next month.
This newly opened section includes 19 new emergency areas, where drivers can stop in an emergency. Once finished, the 23-mile upgrade will feature 46 new emergency areas, 8 more than originally planned.
We expect the scheme to be fully open, with the national speed limit restored, by March 2023.
Project information
We converted the existing section of the M1 from Junction 13 at Milton Keynes South to Junction 16 at the Upper Heyford Interchange (A45 to Daventry, A4500 to Northampton) into a smart motorway.
The project involved:
- converting the motorway between junctions 13 to 16 into four lanes of traffic with no hard shoulder
- installing 46 emergency areas with emergency roadside telephones
- new overhead gantries and electronic signs to show the variable speed limits and provide driver information
- new and replacement safety barriers in the central reservation and verge areas
- CCTV cameras
- new noise barriers and partial replacement of the existing noise barrier
- planting trees and bushes to replace any removed during construction
The M1 is a key strategic road, carrying high volumes of heavy goods and other vehicles between London and the North.
This project aimed to help ease congestion and make journey times more reliable during busy periods on this stretch of motorway, and to:
- reduce congestion and smooth the flow of traffic to improve travel times and make journeys more reliable between Bedfordshire, Milton Keynes and Northamptonshire.
- support the economy within the region by providing much needed capacity on the motorway, reducing the cost of economic delay to commuters and business traffic
- maximise motorway capacity while maintaining safety on motorways
- minimise environmental impacts
M1 junctions 13 to 16 smart motorway - variable mandatory speed limits - 26 March 2018 to 23 April 2018
Visit our M1 J13-16 Smart Motorway feedback tool to have your say. The tool includes an interactive map. You can click on a location to make a specific comment, or give us your general feedback.
ECHO is a one-way feedback tool, so if you’d like a response to your feedback you can email the project team at: M1J13-16Smart@nationalhighways.co.uk
Documents
M1 junction 13 to junction 16 environmental study report (ESR)
ESR Appendix B - Air Quality
ESR Appendix C - Noise and Vibration
ESR Appendix D - Landscape and Visual
ESR Appendix E - Cultural Heritage
ESR Appendix - Affected Road Network 2021
ESR Appendix - Air Quality Management Areas
ESR Appendix - Committed Developments
ESR Appendix - Compliance Risk Road Network
ESR Appendix - Construction Noise and Vibration diversion routes J13-14 northbound
ESR Appendix - Construction Noise and Vibration diversion routes J13-14 southbound
ESR Appendix - Construction Noise and Vibration diversion routes J14-15 northbound
ESR Appendix - Construction Noise and Vibration diversion routes J14-15 southbound
ESR Appendix - Construction Noise and Vibration diversion routes J15a-16 northbound
ESR Appendix - Construction Noise and Vibration diversion routes J15a-16 southbound
ESR Appendix - Construction noise. Areas of potential significant adverse effects
ESR Appendix - Construction vibration. Areas of potential significant adverse effects
ESR Appendix - Cultural Heritage Receptors
ESR Appendix - Discussion Region Receptors
ESR Appendix - Do Something Results 2021
ESR Appendix - Ecological Receptors
ESR Appendix - Enviromental Masterplan (mitigation strategy)
ESR Appendix - Flood Risk from Rivers
ESR Appendix - Landscape Character, Viewpoints and Visibility
ESR Appendix - Location and results of noise survey
ESR Appendix - Monitoring Locations
ESR Appendix - Operational road traffic noise. Long term Do-Minimum comparison day time
ESR Appendix - Operational road traffic noise. Long term Do-Minimum comparison night time
ESR Appendix - Operational road traffic noise. Long term Do-Something comparison day time
ESR Appendix - Operational road traffic noise. Long term Do-Something comparison night time
ESR Appendix - Operational road traffic noise. Proposed Noise Barriers
ESR Appendix - Operational road traffic noise. Short-term comparison day time
ESR Appendix - Scheme Location
ESR Appendix - Surface Water Flood Risk
ESR Appendix - Verification Zones
ESR Appendix - Viewpoint Photographs
Traffic information
Information about scheduled roadworks and events on our motorways and major roads.X
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