M54 motorway
Encyclopedia
The M54 is a 23 mile east-west motorway in the English
counties of Shropshire
and Staffordshire
. It is also referred to as the Telford Motorway, after the road's primary westbound destination, the new town
of Telford
. The motorway cost £65 million to construct, and is two-lane dual carriageway
for the majority of its length, with sections of three-lane.
The M54 spur
connects the M6 motorway
near Essington
, Staffordshire with the A5 trunk road at Wellington
, Shropshire. The motorway forms part of the strategic route to North Wales
, roughly following the path of the Roman Watling Street
and the A5 north-westwards, towards the port of Holyhead
. It is the only motorway in Shropshire, and forms a vital part of the county's road network. The motorway handles an AADT of between 50,300 (J2-3) and 41,800 (J4-5) vehicles.
to Holyhead
road which was largely constructed by civil engineer Thomas Telford
in the early 19th century following the route of the Roman Watling Street
, which connected Rochester, Kent
with Wroxeter
, Shropshire
. The initial plan for a motorway following the M54's present route was therefore designed to alleviate the roads which handled the commercial traffic to the port of Holyhead, destined for Ireland
. With the proposal for a new town
in the Telford area, to provide an overspill housing area for the West Midlands conurbation
, then named Dawley New Town, the M54 was becoming more likely to be built; the government also wanted to increase transport provision to the rest of Shropshire
.
In 1967 the Ministry of Transport
invited construction company Freeman Fox, Wilbur Smith Associates (FFWSA) to investigate and report on the impact of the New Town proposals on traffic demand between the proposed New Town site and Wolverhampton
, and the best highway solution to meet this demand. The predicted demand was that of 75,000 vehicles per day by 1990 and a need for a dual 3-lane motorway. Two corridors were identified for a possible new motorway route, and a third option to possibly upgrade existing roads. The route could have followed the A5 Corridor to the M6
South of Gailey
, at Junction 12, or a new corridor could have been established to the M6, north-east of Featherstone
, at Junction 11. Additionally, it was proposed that the existing A5 could be upgraded to full dual carriageway
grade separated standards together with improvements to the A41
and A464 trunk routes.
and Wellington, and removed one of the country's most notorious bottlenecks at the Bucks Head crossroads, in Wellington; delays of up to six hours could be experienced in the summer months.
The Wellington bypass was constructed by contractor M. J. Gleeson Ltd, from 1973 to 1975. Many problems followed in the two years after completion; the rigid concrete carriageway broke up, due to the road being built on a poor subbase
with rigid concrete along a historically heavily mined route. The aesthetic and constructional design of the bridges was also heavily criticised. Over the next 15 years, almost all of the original carriageway had to be replaced with asphalt
.
The 30 kilometres (18.6 mi) section between the junction with the M6, and Telford, excluding the Wellington bypass, was divided into four contracts each awarded to different companies; all sections remained under the design of Sir Owen Williams and Partners.
The Forge junction at Telford Town Centre was awarded relatively late, to the company Norwest Holst. The junction precipitated the construction of Telford Shopping Centre
, and the central commercial area, as the exchange was upgraded to allow traffic from the motorway to join and exit in both directions. The Forge to Cluddley section, from Junction 5 to Junction 7, opened to traffic in December 1975. The Hilton Park to Forge section, from the M6 to Junction 5, opened in November 1983. The motorway cost 65 million pounds to build, which when adjusted for inflation would come to approximately 150 million 2006 GBP.
To help alleviate opposition to the intrusive motorway design, the 60 feet (18.3 m) wide carriageway was built to pass below the natural landscape, where possible. Man-made hills were constructed which, along with the planting of 250,000 new trees, helped to camouflage the motorway from view, and cut down on the noise level. This aesthetic improvement project took two and a half years to complete and employed over 100 men.
The recent strong economic growth and lower unemployment in the Telford area has been attributed to the construction of the motorway: unemployment in the 1980s was over 20%, but by 2004 this figure had fallen to 3.3%. The motorway enabled the development of distribution centres in Telford, and industrial estates such as Hortonwood and Stafford Park have provided employment in the area.
Some of the highest pollution levels in the borough of Telford and Wrekin are along the M54, particularly in the urban area between junctions 5 and 7.
The M54 is particularly busy in mid-August: it carries traffic to the V Festival
at Weston-under-Lizard
from the south (via the M6), and to Shrewsbury Flower Show
from the east.
