The M60 motorway, Manchester Ring Motorway or Manchester Outer Ring Road is an orbital

motorway A controlled-access highway is a type of highway that has been designed for high-speed vehicular traffic, with all traffic flow—ingress and egress—regulated. Common English terms are freeway, motorway, and expressway. Other similar terms ...

North West England North West England is one of nine official regions of England and consists of the ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial counties of Cheshire, Cumbria, Greater Manchester, Lancashire and Merseyside. The North West had a population of 7,4 ...

. Built over a 40-year period, it passes through all of

Greater Manchester Greater Manchester is a ceremonial county in North West England. It borders Lancashire to the north, Derbyshire and West Yorkshire to the east, Cheshire to the south, and Merseyside to the west. Its largest settlement is the city of Manchester. ...

metropolitan borough A metropolitan borough (or metropolitan district) is a type of districts of England, local government district in England. Created in 1974 by the Local Government Act 1972, metropolitan boroughs are defined in English law as metropolitan distr ...

s except for

Wigan Wigan ( ) is a town in Greater Manchester, England. The town is midway between the two cities of Manchester, to the south-east, and Liverpool, to the south-west. It is the largest settlement in the Metropolitan Borough of Wigan and is its ad ...

and

Bolton Bolton ( , locally ) is a town in Greater Manchester in England. In the foothills of the West Pennine Moors, Bolton is between Manchester, Blackburn, Wigan, Bury, Greater Manchester, Bury and Salford. It is surrounded by several towns and vill ...

. Most of

Manchester Manchester () is a city and the metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester, England. It had an estimated population of in . Greater Manchester is the third-most populous metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, with a population of 2.92&nbs ...

is encompassed within the motorway, except for the southernmost part of the city (

Wythenshawe Wythenshawe () is an area of Manchester, England. Historically part of Cheshire, in 1931 Wythenshawe was transferred to the City of Manchester, which had begun building a large housing estate there in the 1920s. With an area of approximately , ...

and

Manchester Airport Manchester Airport is an international airport in Ringway, Manchester, England, south-west of Manchester city centre. In 2024, it was the third busiest airport in the United Kingdom in terms of passengers (the busiest outside of London) ...

) which is served by the M56. The M60 is long and was renamed the M60 in 1998, with parts of the M62, M66 and all of the M63 being amalgamated into the new route, and the circle completed in 2000. The road forms part of the unsigned Euroroutes E20 and E22 from junctions 12 to 18. In 2008, the M60 was proposed as a cordon for congestion charging in Greater Manchester, although this was rejected in a referendum relating to the Greater Manchester Transport Innovation Fund.

History

The M60 was developed by connecting and consolidating the existing motorway sections of the M63, M62, and an extended M66. It came into existence as the M60 in 1998, followed by the completion of the eastern side (junctions 19–23) opening in October 2000. The original plan called for a completely new motorway, but policy change led to the plan which created the current motorway. As soon as it opened, the motorway came close to its projected maximum volume on significant sections. It is an orbital motorway, and in 2004, a section of the northern M60 was the UK's busiest stretch of road, with an average of 181,000 vehicles per day using the stretch between junctions 16 and 17. Usually, the western side of the

M25 motorway The M25 or London Orbital Motorway is a major ring road encircling most of Greater London. The motorway is one of the most important roads in the UK and one of the busiest. Margaret Thatcher opened the final section in 1986, making the M25 th ...

holds that distinction, but the M25's figures at the time were lower than normal due to roadworks starting. In 2006, the section between junctions 5 and 6 was widened from three to four lanes each way and the section between junctions 6 and 8 was widened from two to three lanes each way with an additional two-lane collector/distributor road on either side of the main carriageways. Access for junctions 6 to 8 is only from the collector/distributor road. Some of the junctions were extensively re-modelled. As part of the project, the A6144(M) motorway, which connected to the M60 at junction 8, was downgraded and lost its motorway status. The Greater Manchester congestion charge which would have affected drivers only during peak times coming off the M60 towards Manchester was rejected by a referendum on 12 December 2008. Work to upgrade two sections of the M60 to a managed motorway system had been planned to commence in 2013. This would have included a new lane from junction 12 to 15 and a new lane from junction 8 to 12 near the

Trafford Centre The Trafford Centre is a large indoor shopping centre and entertainment complex in Trafford Park, Greater Manchester, England. It opened in 1998 and is third largest in the United Kingdom by retail space. Originally developed by the Peel Grou ...

