POLICE are appealing for witnesses and video footage following a fatal collision on the M6 in Cheshire which resulted in the M6 Northbound being closed for most of today.
At 8.07am on Tuesday 7 September police were called to reports of a serious collision on the northbound carriageway between junctions 17 (Sandbach) and 18 (Middlewich).
Officers attended the scene and found that a blue and white HGV had collided with a railway bridge.
Sadly the driver of the HGV, a man in his 60’s, died at the scene. His next of kin have been informed.
There were no other vehicles involved in the incident.
The northbound carriageway remains closed at the current time while recovery work is undertaken. The closure is expected to remain in place for several hours.
Enquiries in relation to the incident are ongoing and officers are keen to hear from anyone who witnessed the collision, or anyone with any CCTV or dashcam footage which may aid the investigation.
Anyone with any information is asked to call Cheshire police on 101, or visit www.cheshire.police.uk/tua , quoiting IML 1079063.
The northbound carriageway is not expected to reopen before this evening’s peak traffic hours because a police-led investigation will be carried out at the scene and a spillage of 800 litres of diesel is also being cleared.
There is a two-hour delay stretching back 6.5 miles on the approach to the scene. All trapped traffic has been released by temporarily opening lane 4 and also turning around vehicles.
National Highways Traffic Operations Manager Chris Martin said: “The northbound carriageway will need to be closed for some time and we would advise road users to avoid travelling in the local area and use alternative routes if possible.”
Road users are advised to follow the solid diamond diversion route, however please be-aware that there is a low railway bridge on this route:
Leave the M6 at J17
Then turn right on to the A534 eastbound (Congleton Road)
At the A534/A50 junction, turn left onto the A50 northbound (Newcastle road). Please note there is a low railway bridge 16’0” (4.3m) on this route near Holmes Chapel, where a small separate diversion is in place.
At A50/A54 junction, turn left on to the A54 westbound (Middlewich road)
At the A54/M6 J18 roundabout, take the 3rd exit to re-join the M6 northbound.
This incident is causing delays of over 120 minutes above the normal travel time and 8.2 miles of congestion on approach to the northbound closure. The diversion route is also very heavily congested.
The southbound carriageway has now been released after being held. There are 60 minutes of residual delays southbound and 7.3 miles of congestion.
Please consider alternative routes where possible.
Road users travelling northbound from further afield are advised to use the M42, M1 and the M62 if travelling to the northwest.
Further information is available from Highways England by visiting our www.trafficengland.com website and travel apps, or via our regional twitter feed. Our 24/7 contact centre team is also available to provide up to the minute information on 0300 123 5000.
Update 16:00 – https://t.co/RR1EgbnJDP
— Cheshire Police (@cheshirepolice) September 7, 2021
For further information regarding this #M6 closure, including the diversion route via the solid diamond please visit – https://t.co/OJOytepPP6
There are currently delays of over 60 minutes above the usual travel time. Please take care on approach and consider alternative routes. pic.twitter.com/K66Sg1SxT9— National Highways: North-West (@HighwaysNWEST) September 7, 2021
#m6 pic.twitter.com/VrgjB34Bb0
— Joeells91 (@joeells91) September 7, 2021