, Staffordshire (Map). It passes south of Featherstone
near Junction 1 and then north of Bushbury
before reaching Junction 2. Just before Junction 3 with Albrighton
the road enters Shropshire. It then passes to the north of Shifnal
. Between Junction 4 and Junction 5, the road passes across the Wolverhampton to Shrewsbury railway line
, and through the centre of Telford
. Between Junctions 6 and 7, the road runs around the south of Wellington before ending on the A5 (Map), which continues on to Shrewsbury
as dual carriageway
.
Telford Motorway Service Station
was opened in 2004 off Junction 4, and is operated by Welcome Break
. It is the only service station on the motorway and, if travelling east, the last before Corley
on the M6
or Frankley
on the M5
.
. Northbound access to the M6 is via the A449
from Junction 2 and the most direct route to the M6 Toll to via the congested A460 from Junction 1.
Plans for a link road between the M54 and the M6 Toll (M6 Junction 11a) were supported in principle by the Secretary of State for Transport in 2003 and were put on display in 2006 with an expected construction date of 2012. The £102m cost for the scheme would be paid for by The Macquarie Infrastructure Group (the company that owns Midland Expressway Ltd and operates the M6 Toll). Since which there have been no further developments.
reported plans to create a flyover
linking the M54 and A442
in Telford
town centre, just south east of Telford Central railway station
. Presently traffic has to travel along a single carriageway
portion of the A5, and pass through two roundabouts to access the M54. Since Junction 5 of the motorway is only 200 metres (218.7 yd) from the current bridge across the A442, the plans would involve either having two motorway junctions immediately next to each other, or one complex flyover. Both of these options seem unlikely due to a lack of space, and no other reference to these plans has been found outside of the newspaper article, which also documented the welcoming of the plans by the town's local MP, David Wright
.
Proposals for a 'Western Bypasses of Wolverhampton and Stourbridge' were rejected by the government in 2003.
are used to provide distance and carriageway identifier information.
{|class="wikitable"
|- align="center" bgcolor="0080d0" style="color: white;font-size:120%;"
| colspan=5 | M54 Motorway
|-
!scope="col"|mi
!scope="col"|km
!scope="col"| Eastbound exits (A Carriageway)
!scope="col"| Junction
!scope="col"| Westbound exits (B Carriageway)
|- align="center"
| 0.0
| 0.0
| Birmingham, Coventry
, Walsall
M6
| M6 J10A
52.6293°N 2.0479°W Eastern end of motorway
| Start of Motorway
|- align="center"
| 1.8
| 2.9
| Cannock
A460
| J1
| Cannock A460
|- align="center"
| 3.5
| 5.6
| Wolverhampton
, Stafford
A449
| J2
| Wolverhampton A449
|- align="center"
|10.9
|17.6
| Wolverhampton (West) A41
| J3
| Weston, Whitchurch
A41
|- align="center"
|15.7
|25.3
| Telford (East) A464
Kidderminster
(A442
)
Telford Services
| J4
Services
| Telford (East) A464
Ironbridge
(A442)
Telford Services
|- align="center"
|17.7
|28.5
| Telford (Centre) A5
| J5
52.6828°N 2.4472°W J5 - Telford turnoff
| Telford (Centre) B5072
|- align="center"
|19.3
|31.1
| Telford (West) A518
Whitchurch
(A449)
Ironbridge
A5223
| J6
| Telford (West) A518
|- align="center"
| rowspan="2"| 21.9
| rowspan="2"| 35.2
| Start of motorway
| rowspan="2"|J7
52.6914°N 2.5464°W Western end of motorway
| Wellington B5061
|- align="center"
| Wellington B5061
| Road continues as A5 to Shrewsbury
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
counties of Shropshire
Shropshire
Shropshire is a county in the West Midlands region of England. For Eurostat purposes, the county is a NUTS 3 region and is one of four counties or unitary districts that comprise the "Shropshire and Staffordshire" NUTS 2 region. It borders Wales to the west...
and Staffordshire
Staffordshire
Staffordshire is a landlocked county in the West Midlands region of England. For Eurostat purposes, the county is a NUTS 3 region and is one of four counties or unitary districts that comprise the "Shropshire and Staffordshire" NUTS 2 region. Part of the National Forest lies within its borders...
