UK Traffic Updates
Find traffic updates, service providers, tools & more
M42 traffic at 14:13 on Tuesday 3 November: 1 live incident · 1 closure tonight.
From National Highways' closure report, in their words. Times can change - check before you set off.
Checked 14:13 on Tuesday 3 November 2026.
No. There is no full closure on the M42 at 14:13. 1 live incident is on the board above.
Yes. 1 live incident on the M42 at 14:13: congestion, northbound J5A–J8 near Solihull (reported 13:46). Every one is on the live board above.
Yes. The M42 has 1 full closure planned tonight (Tue 3 Nov, 18:00 to 06:00): southbound Jct 7a to 6 carriageway closure, 21:00 to 06:00. Diversion: Diversions are via National Highways and local authority networks.
Tonight: M42 closures and diversions ›Yes. The M42 has 1 full closure planned this weekend (Fri 6 Nov 18:00 to Mon 9 Nov 06:00): southbound Jct 7a to 6 carriageway closure, Fri 21:00 to 06:00. Plus 1 lane or slip road closure. Diversion: Diversions are via National Highways and local authority networks.
This weekend: M42 closures and diversions ›No. No collision has been reported on the M42 since midnight.
M42 accidents today and yesterday ›Answers use official data only: the National Highways live incident feed and their planned closure report. Times can change, so check before you set off.
Tap a pin for full incident detail. Live positions from National Highways.
A map only helps once you’ve opened it. These come to you, about the roads you drive, before you set off.
One email a day covering major incidents on the roads you pick.
| Feature | Free summary | Early Warning |
|---|---|---|
| When you hear | Once a day | As it builds |
| Queues and congestion | Major incidents only | On your roads |
| Your own alert hours | No | Yes |
| Email and Telegram | Both | |
| Cost | Free | 7 days free, then £2.99 a month |
7 days free, then £2.99 a month (Commuter Alert). Renews monthly until you cancel. Cancel within the 7 days and you won’t be charged.
🟢 Clear · 🟡 Delays nearby · 🔴 Severe/Crash · Status labels: 💥 CRASH · ❌ CLOSED · 🐌 SLOW · 🚧 WORKS · ⚠️ HAZARD
A red or orange junction border marks a STATS19 collision blackspot. Tap any junction for its own page — live incidents and full collision history. Tap the funnel to filter the list above.
The M42 carries up to 136,724 vehicles a day at its busiest stretch (J4–J5), including 14,082 HGVs — the 12th busiest motorway in Britain. Official Department for Transport counts, 2025.
| Road | Busiest stretch | Vehicles/day | HGVs/day | HGV share |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| M25 | near J14 | 212,636 | 14,853 | 7% |
| M6 | J20–J21 | 187,521 | 23,492 | 12.5% |
| M56 | J3–J4 | 179,634 | 7,547 | 4.2% |
| M1 | near J9 | 162,446 | 19,151 | 11.8% |
| M8 | J16–J17 | 158,065 | 7,214 | 4.6% |
| M4 | near J4 | 156,491 | 6,249 | 4% |
| M42 ◀ | J4–J5 | 136,724 | 14,082 | 10.3% |
Measured from 83 incidents recorded on the M42 since February 2026: the riskiest window is 13:00–16:00, when 33% of incidents start. Right now (14:00) you're inside that window.
| Hour | Incidents | Share |
|---|---|---|
| 00:00–01:00 | 2 | 2.4% |
| 01:00–02:00 | 1 | 1.2% |
| 02:00–03:00 | 1 | 1.2% |
| 03:00–04:00 | 1 | 1.2% |
| 04:00–05:00 | 2 | 2.4% |
| 05:00–06:00 | 3 | 3.6% |
| 06:00–07:00 | 3 | 3.6% |
| 07:00–08:00 | 4 | 4.8% |
| 08:00–09:00 | 2 | 2.4% |
| 09:00–10:00 | 2 | 2.4% |
| 10:00–11:00 | 4 | 4.8% |
| 11:00–12:00 | 4 | 4.8% |
| 12:00–13:00 | 10 | 12% |
| 13:00–14:00 ◀ peak | 7 | 8.4% |
| 14:00–15:00 ◀ peak | 8 | 9.6% |
| 15:00–16:00 ◀ peak | 12 | 14.5% |
| 16:00–17:00 | 5 | 6% |
| 17:00–18:00 | 4 | 4.8% |
| 18:00–19:00 | 2 | 2.4% |
| 19:00–20:00 | 1 | 1.2% |
| 20:00–21:00 | 3 | 3.6% |
| 21:00–22:00 | 0 | 0% |
| 22:00–23:00 | 1 | 1.2% |
| 23:00–00:00 | 1 | 1.2% |
The places people drive to most, the M42 junction for each, and live M42 incidents nearby at 14:13.
