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M56
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M56 Traffic News

M56 North Cheshire Motorway · Manchester (M60 J4) → Chester (M53)
M56 TRAFFIC NOW
M56 EASTBOUND J7 TO 6CLOSED 22:00–06:00PLANNED CLOSURE TONIGHT
Planned tonight, 1 of 1
Clear ⏱ Updated 14:04

M56 traffic at 14:04 on Tuesday 3 November: 1 closure tonight.

M56 traffic now: accidents & incidents by direction at 14:04
→ M56 eastbound traffictowards Manchester✅ No incidents reported ← M56 westbound traffictowards Chester✅ No incidents reported
🚨 0 incidents 🚧 0 roadworks · 9 soon
🔍
33 miles long
Junctions J1–J15
Regions: North West
Home › Traffic › Roads › M56

🚨 M56 traffic now: live incidents & roadworks

Updates every 5 min
Share M56 status: 💬 📘 X
No live incidents on the M56 right now — checking National Highways every 5 minutes, 24/7. Closures are listed below.

🌙 M56 closures tonight and the next 3 days 9

From National Highways' closure report, in their words. Times can change - check before you set off.

  • Full closure
    Eastbound M56 eastbound jct 7 to 6 carriageway closure
    Tonight · 22:00–06:00
  • Partial closure
    Westbound M56 Westbound to M53 Northbound link road closure
    Tonight · 20:00–06:00
  • Partial closure
    Eastbound M56 Eastbound Jct 7 entry slip road closure
    Tonight · 22:00–06:00
  • Partial closure
    Eastbound M56 eastbound jct 6 exit slip road closure
    Tonight · 22:00–06:00
  • Partial closure
    Westbound M56 Westbound Jct 4 exit slip road closure
    Tomorrow night · 21:00–06:00
  • Partial closure
    Eastbound M56 Eastbound Jct 5 entry slip road closure
    Tomorrow night · 21:00–06:00
Show all 9 closures
  • Partial closure
    Eastbound M56 Eastbound Jct 10 exit slip road closure
    Tomorrow night · 21:00–05:00
  • Partial closure
    Eastbound M56 Eastbound to M6 Northbound link road closure
    Thu 5 Nov · 21:00–06:00
  • Partial closure
    Eastbound M56 Eastbound to M6 Southbound link road closure
    Thu 5 Nov · 21:00–06:00
All M56 roadworks & diversions →

Is the M56 closed? Quick answers

Checked 14:04 on Tuesday 3 November 2026.

Is the M56 closed right now?

No. There is no full closure on the M56 at 14:04.

Is there an incident on the M56 right now?

No. No incidents are reported on the M56 at 14:04.

Is the M56 closed tonight?

Yes. The M56 has 1 full closure planned tonight (Tue 3 Nov, 18:00 to 06:00): eastbound jct 7 to 6 carriageway closure, 22:00 to 06:00. Plus 3 lane or slip road closures.

Tonight: M56 closures and diversions ›

Is the M56 closed this weekend?

Yes. The M56 has 2 full closures planned this weekend (Fri 6 Nov 18:00 to Mon 9 Nov 06:00): Westbound Jct 7 to 9 carriageway closure, Sat 22:00 to 05:00; and Westbound Jct 7 to 9 carriageway closure, Sun 22:00 to 05:00. Plus 8 lane or slip road closures.

This weekend: M56 closures and diversions ›

Is there an accident on the M56 today?

No. No collision has been reported on the M56 since midnight.

M56 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.

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🗺️ M56 Traffic Map — Where It's Happening

Tap a pin for full incident detail. Live positions from National Highways.

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🔢 M56 Junction Status

Tap a junction for its page

🟢 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.

📊 How busy is the M56?

The M56 carries up to 179,634 vehicles a day at its busiest stretch (J3–J4), including 7,547 HGVs — the 3rd busiest motorway in Britain. Official Department for Transport counts, 2025.

