M40/M42 interchange safety barrier upgrade

Enhancing safety on this busy gateway for the west Midlands.

Latest updates

11 September 2024

Lighting issues to be corrected

While our safety barrier upgrade of the M40-M42 interchange was completed before Christmas - several months earlier than planned - we identified some long standing issues with lighting that were not part of the original project scope. We're correcting these issues now while we're still in the area.
17 June 2024
Lighting work in July

While upgrading central reservation barriers, we identified some issues with lighting .

We'll be correcting lighting along this stretch of the motorway while we're still in the area.

We'll need overnight closures from 9pm to 6am while we work at these locations:
- M42 southbound between junctions 4 and 3
- M40 northbound between junctions 16 and 3a
Please remember that closure details can change at short notice. For the most up-to-date information, please visit our daily closures page.
09 February 2024

Our programme of work

Our safety enhancement work to upgrade the central reservation barrier along the M40 and M42 near Birmingham is now complete. However, we will continue to deliver essential maintenance work, including new road markings and drainage repairs, along this section of the network through February 2024.

Since February 2023, we have replaced more than five miles of steel barrier with a safer, more efficient concrete barrier.

Concrete barriers are much stronger than metal ones and significantly reduce the risk of vehicles crossing over from one carriageway to another, improving safety and reducing the duration of incident-related congestion. They greatly reduce the need for maintenance and will last twice as long as normal metal barriers, with far less need for closures for routine repairs.

The early finish is down to a number of factors, including the use of an innovative new precast concrete barrier which can be laid faster than other types of concrete barrier. It has a different foundation design that allows a quicker installation process and eliminates some of the time-consuming post-installation operations required for other barriers.

Staff working on the project are now carrying out similar safety upgrades on the M42 between junctions 4 and 7.

We would like to thank the local community and motorists for their continued patience while this important work is carried out.

See more updates

Project information

Although the M40/M42 interchange all lane running upgrade has been cancelled, we'll be carrying out other safety enhancement work including:

upgrading the central reservation barrier with a new reinforced concrete barrier to provide better safety
installing new drainage infrastructure in the central reservation
replacing central reservation lighting where applicable

Concrete barriers significantly reduce the risk of vehicles crossing over from one carriageway to another.

They improve safety by reducing the duration of incident-related congestion. As they are virtually maintenance-free, lasting twice as long as the current ones, future requirements for closures for routine repairs will be greatly reduced.

They are part of our ongoing work to improve safety, maintain traffic flow and offer road user assurance.

M40 / M42 Interchange Statutory Instrument Consultation (variable mandatory speed limits) - 23 January to 20 February 2020