. It is also referred to as the Telford Motorway, after the road's primary westbound destination, the new town
New town
A new town is a specific type of a planned community, or planned city, that was carefully planned from its inception and is typically constructed in a previously undeveloped area. This contrasts with settlements that evolve in a more ad hoc fashion. Land use conflicts are uncommon in new...
of Telford
Telford
Telford is a large new town in the borough of Telford and Wrekin and ceremonial county of Shropshire, England, approximately east of Shrewsbury, and west of Birmingham...
. The motorway cost £65 million to construct, and is two-lane dual carriageway
Dual carriageway
A dual carriageway is a class of highway with two carriageways for traffic travelling in opposite directions separated by a central reservation...
for the majority of its length, with sections of three-lane.
The M54 spur
Spur route
A spur route is a short road forming a branch from a longer, more important route . A bypass or beltway is never considered a true spur route as it typically reconnects with the major road...
connects the M6 motorway
M6 motorway
The M6 motorway runs from junction 19 of the M1 at the Catthorpe Interchange, near Rugby via Birmingham then heads north, passing Stoke-on-Trent, Manchester, Preston, Carlisle and terminating at the Gretna junction . Here, just short of the Scottish border it becomes the A74 which continues to...
near Essington
Essington
Essington is a village and civil parish in South Staffordshire, England. It is considered by the Office for National Statistics to be part of the Wolverhampton Urban Subdivision, and is within the West Midlands conurbation....
, Staffordshire with the A5 trunk road at Wellington
Wellington, Shropshire
Wellington is a town in the unitary authority of Telford and Wrekin and ceremonial county of Shropshire, England and now forms part of the new town of Telford. The population of the parish of Wellington was recorded as 20,430 in the 2001 census, making it the third largest town in Shropshire if...
, Shropshire. The motorway forms part of the strategic route to North Wales
North Wales
North Wales is the northernmost unofficial region of Wales. It is bordered to the south by the counties of Ceredigion and Powys in Mid Wales and to the east by the counties of Shropshire in the West Midlands and Cheshire in North West England...
, roughly following the path of the Roman Watling Street
Watling Street
Watling Street is the name given to an ancient trackway in England and Wales that was first used by the Britons mainly between the modern cities of Canterbury and St Albans. The Romans later paved the route, part of which is identified on the Antonine Itinerary as Iter III: "Item a Londinio ad...
and the A5 north-westwards, towards the port of Holyhead
Holyhead
Holyhead is the largest town in the county of Anglesey in the North Wales. It is also a major port adjacent to the Irish Sea serving Ireland....
. It is the only motorway in Shropshire, and forms a vital part of the county's road network. The motorway handles an AADT of between 50,300 (J2-3) and 41,800 (J4-5) vehicles.
Planning
The idea of the M54 was originally presented due to the high volumes of traffic on the A5, LondonLondon
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
to Holyhead
Holyhead
Holyhead is the largest town in the county of Anglesey in the North Wales. It is also a major port adjacent to the Irish Sea serving Ireland....
road which was largely constructed by civil engineer Thomas Telford
Thomas Telford
Thomas Telford FRS, FRSE was a Scottish civil engineer, architect and stonemason, and a noted road, bridge and canal builder.-Early career:...
in the early 19th century following the route of the Roman Watling Street
Watling Street
Watling Street is the name given to an ancient trackway in England and Wales that was first used by the Britons mainly between the modern cities of Canterbury and St Albans. The Romans later paved the route, part of which is identified on the Antonine Itinerary as Iter III: "Item a Londinio ad...
, which connected Rochester, Kent
Kent
Kent is a county in southeast England, and is one of the home counties. It borders East Sussex, Surrey and Greater London and has a defined boundary with Essex in the middle of the Thames Estuary. The ceremonial county boundaries of Kent include the shire county of Kent and the unitary borough of...
with Wroxeter
Wroxeter
Wroxeter is a village in Shropshire, England. It forms part of the civil parish of Wroxeter and Uppington and is located in the Severn Valley about south-east of Shrewsbury.-History:...
, Shropshire
Shropshire
Shropshire is a county in the West Midlands region of England. For Eurostat purposes, the county is a NUTS 3 region and is one of four counties or unitary districts that comprise the "Shropshire and Staffordshire" NUTS 2 region. It borders Wales to the west...