179,634
🚗 vehicles a day · J3–J4
7,547
🚛 lorries a day
2025
📅 DfT count year
4.2% HGVs
share of traffic on the busiest stretch
Busiest stretch of each motorway — vehicles a day
M25 212,636
M6 187,521
M56 179,634
M1 162,446
M8 158,065
M4 156,491
View as table
RoadBusiest stretchVehicles/dayHGVs/dayHGV 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%
Source: Department for Transport road traffic statistics, average annual daily flows 2025. Official counts, updated yearly.

📈 M56 Journey Pulse — when incidents actually happen

Measured from 81 incidents recorded on the M56 since February 2026: the riskiest window is 15:00–18:00, when 28% of incidents start. Right now (14:00) you're outside the peak window.

View as table
HourIncidentsShare
00:00–01:00 4 4.9%
01:00–02:00 1 1.2%
02:00–03:00 0 0%
03:00–04:00 4 4.9%
04:00–05:00 1 1.2%
05:00–06:00 1 1.2%
06:00–07:00 4 4.9%
07:00–08:00 1 1.2%
08:00–09:00 2 2.5%
09:00–10:00 5 6.2%
10:00–11:00 2 2.5%
11:00–12:00 4 4.9%
12:00–13:00 3 3.7%
13:00–14:00 5 6.2%
14:00–15:00 2 2.5%
15:00–16:00 ◀ peak 7 8.6%
16:00–17:00 ◀ peak 5 6.2%
17:00–18:00 ◀ peak 11 13.6%
18:00–19:00 6 7.4%
19:00–20:00 3 3.7%
20:00–21:00 4 4.9%
21:00–22:00 2 2.5%
22:00–23:00 2 2.5%
23:00–00:00 2 2.5%
Measured from 81 incidents recorded by this site since February 2026 (planned roadworks excluded). Recomputed nightly from our incident archive.

🧭 Along the M56

🔀 Major interchanges — where the M56 meets other roads
J1M60 J9M6 J15M53
✈️J5
Manchester Airport
Dedicated link road straight off J5
🦁J14
Chester Zoo
Follow the brown signs from J14
🔀J9
M6 Interchange
Joins the M6 at J20, beside the Thelwall Viaduct

📍 Heading to… off the M56

The places people drive to most, the M56 junction for each, and live M56 incidents nearby at 14:04.

Airport

Manchester Airport

Manchester, Greater Manchester
🛣️ M56 junction: J5
✅ No M56 incidents reported within 3 miles

UK's third-busiest airport (32.1m passengers in 2025); approach road off M56 J5

🧭 Directions M56 J5 live Greater Manchester traffic
Zoo & wildlife

Chester Zoo

Chester, Cheshire
🛣️ M56 junction: J14
✅ No M56 incidents reported within 3 miles

Major zoo with free on-site parking; it advises ignoring sat nav once on the A41

🧭 Directions M56 J14 live Cheshire traffic

⚠️ Most Dangerous M56 Junctions

Based on DfT STATS19 police collision records. The M56 has 613 recorded collisions at 15 collision hotspots, involving 965 casualties (5 fatal). Take extra care here. Ranked by fatal, then serious collisions, then casualties - not by the number of collisions alone.

#1
J2
62 collisions · 94 casualties · 2 fatal · 10 serious
Severe Blackspot
#2
J10
51 collisions · 83 casualties · 1 fatal · 10 serious
Severe Blackspot
#3
J9
52 collisions · 81 casualties · 1 fatal · 7 serious
Severe Blackspot
#4
J11
38 collisions · 55 casualties · 1 fatal · 6 serious
Severe Blackspot
#5
J14
59 collisions · 103 casualties · 12 serious
Severe Blackspot
#6
J12
57 collisions · 82 casualties · 12 serious
Severe Blackspot
🔍 See the full M56 collision blackspot map →

🛒 Journey Essentials

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📰 M56 traffic news, updates and closures

This is the M56 traffic news page from UK Traffic Updates: M56 traffic now, for the whole road from Manchester (M60 J4) to Chester (M53). Every crash, breakdown, lane closure, delay and roadworks National Highways report for the M56 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 M56 information people used to check there is here in one place: today's M56 incidents, M56 closures tonight from their daily closure report, M56 roadworks, M56 accidents today, the junction-by-junction status and a live map. Our M56 traffic videos show what it looks like on the road, and drivers can report what they see as it happens.