. Both these projects were subsequently cancelled in favour of a new project that includes speed cameras on this section but no additional lane or hard-shoulder running. An 'environmental assessment' was cited as the reason an additional lane was not provided. A combined approach was initiated in 2014, comprising managed motorway system and lane gain scheme. Work commenced in July 2014, and the full stretch of smart motorway became fully operational on 31 July 2018. There are no motorway service areas on the M60. The closest service area is at Birch Services on the M62 heading eastwards.

M60 genealogy

Legislation

Each

in England requires that a statutory instrument be published, detailing the route of the road, before it can be built. The dates given on these statutory instruments relate to when the document was published, and not when the road was built. Provided below is an incomplete list of statutory instruments relating to the route of the M60. * Statutory Instrument 1988 No. 1708: M66 Motorway (Manchester Ring Road, Denton to Middleton Section) and Connecting Roads Scheme 198
S.I. 1988/1708
* Statutory Instrument 1988 No. 1728: M66 Motorway (Middleton to the Lancashire/Yorkshire Motorway (M62) Section) and Connecting Roads Scheme 198

* Statutory Instrument 1993 No. 363: M66 Motorway (Manchester Outer Ring Road, Denton to Middleton Section) A663 Broadway All-Purpose Connecting Road Order 199

* Statutory Instrument 1993 No. 364: M66 Motorway (Manchester Outer Ring Road, Denton to Middleton Section) and Connecting Roads Scheme 1988 Amendment Scheme 199

* Statutory Instrument 1999 No. 2724: The M60 Motorway (Improvement Between Junctions 5 and 8) Connecting Roads Scheme 199

* Statutory Instrument 2002 No. 2403: The M60 Motorway (Junction 25) (Speed Limit) Regulations 200

Junctions

The junctions on the M60 are very closely spaced together, with an average distance of between junctions. The recommended junction spacing for motorways is every . By comparison, the

M6 motorway The M6 motorway is the longest motorway in the United Kingdom. It is located entirely within England, running for just over from the Midlands to the border with Scotland. It begins at Junction 19 of the M1 motorway, M1 and the western end of t ...

has an average distance of between junctions. The entire length of the M60 lies within the ceremonial county of Greater Manchester. {, class="plainrowheaders wikitable" , - !scope=col, Location !scope=col, mi !scope=col, km !scope=col, Junction !scope=col, Destinations !scope=col, Notes , - ,

Stockport Stockport is a town in Greater Manchester, England, south-east of Manchester, south-west of Ashton-under-Lyne and north of Macclesfield. The River Goyt, Rivers Goyt and River Tame, Greater Manchester, Tame merge to create the River Mersey he ...

, 0 , 0 , 1 , -

, , - , rowspan="2", Cheadle , 1.5 , 2.4 , bgcolor="ffdddd" , 2 , bgcolor="ffdddd" , - Cheadle , bgcolor="ffdddd" , No Eastbound entrance or Westbound exit , - , , , bgcolor="ffdddd" , 3 , bgcolor="ffdddd" , - Cheadle,

Wilmslow Wilmslow ( ) is a market town and civil parish in the borough of Cheshire East in Cheshire, England. It is south of Manchester. At the 2021 United Kingdom census, 2021 census the parish had a population of 26,213 and the built up area had a p ...

, bgcolor="ffdddd" , No exits going Northbound or entrances from North , - ,

Gatley Gatley is a suburb in the Metropolitan Borough of Stockport, Greater Manchester, England, 3 miles north-east of Manchester Airport. History Toponymy Within the boundaries of the Historic counties of England, historic county of Cheshire, in 12 ...