. The initial plan for a motorway following the M54's present route was therefore designed to alleviate the roads which handled the commercial traffic to the port of Holyhead, destined for Ireland
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
. With the proposal for a new town
New town
A new town is a specific type of a planned community, or planned city, that was carefully planned from its inception and is typically constructed in a previously undeveloped area. This contrasts with settlements that evolve in a more ad hoc fashion. Land use conflicts are uncommon in new...
in the Telford area, to provide an overspill housing area for the West Midlands conurbation
West Midlands conurbation
The West Midlands conurbation is the name given to the large conurbation that includes the cities of Birmingham and Wolverhampton and the large towns of Dudley, Walsall, West Bromwich, Solihull, Stourbridge, Halesowen in the English West Midlands....
, then named Dawley New Town, the M54 was becoming more likely to be built; the government also wanted to increase transport provision to the rest of Shropshire
Shropshire
Shropshire is a county in the West Midlands region of England. For Eurostat purposes, the county is a NUTS 3 region and is one of four counties or unitary districts that comprise the "Shropshire and Staffordshire" NUTS 2 region. It borders Wales to the west...
.
In 1967 the Ministry of Transport
Department for Transport
In the United Kingdom, the Department for Transport is the government department responsible for the English transport network and a limited number of transport matters in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland which are not devolved...
invited construction company Freeman Fox, Wilbur Smith Associates (FFWSA) to investigate and report on the impact of the New Town proposals on traffic demand between the proposed New Town site and Wolverhampton
Wolverhampton
Wolverhampton is a city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands, England. For Eurostat purposes Walsall and Wolverhampton is a NUTS 3 region and is one of five boroughs or unitary districts that comprise the "West Midlands" NUTS 2 region...
, and the best highway solution to meet this demand. The predicted demand was that of 75,000 vehicles per day by 1990 and a need for a dual 3-lane motorway. Two corridors were identified for a possible new motorway route, and a third option to possibly upgrade existing roads. The route could have followed the A5 Corridor to the M6
M6 motorway
The M6 motorway runs from junction 19 of the M1 at the Catthorpe Interchange, near Rugby via Birmingham then heads north, passing Stoke-on-Trent, Manchester, Preston, Carlisle and terminating at the Gretna junction . Here, just short of the Scottish border it becomes the A74 which continues to...
South of Gailey
Gailey, Staffordshire
Gailey is a small village in Staffordshire, England. It is at the junction of the A5 and A449 roads, and is on the boundary of the parishes of Brewood and Coven and Penkridge, in South Staffordshire....
, at Junction 12, or a new corridor could have been established to the M6, north-east of Featherstone
Featherstone, Staffordshire
Featherstone is a small village in the district of South Staffordshire, England, near to the border with Wolverhampton. Originally a farming community consisting of a few scattered farms. It is mentioned in the Domesday Book of 1086, and was owned by the Clergy of Wolverhampton Church...
, at Junction 11. Additionally, it was proposed that the existing A5 could be upgraded to full dual carriageway
Dual carriageway
A dual carriageway is a class of highway with two carriageways for traffic travelling in opposite directions separated by a central reservation...
grade separated standards together with improvements to the A41
A41 road
The A41 is a formerly-major trunk road in England that links London and Birkenhead, although it has now largely been superseded by motorways. It passes through or near various towns and cities including Watford, Hemel Hempstead, Aylesbury, Solihull, Birmingham, West Bromwich, Wolverhampton,...
and A464 trunk routes.
The Wellington bypass
The first section of the M54 was opened in 1975, then named the A5 Wellington bypass, but later renumbered the M54 once Telford New Town was established in 1969. The bypass removed traffic from the heavily congested route through the urbanised areas of OakengatesOakengates
Oakengates is a town in the borough of Telford and Wrekin and ceremonial county of Shropshire, England, and now forms part of the new town of Telford...
and Wellington, and removed one of the country's most notorious bottlenecks at the Bucks Head crossroads, in Wellington; delays of up to six hours could be experienced in the summer months.
Construction
Subbase
In topology, a subbase for a topological space X with topology T is a subcollection B of T which generates T, in the sense that T is the smallest topology containing B...
with rigid concrete along a historically heavily mined route. The aesthetic and constructional design of the bridges was also heavily criticised. Over the next 15 years, almost all of the original carriageway had to be replaced with asphalt
Asphalt
Asphalt or , also known as bitumen, is a sticky, black and highly viscous liquid or semi-solid that is present in most crude petroleums and in some natural deposits, it is a substance classed as a pitch...
