M6 speed warning in Cumbria after 10,000 tickets
‘Kill your speed not one of our roadworkers’ was the message from National Highways today (Monday 8 September) after Cumbria Police revealed more than 10,000 drivers have been prosecuted for speeding through M6 roadworks in Cumbria.
A £9 million, two-year project to refurbish Lowther bridge south of Penrith, started in March with a 40mph speed limit through the main roadworks. But since average speed cameras within the road works went live on 12 June more than 10,000 drivers have already been caught speeding according to Cumbria Road Safety Partnership.
Enforcement of speed limits is a police matter. Today National Highways warned someone could be killed unless drivers cut their speed and started respecting the 40mph speed limit through the roadworks.
National Highways programme manager Steve Mason said:
“Safety is our number one priority. Tens of thousands of people use this section of the M6 every day but for the sake of shaving an extra minute or two off their journey times some drivers are putting their own safety and the safety of our roadworkers at risk.
“Our staff and contractors are working around the clock to complete this project as quickly as possible and they’re entitled to do that safely without the threat of being maimed or killed by someone recklessly speeding through the roadworks.”
Inspector Jack Stabler, Cumbria Police’s Roads Policing Unit lead and Chair of Cumbria’s Road Safety Partnership, said:
“Speed cameras aren’t popular with some but the cameras currently in place on the M6 south of Penrith serve an extremely important purpose in allowing for the motorway to remain open whilst essential work is carried out.
“As Chair of the county’s Road Safety Partnership, I am concerned about the number of people choosing to ignore the speed limits currently in place on this small section of the M6.
“The cameras and speed restrictions are in place to protect workers carrying out road improvements so whilst the number of people fined may grab the headlines, the real concern is the number of people driving with a disregard for the lives of those who are in a vulnerable position, working alongside moving motorway traffic.
“So please allow a few minutes more for your journey and think of the workers by the side of the road who, just like you, have families they would like to go home to.”
National Highways is reminding drivers they are putting this own safety at risk by speeding through roadworks such as colliding with heavy machinery – or running into hidden hazards such as excavations behind temporary safety barriers.
The speed limits for specific roadworks are chosen carefully. In the case of the Lowther Bridge works a 40mph speed limit is in place because there is no space along the carriageway in this location to keep two lanes open in each direction and use a typical temporary vehicle restraint system – with cones in place here instead.
Traffic management for the scheme is also being shared with Network Rail which is working to build a new railway bridge over the M6 at nearby Clifton. This includes temporary exit and entry slip roads along the northbound carriageway serving Network Rail’s construction site which also requires a 40mph speed limit.
The 40mph speed limit between junction 39 and junction 40 is being delivered in a ‘stepped’ arrangement with a 50mph speed limit in advance of the 40mph zone and average speed cameras. This is to help drivers adjust more slowly and more safely to the traffic management.
In a bid to get more drivers to comply with the speed limit, National Highways has now installed extra warning signs along the motorway including portable electronic signs flashing the speed limit.
National Highways says complying with the 40mph speed limit adds less than a minute to drivers’ journeys and spares them the inconvenience of a £100 fine and three licence penalty points.
Mr Mason said:
“Speeding plays a role in close to half of the collisions on our roads and we know collisions reduce if people drive at speeds that reflect the road environment and weather conditions.
“Speed cameras in roadworks help improve safety and smooth traffic flow as well.”
More information on the project, which is due to be completed in spring 2027, is available on a dedicated webpage.
Notes to Editors
Image from National Highways shows electronic sign deployed within M6 Lowther Bridge roadworks to give extra warning of speed limit to drivers