, , , bgcolor="ffdddd" , 4 , bgcolor="ffdddd" , -

Chester Chester is a cathedral city in Cheshire, England, on the River Dee, Wales, River Dee, close to the England–Wales border. With a built-up area population of 92,760 in 2021, it is the most populous settlement in the borough of Cheshire West an ...

Warrington Warrington () is an industrial town in the Borough of Warrington, borough of the same name in Cheshire, England. The town sits on the banks of the River Mersey and was Historic counties of England, historically part of Lancashire. It is east o ...

, bgcolor="ffdddd" , No exit Eastbound or entrance Westbound , - ,

, 4.5 , 7.3 , bgcolor="ffdddd" , 5 , bgcolor="ffdddd" , - Central Manchester,

Didsbury Didsbury is a suburb of Manchester, England, on the north bank of the River Mersey, south of Manchester city centre. The population at the United Kingdom Census 2011, 2011 census was 26,788. Within the boundaries of the Historic counties of ...

, bgcolor="ffdddd" , No exits North or entrances from South going East

No exits South or entrances from North going West , - , rowspan="3", Sale , 6.0 , 9.7 , 6 , - Sale , , - , 6.8 , 10.9 , 7 , - Central Manchester,

Stretford Stretford is a market town in Trafford, Greater Manchester, England, sited on flat ground between the River Mersey and the Manchester Ship Canal; the Bridgewater Canal bisects the town. The town is located south of Manchester, south of Salfo ...

Altrincham Altrincham ( , locally ) is a market town in Trafford, Greater Manchester, England, south of the River Mersey. It is southwest of Manchester, southwest of Sale, Greater Manchester, Sale and east of Warrington. At the 2021 United Kingdom ce ...

, , - , 7.5 , 12.0 , 8 , - Carrington , , - , rowspan="2", Urmston , 9.3 , 15.0 , 9 , -

Trafford Park Trafford Park is an area of the metropolitan borough of Trafford, Greater Manchester, England, opposite Salford Quays on the southern side of the Manchester Ship Canal, southwest of Manchester city centre and north of Stretford. Until the la ...

B5158 - Urmston , , - , 10.3 , 16.5 , 10 , B5158 -

, Urmston , , - , rowspan="2", Eccles , 11.4 , 18.4 , 11 , - Eccles,

Irlam Irlam is a suburb in the City of Salford, Greater Manchester, England. In 2011, it had a population of 19,933. It lies on flat ground on the south side of the M62 motorway and the north bank of the Manchester Ship Canal, southwest of Salf ...

, , - , 12.2 , 19.7 , 12 , -

Liverpool Liverpool is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. It is situated on the eastern side of the River Mersey, Mersey Estuary, near the Irish Sea, north-west of London. With a population ...

- Central Manchester,

Salford Salford ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city in Greater Manchester, England, on the western bank of the River Irwell which forms its boundary with Manchester city centre. Landmarks include the former Salford Town Hall, town hall, ...

, , - , rowspan="3", Worsley , 13.0 , 21.0 , 13 , - Swinton
- Worsley, Leigh , , - , 14.1 , 22.7 , bgcolor="ffdddd" , 14 , bgcolor="ffdddd" , - St. Helens,

Leigh Leigh may refer to: Places In England Pronounced : * Leigh, Greater Manchester, Borough of Wigan ** Leigh (UK Parliament constituency) * Leigh-on-Sea, Essex Pronounced : * Leigh, Dorset * Leigh, Gloucestershire * Leigh, Kent * Leigh, Staffor ...

, bgcolor="ffdddd" , Northbound entrance from East and Southbound exit going West only , - , , , 15 , - Preston,

, , - , Clifton , 16.3 , 26.2 , bgcolor="ffdddd" , 16 , bgcolor="ffdddd" , -

, Kearsley , bgcolor="ffdddd" , No entrance Eastbound or exit Westbound , - , rowspan="2", Whitefield , 18.5 , 29.7 , 17 , - Central Manchester, Prestwich, Whitefield , , - , 19.8 , 31.8 , 18 , -

Leeds Leeds is a city in West Yorkshire, England. It is the largest settlement in Yorkshire and the administrative centre of the City of Leeds Metropolitan Borough, which is the second most populous district in the United Kingdom. It is built aro ...