.
The 30 kilometres (18.6 mi) section between the junction with the M6, and Telford, excluding the Wellington bypass, was divided into four contracts each awarded to different companies; all sections remained under the design of Sir Owen Williams and Partners.
- Contract 1 (ShifnalShifnalShifnal is a small market town in Shropshire, England. It forms part of The Wrekin constituency, and is about east of Telford. It has a railway station on the Shrewsbury-Wolverhampton Line and is near to the M54 motorway.-Early medieval time:...
) was given to A Monk & Co., who utilised a slip-form paver to construct the concrete section, which led to it becoming a standard in future motorway construction. - Contract 2 (DonningtonDonnington, TelfordDonnington was not part of the new town of Telford but part of the already oudated Wellington Rural District which had built many council houses from the 1920s onwards. It is located in the borough of Telford and Wrekin and ceremonial county of Shropshire, England...
) was awarded to R M Douglas Construction Ltd. The two year contract was completed in only 18 months, due to the dry weather which allowed the earthworks to be completed ahead of schedule. - Contract 3 (CodsallCodsallCodsall is a large village in the South Staffordshire district of Staffordshire, England. It is situated north west of the city of Wolverhampton.-History:...
) was taken by Alfred McAlpineAlfred McAlpineAlfred McAlpine plc was a British construction firm headquartered in London. It was a major road builder, and constructed over 10% of Britain's motorways, including the M6 Toll...
& Son (Southern) Ltd., and was constructed almost identically to contract 1. - Contract 4 (EssingtonEssingtonEssington is a village and civil parish in South Staffordshire, England. It is considered by the Office for National Statistics to be part of the Wolverhampton Urban Subdivision, and is within the West Midlands conurbation....
) was the largest contract, and was awarded to Tarmac ConstructionTarmac (company)Tarmac is a company that is based in Wolverhampton in the United Kingdom and operates internationally. The company produces aggregates and road-surfacing materials, including tarmacadam, from which the company's name is derived...
(present day Carillion). This section took the longest to complete, and faced opposition from Staffordshire County Council who wanted disruption at the junction with the M6 to remain minimal.
The Forge junction at Telford Town Centre was awarded relatively late, to the company Norwest Holst. The junction precipitated the construction of Telford Shopping Centre
Telford Shopping Centre
Telford Shopping Centre is a indoor super-regional shopping centre in Telford, Shropshire, England. It is located in the geographical and economic centre of the new town, on land which was previously undeveloped. It is the largest shopping area in the ceremonial county of Shropshire, being located...
, and the central commercial area, as the exchange was upgraded to allow traffic from the motorway to join and exit in both directions. The Forge to Cluddley section, from Junction 5 to Junction 7, opened to traffic in December 1975. The Hilton Park to Forge section, from the M6 to Junction 5, opened in November 1983. The motorway cost 65 million pounds to build, which when adjusted for inflation would come to approximately 150 million 2006 GBP.
To help alleviate opposition to the intrusive motorway design, the 60 feet (18.3 m) wide carriageway was built to pass below the natural landscape, where possible. Man-made hills were constructed which, along with the planting of 250,000 new trees, helped to camouflage the motorway from view, and cut down on the noise level. This aesthetic improvement project took two and a half years to complete and employed over 100 men.
Impact
-
- See also: Economy of Telford
The recent strong economic growth and lower unemployment in the Telford area has been attributed to the construction of the motorway: unemployment in the 1980s was over 20%, but by 2004 this figure had fallen to 3.3%. The motorway enabled the development of distribution centres in Telford, and industrial estates such as Hortonwood and Stafford Park have provided employment in the area.
Some of the highest pollution levels in the borough of Telford and Wrekin are along the M54, particularly in the urban area between junctions 5 and 7.