13.66 million passengers in 2025; reached via M42 J6 and the A45 (from the M6, leave at J4A onto the M42)
Exhibition centre by M42 J6 with 16,500 parking spaces and shuttle buses
Around 700,000 visitors a year; £4 parking per vehicle
Test cricket ground with about 25,000 seats; main entrance on Edgbaston Road
Based on DfT STATS19 police collision records. The M42 has 587 recorded collisions at 12 collision hotspots, involving 964 casualties (12 fatal). Take extra care here. Ranked by fatal, then serious collisions, then casualties - not by the number of collisions alone.
GATARN First Aid Kit Bag 220…
19.99 Buy on eBay →
Electric Air Pump Tyre Infla…
20.69 Buy on eBay →
9000A Car Jump Starter Air C…
26.99 Buy on eBay →
Blukar Car Phone Holder, Air…
7.49 Buy on eBay →
12-in-1 Car Emergency Breakd…
14.99 Buy on eBay →
600G POWDER FIRE EXTINGUISHE…
15.93 Buy on eBay →
Car Dash Cam With 32GB SD Ca…
29.95 Buy on eBay →
Nextbase 222X Front and Rear…
69.00 Buy on eBay →
65PCS Heavy Duty Tyre Punctu…
10.95 Buy on eBay →
24Pcs Car Window Door Emerge…
21.58 Buy on eBay →
🛒
Browse the full shop
Dash cams, kits, tools & more
See everything →
This is the M42 traffic news page from UK Traffic Updates: M42 traffic now, for the whole road from Bromsgrove (M5 J1) to Tamworth (A5). Every crash, breakdown, lane closure, delay and roadworks National Highways report for the M42 is listed at the top, checked every 5 minutes, 24 hours a day, with the worst on the sign and where it is: the nearest towns and the county.
National Highways has closed its Traffic England website, so the live M42 information people used to check there is here in one place: today's M42 incidents, M42 closures tonight from their daily closure report, M42 roadworks, M42 accidents today, the junction-by-junction status and a live map. Our M42 traffic videos show what it looks like on the road, and drivers can report what they see as it happens.
Want M42 traffic updates sent to you? Pick the free daily road summary or Early Warning alerts for the roads you drive. For every other motorway and A-road, see live UK traffic now.
Any M42 closure appears in the live feed above within minutes of National Highways reporting it, including tonight's overnight roadworks closures.
There is currently 1 active incident on the M42. The live feed above is updated every 5 minutes, 24 hours a day, from National Highways.
Yes — 1 live incident on the M42 at 14:13: congestion. Every one is on the live board above, direct from National Highways.
The M42 is typically busiest during morning rush hour (07:00–09:30) and evening rush hour (16:30–19:30) on weekdays.
Roadworks and overnight closures on the M42 are listed above and at /traffic/m42/roadworks/, taken from the National Highways daily closure report.
The M42 connects to: M5, M40, M6, M6 Toll.
Right here. This M42 traffic news page shows M42 traffic now: every live incident, delay, closure and roadworks National Highways report, updated every 5 minutes, 24 hours a day, with tonight's planned closures, junction-by-junction status and a live map. For M42 traffic updates sent to you, sign up on this page for the free daily road summary or Early Warning alerts for the roads you drive.
Each side has its own live page: the M42 northbound (towards Tamworth) and the M42 southbound (towards Bromsgrove) each list every accident, breakdown, closure and roadworks on that carriageway, updated every 5 minutes, 24 hours a day, from National Highways. The panel at the top of this page shows both sides at a glance.
Official Department for Transport counts (2025) record 136,724 vehicles a day on the M42's busiest stretch (J4–J5), 14,082 of them HGVs. The full breakdown and comparison chart are in the traffic statistics section above.
The M42 has the 12th busiest motorway stretch in Britain at 136,724 vehicles a day (DfT 2025), behind the M25's 212,636 a day at the top.
Measured from 83 incidents recorded on the M42 since February 2026, the riskiest window is 13:00–16:00, when 33% of incidents start. The quietest is 21:00–00:00. Incidents on the M42 typically clear in about 65 minutes.
Birmingham Airport is reached from M42 junction 6 via the A45, with the NEC and Birmingham International station on the same junction.
Daily M42 incidents, posted across all four channels.
🎵 TikTok 35,000+ › ▶️ YouTube 2,000+ › 📸 Instagram 1,500+ › 📘 Facebook 800+ › 📢Report an incident›Set it up once. We'll tell you what's happening while you can still turn off.
Broken down on the M42? Pick the nearest town and call a local firm direct:
On a motorway? If you can, get onto the hard shoulder or into an emergency area, leave by the left-hand doors and wait behind the barrier. Stuck in a live lane: stay in the car with your seatbelt on and hazard lights on, and call 999.