The M96: Britain’s Secret Motorway
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Did you know that there’s a small stretch of motorway that sees more major accidents every year than any other road in the UK?
Located in the rural landscapes of Gloucestershire, the M96 is a motorway you’ve probably never heard of, and for good reason, because it’s closed off to the public.
The purpose of this secret mock motorway is to train fire crews how to correctly handle real-life road accidents. Designed to look exactly like a typical British motorway, the M96 is built on the site of a disused airfield and often contains lots of old damaged cars left over from the various emergency simulations that it hosts.
The facility is located at the Fire Service College in Moreton-in-Marsha and frequently runs exercises to help emergency service crews. Multiple incidents can be safely carried out at the same time in a realistic environment that doesn’t cause disruption to the public.
If you ever visit the site you’ll see features such as a large overhead gantry, a refuge with a phone, several realistic road signs and a hard shoulder. The three-lane stretch of road measures just 400 metres in length and ends with a sharp right turn into a dead end, making it unofficially the shortest motorway in the UK.