The M54 is particularly busy in mid-August: it carries traffic to the V Festival
V Festival
The V Festival is an annual music festival held in England during the penultimate weekend in August. The event is held at two parks simultaneously which share the same bill; artists perform at one location on Saturday and then swap on Sunday. The sites are located at Hylands Park in Chelmsford and...
at Weston-under-Lizard
Weston-under-Lizard
Weston under Lizard is a village in the South Staffordshire district of Staffordshire, England. It constitutes a civil parish with Blymhill, called Blymhill and Weston-under-Lizard....
from the south (via the M6), and to Shrewsbury Flower Show
Shrewsbury Flower Show
The Shrewsbury Flower Show is an annual event held in mid-August over two days at The Quarry, the main park in the town of Shrewsbury, the county town of Shropshire, England. The show is organised by the Shropshire Horticultural Society and is one of the largest events of its type in the United...
from the east.
Route
The road runs west from Junction 10A of the M6 motorway near EssingtonEssington
Essington is a village and civil parish in South Staffordshire, England. It is considered by the Office for National Statistics to be part of the Wolverhampton Urban Subdivision, and is within the West Midlands conurbation....
, Staffordshire (Map). It passes south of Featherstone
Featherstone, Staffordshire
Featherstone is a small village in the district of South Staffordshire, England, near to the border with Wolverhampton. Originally a farming community consisting of a few scattered farms. It is mentioned in the Domesday Book of 1086, and was owned by the Clergy of Wolverhampton Church...
near Junction 1 and then north of Bushbury
Bushbury
Bushbury is a suburb of Wolverhampton, West Midlands, England. It lies two miles north-east of Wolverhampton city centre, divided between the Bushbury North and Bushbury South and Low Hill wards.- Place name and history :...
before reaching Junction 2. Just before Junction 3 with Albrighton
Albrighton, Bridgnorth
Albrighton is a large village and civil parish in Shropshire, England. It is located to the northwest of Wolverhampton and is best described as a dormitory village for the city...
the road enters Shropshire. It then passes to the north of Shifnal
Shifnal
Shifnal is a small market town in Shropshire, England. It forms part of The Wrekin constituency, and is about east of Telford. It has a railway station on the Shrewsbury-Wolverhampton Line and is near to the M54 motorway.-Early medieval time:...
. Between Junction 4 and Junction 5, the road passes across the Wolverhampton to Shrewsbury railway line
Wolverhampton to Shrewsbury Line
The Wolverhampton to Shrewsbury Line is the railway line from Wolverhampton to Shrewsbury via Wellington; it was originally built by the Shrewsbury and Birmingham Railway. The line is double track throughout, with rarely used relief sidings at Cosford and 4 tracks through Wellington station...
, and through the centre of Telford
Telford
Telford is a large new town in the borough of Telford and Wrekin and ceremonial county of Shropshire, England, approximately east of Shrewsbury, and west of Birmingham...
. Between Junctions 6 and 7, the road runs around the south of Wellington before ending on the A5 (Map), which continues on to Shrewsbury
Shrewsbury
Shrewsbury is the county town of Shropshire, in the West Midlands region of England. Lying on the River Severn, it is a civil parish home to some 70,000 inhabitants, and is the primary settlement and headquarters of Shropshire Council...
as dual carriageway
Dual carriageway
A dual carriageway is a class of highway with two carriageways for traffic travelling in opposite directions separated by a central reservation...
.
Telford Motorway Service Station
Telford services
Telford Motorway Service Station was opened in 2004 off Junction 4 of the M54 Motorway, near the town of Telford, Shropshire. The services are located just to the east of Stafford Park Industrial Estate, and west of Shifnal....
was opened in 2004 off Junction 4, and is operated by Welcome Break
Welcome Break
Welcome Break is a company which operates thirty-five motorway service stations in the UK. It is the second largest motorway service area operator behind Moto.-History:...
. It is the only service station on the motorway and, if travelling east, the last before Corley
Corley services
Corley services is a motorway service station, between junctions 3 and 4 of the M6 motorway in the English county of Warwickshire. It is close to the village of Corley, with the nearest city being Coventry...
on the M6
M6 motorway
The M6 motorway runs from junction 19 of the M1 at the Catthorpe Interchange, near Rugby via Birmingham then heads north, passing Stoke-on-Trent, Manchester, Preston, Carlisle and terminating at the Gretna junction . Here, just short of the Scottish border it becomes the A74 which continues to...
or Frankley
Frankley services
Frankley services is a motorway service station on the M5 motorway between Junctions 3 and 4, near Birmingham, and taking its name from the nearby village of Frankley...
on the M5
M5 motorway
The M5 is a motorway in England. It runs from a junction with the M6 at West Bromwich near Birmingham to Exeter in Devon. Heading south-west, the M5 runs east of West Bromwich and west of Birmingham through Sandwell Valley...