Huddersfield Huddersfield is a town in the Metropolitan Borough of Kirklees in West Yorkshire, England. It is the administrative centre and largest settlement in the Kirklees district. The town is in the foothills of the Pennines. The River Holme's confl ...

- Bury,

Burnley Burnley () is a town and the administrative centre of the wider Borough of Burnley in Lancashire, England, with a 2021 population of 78,266. It is north of Manchester and east of Preston, at the confluence of the River Calder and River B ...

Blackburn Blackburn () is an industrial town and the administrative centre of the Blackburn with Darwen borough in Lancashire, England. The town is north of the West Pennine Moors on the southern edge of the River Ribble, Ribble Valley, east of Preston ...

, , - , rowspan="2", Middleton , 21.0 , 33.8 , 19 , - Central Manchester, Middleton , , - , 22.6 , 36.4 , bgcolor="ffdddd" , 20 , bgcolor="ffdddd" , - Middleton,

Blackley Blackley is a suburban area of Manchester, in the county of Greater Manchester, England. Historically in Lancashire, it is approximately north of Manchester city centre, on the River Irk. History The hamlet of Blackley was mentioned in the Do ...

, bgcolor="ffdddd" , No Westbound exit or Eastbound entrance , - , Whitegate , 24.7 , 39.8 , 21 , - Central Manchester,

Rochdale Rochdale ( ) is a town in Greater Manchester, England, and the administrative centre of the Metropolitan Borough of Rochdale. In the United Kingdom 2021 Census, 2021 Census, the town had a population of 111,261, compared to 223,773 for the wid ...

, Chadderton , , - , Failsworth , 26.3 , 42.3 , bgcolor="ffdddd" , 22 , bgcolor="ffdddd" , - Central Manchester,

Oldham Oldham is a town in Greater Manchester, England. It lies amongst the Pennines on elevated ground between the rivers River Irk, Irk and River Medlock, Medlock, southeast of Rochdale, and northeast of Manchester. It is the administrative cent ...

, bgcolor="ffdddd" , No entrance North-Eastbound , - , Ashton under Lyne , 28.6 , 46.0 , 23 , - Ashton under Lyne
- Ashton under Lyne , , - , Denton , 30.6 , 49.3 , 24 , - Hyde, Sheffield
- Central Manchester, Denton , , - , rowspan="4",

, , , bgcolor="ffdddd" , 25 , bgcolor="ffdddd" , - Bredbury , bgcolor="ffdddd" , no entrances to M60 South-Westbound , - , , , bgcolor="ffdddd" , 26 , bgcolor="ffdddd" , -

, bgcolor="ffdddd" , No entrances or exits going East

No exits to A560 going east or exits from A560 going west , - , , , bgcolor="ffdddd" , 27 , bgcolor="ffdddd" , -

, bgcolor="ffdddd" , No South-Westbound exit or North-Eastbound entrance , - , 36.1 , 58.1 , colspan="3" align="center", Motorway continues to junction 1 ;Coordinate list {, border=1 cellpadding=2 style="margin-left:1em; margin-bottom: 1em; color: black; border-collapse: collapse; font-size: 100%;" class="wikitable mw-collapsible mw-collapsed" , + , - align="center" bgcolor="0080d0" style="color: white;font-size:120%;" , colspan="5" , M60 motorway junctions , - align="center" bgcolor="000000" style="color: white" , mile , km , Anti-clockwise exits (B Carriageway) , Junction , Clockwise exits (A Carriageway) , - align="center" , 0.0 , 0.0 ,

(West & Centre) A5145 , J1 ,

(West) A5145 , - align="center" , 1.5 , 2.4 , Cheadle A560 , J2 , ''No access (on-slip only)'' , - align="center" , , , Cheadle,

A34 , J3 , Cheadle,

A34 , - align="center" , , , ''No access (on-slip only)'' , J4 ,

Birmingham Birmingham ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands (county), West Midlands, within the wider West Midlands (region), West Midlands region, in England. It is the Lis ...