Want M56 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.

❓ M56 Traffic — Frequently Asked Questions

Is the M56 closed today?

Any M56 closure appears in the live feed above within minutes of National Highways reporting it, including tonight's overnight roadworks closures.

Is there traffic on the M56 today?

The live feed above shows every incident, delay, roadwork and overnight closure on the M56, updated every 5 minutes, 24 hours a day, from National Highways.

Is there an incident on the M56 right now?

Every live incident on the M56 — police incidents, obstructions, breakdowns, debris, collisions and closures — appears in the live feed above within minutes of National Highways reporting it, updated every 5 minutes, 24 hours a day.

What is the worst time to use the M56?

The M56 is typically busiest during morning rush hour (07:00–09:30) and evening rush hour (16:30–19:00) on weekdays.

Are there roadworks on the M56 right now?

Roadworks and overnight closures on the M56 are listed above and at /traffic/m56/roadworks/, taken from the National Highways daily closure report.

What roads connect to the M56?

The M56 connects to: M60, M6, M53.

Where can I get M56 traffic news and updates?

Right here. This M56 traffic news page shows M56 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 M56 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.

Is there an accident on the M56 eastbound or westbound today?

Each side has its own live page: the M56 eastbound (towards Manchester) and the M56 westbound (towards Chester) 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.

How many vehicles use the M56 every day?

Official Department for Transport counts (2025) record 179,634 vehicles a day on the M56's busiest stretch (J3–J4), 7,547 of them HGVs. The full breakdown and comparison chart are in the traffic statistics section above.

How busy is the M56 compared with other motorways?

The M56 has the 3rd busiest motorway stretch in Britain at 179,634 vehicles a day (DfT 2025), behind the M25's 212,636 a day at the top.

What time of day is the M56 worst for incidents?

Measured from 81 incidents recorded on the M56 since February 2026, the riskiest window is 15:00–18:00, when 28% of incidents start. The quietest is 00:00–03:00. Incidents on the M56 typically clear in about 63 minutes.

What junction is Manchester Airport on the M56?

Manchester Airport sits just off the M56 at junction 5, which has a dedicated airport link road serving all terminals.

📊 M56 Status Summary

0
Active incidents
0
Severe/serious
0
Roadworks
14:04
Last updated
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ℹ️ M56 Road Details

Length
33 miles
Junctions
J1–J15
From
Manchester (M60 J4)
To
Chester (M53)
Type
Motorway
AM Rush
07:00–09:30
PM Rush
16:30–19:00

📍 Key M56 Locations

Manchester Manchester Airport Northwich Chester

🔗 Roads Connecting to the M56

M60 M60 trafficMeets the M56 at J1 Live → M6 M6 trafficMeets the M56 at J9 Live → M53 M53 trafficMeets the M56 at J15 Live →

🛣️ M56 Services & Motorway Stops

M Lymm Services
M6 J20 · Moto · 🔋 EV View → RC Chester Services
J14 · Roadchef · 🔋 EV View → All motorway services →

🔗 Related Tools

🛣️My Commute — save your route NEW 🚧M56 Roadworks View → 🕵️Was I Affected? Check → 🔄Route Checker Plan → 📋Incident Archive Browse → 🗺️Live Map View →

📱 Follow M56 traffic updates

Daily M56 incidents, posted across all four channels.

🎵 TikTok 35,000+ › ▶️ YouTube 2,000+ › 📸 Instagram 1,500+ › 📢Report an incident›

Junction

DfT STATS19 police collision records

0
Collisions
0
Fatal
0
Serious
0
Slight
🔍 Full blackspot map →
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🚛 Car recovery along the M56

Broken down on the M56? 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.

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