.
M54 to M6 / M6 (Toll) Link Road
The M54 currently meets the M6 further at Junction 10a where there is no access to or from the northbound M6 or to the M6 TollM6 Toll
The M6 Toll , connects M6 Junction 4 at the NEC to M6 Junction 11A at Wolverhampton with of six-lane motorway. The weekday cash cost is £5.30 for a car and £10.60 for a HGV...
. Northbound access to the M6 is via the A449
A449 road
The A449 is a major road in the United Kingdom. It runs north from junction 24 of the M4 motorway at Newport in South Wales to Stafford in Staffordshire....
from Junction 2 and the most direct route to the M6 Toll to via the congested A460 from Junction 1.
Plans for a link road between the M54 and the M6 Toll (M6 Junction 11a) were supported in principle by the Secretary of State for Transport in 2003 and were put on display in 2006 with an expected construction date of 2012. The £102m cost for the scheme would be paid for by The Macquarie Infrastructure Group (the company that owns Midland Expressway Ltd and operates the M6 Toll). Since which there have been no further developments.
Other proposals
In February 2009, local newspaper the Shropshire StarShropshire Star
The Shropshire Star is a regional newspaper covering the whole of Shropshire, plus parts of Herefordshire, Worcestershire, Cheshire, the Llangollen area and northern Powys in the United Kingdom.-About:The editor is Keith Harrison....
reported plans to create a flyover
Overpass
An overpass is a bridge, road, railway or similar structure that crosses over another road or railway...
linking the M54 and A442
A442 road
The A442 is a main road which passes through the counties of Worcestershire and Shropshire, in the West Midlands region of England.-Route:From Droitwich in Worcestershire it runs towards Kidderminster where it meets the A449 from Worcester...
in Telford
Telford
Telford is a large new town in the borough of Telford and Wrekin and ceremonial county of Shropshire, England, approximately east of Shrewsbury, and west of Birmingham...
town centre, just south east of Telford Central railway station
Telford Central railway station
Telford Central railway station serves the new town of Telford, England. It is situated close to the town centre, the main commercial district of the town...
. Presently traffic has to travel along a single carriageway
Single carriageway
A single carriageway is a road with 1, 2 or more lanes arranged within a single carriageway with no central reservation to separate opposing flows of traffic. Two-lane road or two-lane highway are single carriageway with one lane for each direction...
portion of the A5, and pass through two roundabouts to access the M54. Since Junction 5 of the motorway is only 200 metres (218.7 yd) from the current bridge across the A442, the plans would involve either having two motorway junctions immediately next to each other, or one complex flyover. Both of these options seem unlikely due to a lack of space, and no other reference to these plans has been found outside of the newspaper article, which also documented the welcoming of the plans by the town's local MP, David Wright
David Wright (politician)
David Wright is a British Labour Party politician who has been the Member of Parliament for Telford since 2001. He was an assistant government whip from June 2009 to May 2010.-Early and personal life:...
.
Proposals for a 'Western Bypasses of Wolverhampton and Stourbridge' were rejected by the government in 2003.
Junctions
Data from driver location signsDriver location signs
Driver location signs are English highway route markers, first introduced in 2003, that complement distance marker posts. Both types of marker post display the distances from a nominal start point in kilometres...
are used to provide distance and carriageway identifier information.
{|class="wikitable"
|- align="center" bgcolor="0080d0" style="color: white;font-size:120%;"
| colspan=5 | M54 Motorway
|-
!scope="col"|mi
!scope="col"|km
!scope="col"| Eastbound exits (A Carriageway)
!scope="col"| Junction
!scope="col"| Westbound exits (B Carriageway)
|- align="center"
| 0.0
| 0.0
| Birmingham, Coventry
Coventry
Coventry is a city and metropolitan borough in the county of West Midlands in England. Coventry is the 9th largest city in England and the 11th largest in the United Kingdom. It is also the second largest city in the English Midlands, after Birmingham, with a population of 300,848, although...
, Walsall
Walsall
Walsall is a large industrial town in the West Midlands of England. It is located northwest of Birmingham and east of Wolverhampton. Historically a part of Staffordshire, Walsall is a component area of the West Midlands conurbation and part of the Black Country.Walsall is the administrative...