(M6) M56 , - align="center" , 4.5 , 7.3 ,

(M6) A5103 (M56) , J5 ,

(C),

A5103 , - align="center" , 6.0 , 9.7 , Sale A6144 , J6 , Sale A6144 , - align="center" , 6.8 , 10.9 ,

(C),

A56 , J7 ,

(C),

A56 , - align="center" , rowspan=2, 7.5 , rowspan=2, 12.0 , ''End of variable speed limit'' UK traffic sign 671

, rowspan=2, J8 , Carrington A6144 , - align="center" , Carrington A6144 , ''Start of variable speed limit'' UK traffic sign 879

, - align="center" , 9.3 , 15.0 ,

, Trafford Centre A5081 , J9 , Urmston B5158,

A5081 , - align="center" , 10.3 , 16.5 ,

, Urmston B5214 , J10 ,

B5214 , - align="center" , 11.4 , 18.4 , Eccles,

A57 , J11 ,

, Eccles A57 , - align="center" , 12.2 , 19.7 ,

(C),

M602
(M6),

M62 , J12 ,

M62

(C),

M602 , - align="center" , 13.0 , 21.0 , Swinton A572, Worsley A575 , J13 , Worsley,

A575, Swinton A572 , - align="center" , 14.1 , 22.7 , St. Helens,

A580 , J14 , ''No access (on-slip only)'' , - align="center" , , , (M6 North), Preston,

M61 , J15 , Preston,

M61 , - align="center" , 16.3 , 26.2 ,

, Kearsley A666 , J16 , ''No access (on-slip only)'' , - align="center" , 18.5 , 29.7 ,

City Centre, Prestwich, Whitefield A56 , J17 , Whitefield, Prestwich A56 , - align="center" , rowspan=2, 19.8 , rowspan=2, 31.8 , ''Start of variable speed limit'' UK traffic sign 879

, rowspan=2, J18
UK traffic sign 543

TOTSO ,

, Bury M66

M62 , - align="center" ,

M62
Bury,

M66 , ''End of variable speed limit'' UK traffic sign 671

, - align="center" , 21.0 , 33.8 , Middleton A576 , J19 ,

City Centre, Middleton A576 , - align="center" , 22.6 , 36.4 , ''No access (on-slip only)'' , J20 , Middleton,

A664 , - align="center" , 24.7 , 39.8 ,

, (A627(M)), Chadderton (A663) , J21 ,

City Centre, Chadderton (A663) , - align="center" , 26.3 , 42.3 ,

City Centre,

A62 , J22 ,

A62 , - align="center" , 28.6 , 46.0 ,

Ashton-under-Lyne Ashton-under-Lyne is a market town in Tameside, Greater Manchester, England. The population was 48,604 at the 2021 census. Historic counties of England, Historically in Lancashire, it is on the north bank of the River Tame, Greater Manchester, ...

A6140 , J23 ,

A635 , - align="center" , 30.6 , 49.3 ,

City Centre, Denton A57, Hyde,

Sheffield Sheffield is a city in South Yorkshire, England, situated south of Leeds and east of Manchester. The city is the administrative centre of the City of Sheffield. It is historically part of the West Riding of Yorkshire and some of its so ...

(M67) , J24 , Denton A57, Hyde,

(M67)

City Centre A57 , - align="center" , , , Bredbury A560 , J25 , Bredbury A560 , - align="center" , , , ''No access'' , J26 ,

(E&C) A560 , - align="center" , , ,

(East) A560 , J27 , ''No access (on-slip only)'' , - align="center" , 36.1 , 58.1 , colspan="3", ''Motorway continues to J1''
Data from driver location signs is used to provide distance and carriageway identifier information.

Incidents

*On 27 May 2021 a car being chased by Greater Manchester Police deliberately drove the wrong direction on the motorway, colliding head-on with another car. Both drivers died. The accident triggered an investigation by the Independent Office of Police Conduct.

References

External links

Highways Agency - M60 Jct 5 to 8 (formerly M63 Jct 6 to 9) wideningGuide to the M60 Smart Motorway Construction

History

M60 genealogy

Legislation

Junctions

Incidents

See also

References

External links

Further reading