M6 stopped traffic J16–J17 northbound

Stopped traffic on the M6 northbound at J16–J17 on Sunday 25 October 2026, from 12:38. Cleared at 15:14 after 2 h 36 min. Timeline of reports from TomTom, the motorway signs and National Highways.

Status

Cleared 15:14 on 25 Oct 2026, after 2 h 36 min

Location

M6 northbound · J16–J17

Reported as

Broken-down vehicle

Lanes

2 of 3 lanes closed

At its worst

Stationary traffic · delay ~31 min

Sources

TomTom ×4 · Motorway signs ×4 · National Highways ×3

Timeline

1. Sun 12:38 TomTom: queueing traffic, “Queuing traffic”, delay ~6 min
2. Sun 12:44 Motorway signs: “DEBRIS IN ROAD”
3. Sun 12:46 Motorway signs: “OBSTRUCTION”
4. Sun 12:47 National Highways: 1 of 3 lanes closed
5. Sun 12:57 TomTom: queueing traffic, “Queuing traffic”, delay ~10 min
6. Sun 13:01 TomTom: delay now ~15 min (was ~10)
7. Sun 13:10 TomTom: queueing traffic, “Stationary traffic”, delay ~14 min
8. Sun 13:15 TomTom: queueing traffic, “Stationary traffic”, delay ~23 min (reported again)
9. Sun 13:23 Motorway signs: “STRANDED VEHICLE”
10. Sun 13:23 National Highways: 2 of 3 lanes closed
11. Sun 13:23 National Highways: 2 of 3 lanes closed
12. Sun 13:29 TomTom: delay now ~30 min (was ~23)
13. Sun 13:33 TomTom: queueing traffic, “Stationary traffic”, delay ~13 min
14. Sun 13:34 Motorway signs no longer show “DEBRIS IN ROAD”
15. Sun 13:56 Motorway signs: “REPORT OF OBSTRUCTION”
16. Sun 14:16 National Highways: lane closure lifted
17. Sun 14:16 All clear: no source reports it any more
18. Sun 14:24 TomTom: delay now ~27 min (was ~18)
19. Sun 14:34 Motorway signs no longer show “STRANDED VEHICLE”
20. Sun 14:34 Motorway signs no longer show “REPORT OF OBSTRUCTION”
21. Sun 14:51 TomTom: “Queuing traffic”
22. Sun 14:56 TomTom: delay now ~9 min (was ~14), “Slow traffic”
23. Sun 14:56 National Highways: lane closure lifted
24. Sun 15:04 Motorway signs no longer show “OBSTRUCTION”
25. Sun 15:14 TomTom no longer reports it
26. Sun 15:14 All clear: no source reports it any more

Source reports

• Queuing traffic
• Slow traffic
• Overhead signs read “DEBRIS IN ROAD” (1 sign; furthest along: M6 northbound between J17 and J18).
• Overhead signs read “OBSTRUCTION” (2 signs; furthest along: M6 northbound between J18 and J19).
• Stationary traffic
• M6 northbound between J18 and J19
• Overhead signs read “STRANDED VEHICLE” (3 signs; furthest along: M6 northbound between J16 and J17).
• M6 northbound between J16 and J17
• Overhead signs read “REPORT OF OBSTRUCTION” (1 sign; furthest along: M6 southbound within J17).

Other recent incidents on the M6

• M6 reported crash J16–J15 southboundyesterday 13:25 · cleared after 56 min
• M6 stopped traffic J6–J7 northboundyesterday 11:58 · cleared after 2 h 22 min
• M6 crash J18–J19 southboundyesterday 11:12 · cleared after 59 min
• M6 crash J23–J22 southboundyesterday 06:45 · cleared after 3 h 4 min
• M6 stopped traffic J9–J10yesterday 06:09 · cleared after 3 h 17 min
• M6 crash J4 southboundyesterday 05:53 · cleared after 3 h 52 min
• M6 stopped traffic J10–J9 southboundSun 18:24 · cleared after 4 h 40 min
• M6 crash J15–J14 southboundSun 16:45 · cleared after 14 h 4 min
• M6 stopped traffic J18–J19 northboundSun 16:02 · cleared after 1 h 31 min
• M6 crash J13–J14 northboundSun 14:01 · cleared after 43 min

Live traffic and past incidents at M6 J16 and M6 J17.

The sources don't report causes or injuries, so neither does this page. Times are UK time. For alerts, follow @motorways.me on Bluesky.