M6
| M6 J10A
52.6293°N 2.0479°W Eastern end of motorway
| Start of Motorway
|- align="center"
| 1.8
| 2.9
| Cannock
Cannock
Cannock is the most populous of three towns in the district of Cannock Chase in the central southern part of the county of Staffordshire in the West Midlands region of England....
A460
| J1
| Cannock A460
|- align="center"
| 3.5
| 5.6
| Wolverhampton
Wolverhampton
Wolverhampton is a city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands, England. For Eurostat purposes Walsall and Wolverhampton is a NUTS 3 region and is one of five boroughs or unitary districts that comprise the "West Midlands" NUTS 2 region...
, Stafford
Stafford
Stafford is the county town of Staffordshire, in the West Midlands region of England. It lies approximately north of Wolverhampton and south of Stoke-on-Trent, adjacent to the M6 motorway Junction 13 to Junction 14...
A449
| J2
| Wolverhampton A449
|- align="center"
|10.9
|17.6
| Wolverhampton (West) A41
A41 road
The A41 is a formerly-major trunk road in England that links London and Birkenhead, although it has now largely been superseded by motorways. It passes through or near various towns and cities including Watford, Hemel Hempstead, Aylesbury, Solihull, Birmingham, West Bromwich, Wolverhampton,...
| J3
| Weston, Whitchurch
Whitchurch, Shropshire
Whitchurch is a market town in Shropshire, England on the border between England and Wales. It is the oldest continuously inhabited town in Shropshire. According to the 2001 Census, the population of the town is 8,673, with a more recent estimate putting the population of the town at 8,934...
A41
|- align="center"
|15.7
|25.3
| Telford (East) A464
Kidderminster
Kidderminster
Kidderminster is a town, in the Wyre Forest district of Worcestershire, England. It is located approximately seventeen miles south-west of Birmingham city centre and approximately fifteen miles north of Worcester city centre. The 2001 census recorded a population of 55,182 in the town...
(A442
A442 road
The A442 is a main road which passes through the counties of Worcestershire and Shropshire, in the West Midlands region of England.-Route:From Droitwich in Worcestershire it runs towards Kidderminster where it meets the A449 from Worcester...
)
Telford Services
Telford services
Telford Motorway Service Station was opened in 2004 off Junction 4 of the M54 Motorway, near the town of Telford, Shropshire. The services are located just to the east of Stafford Park Industrial Estate, and west of Shifnal....
| J4
Services
| Telford (East) A464
Ironbridge
Ironbridge
Ironbridge is a settlement on the River Severn, at the heart of the Ironbridge Gorge, in Shropshire, England. It lies in the civil parish of The Gorge, in the borough of Telford and Wrekin...
(A442)
Telford Services
|- align="center"
|17.7
|28.5
| Telford (Centre) A5
| J5
52.6828°N 2.4472°W J5 - Telford turnoff
| Telford (Centre) B5072
|- align="center"
|19.3
|31.1
| Telford (West) A518
A518 road
The A518 is a road in the United Kingdom which runs from Uttoxeter, Staffordshire to Telford, Shropshire via Stafford and Newport. Between Uttoxeter and Stafford it is a single carriageway, with a staggered junction with the dual carriageway A51...
Whitchurch
Whitchurch, Shropshire
Whitchurch is a market town in Shropshire, England on the border between England and Wales. It is the oldest continuously inhabited town in Shropshire. According to the 2001 Census, the population of the town is 8,673, with a more recent estimate putting the population of the town at 8,934...
(A449)
Ironbridge
Ironbridge
Ironbridge is a settlement on the River Severn, at the heart of the Ironbridge Gorge, in Shropshire, England. It lies in the civil parish of The Gorge, in the borough of Telford and Wrekin...
A5223
| J6
| Telford (West) A518
|- align="center"
| rowspan="2"| 21.9
| rowspan="2"| 35.2
| Start of motorway
| rowspan="2"|J7
52.6914°N 2.5464°W Western end of motorway
| Wellington B5061
|- align="center"
| Wellington B5061
| Road continues as A5 to Shrewsbury
Shrewsbury
Shrewsbury is the county town of Shropshire, in the West Midlands region of England. Lying on the River Severn, it is a civil parish home to some 70,000 inhabitants, and is the primary settlement and headquarters of Shropshire Council...