 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 M49 highlighted in blue | ||||
| Route information | ||||
| Maintained byNational Highways | ||||
| Length | 5.0 mi (8.0 km) | |||
| Existed | 1996–present | |||
| Major junctions | ||||
| Northwest end | Redwick | |||
| Major intersections |  M4 motorway  M5 motorway | |||
| Southeast end | Lawrence Weston | |||
| Location | ||||
| Country | United Kingdom | |||
| Road network | ||||
| ||||
TheM49 is amotorway in England that links theM4 (J22) with theM5 (J18A). The southern end is on the outskirts ofAvonmouth and the northern end is immediately to the east of thePrince of Wales Bridge which was constructed at the same time 1996.[citation needed] It is 5 miles (8 km) long and unique in that it is only accessible from other motorways.[citation needed]
The M49 begins at junction 18A of the M5 and then heads roughly north and northwest before it reaches its terminal junction with the M4 at junction 22, just before the Second Severn Crossing at Pilning Interchange. It cuts journey times for traffic to and fromAvonmouth docks, Central and southern Bristol andSouth West England.
Compared to driving via the M4/M5 interchange, using the M49 cuts the distance travelled by 6.2 miles. Having a two-waygrade separatedroundabout junction with the M4, it also fulfils the additional role of providing a bypass for the busy stretch of the M5 between theAvonmouth Bridge and the M4 in case of that route being shut.
Original plans provided for an intermediate junction with theA403, to serve an expanded industrial area andSevern Beach.[citation needed] Construction of Junction 1 commenced summer 2018 and was completed late in August 2020.[1] Despite this, the junction is not currently connected to the local road network, so cannot be used to access the motorway.[2]
The M49 isanomalously numbered, as it is entirely to the south of the M4 and should therefore begin with a 3.[citation needed]
After the junction itself was completed in August 2020, disputes arose over who should construct the road linking the new Junction 1 to the local road network.[2] The dispute initially emerged betweenHighways England,South Gloucestershire Council, and the development company Delta Properties, as a result of privately owned land on the development which surrounds the junction.[3]
In February 2021, theWest of England Combined Authority agreed to supply £1 million towards the construction of the link road, but by May a further deficit of £1 million had arisen.[4] Land required to complete the junction was in parcels as small as two square metres, which a South Gloucestershire councillor called "ransom strips" to increase the land price. In February 2023, the council authorisedcompulsory purchase orders for the land purchase, withNational Highways providing an additional £7 million for the council to buy the land.[5]
 | This section is missing a table that represents a list of exits or junctions. Please help byadding the missing exit or junction list.(December 2021) |
Data fromdriver location signs are used to provide distance and carriageway identifier information.[6]
| M49 motorway junctions | |||||
| miles | km | North-west bound exits (B carriageway) | Junction | South-east bound exits (A carriageway) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0.0 | 0.0 | London,Bath,Bristol,The Midlands M4(E) | M4 J22 terminus | The South West,Avonmouth,Bristol Airport ,Weston-super-Mare M49 | |
| South Wales,Cardiff,NewportM4(W) | Start of motorway | ||||
| 5.3 | 8.5 | Start of motorway | Terminus A4, M5 J18 & J18A | Avonmouth,Bristol,AirportA4 | |
| South Wales,Cardiff,Newport (M4(W)) M49 | The South West,Weston-s-Mare,M5 | ||||
Notes
| |||||
| 1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi | |||||
Information above gathered from Advanced Direction Signs May 2011
| Great Britain | .svg) | |||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Northern Ireland | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Former | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Unbuilt | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Junctions (  Category) | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Bridges | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Related articles | ||||||||||||||||||||
