London to Southampton
The M3 is the road south-west from London, serving the densely populated towns in the west of Surrey, the north of Hampshire and the south of Berkshire. It's not especially long as major inter-urban motorways go, but it certainly isn't quiet, and it's had more than its share of controversy.
A grand south western approach road from London to Basingstoke and Southampton: the A316 was entangled in local politics, and the M3 was never to enter London at all.
After 18 years, a new look for the Motorway Database's famous exit lists.
Why do Highways England think emergency lay-bys will work better painted orange?
Motorways used to be really simple. Now they have electronic signals, variable speed limits, emergency lay-bys, part-time hard shoulders... Just what is so smart about Smart Motorways?
It was the UK's only single-carriageway motorway, and twenty years ago it ceased to exist. This is the story of the strange fascination it held, and of my place in history.
The second part of the story, where we learn why exactly the M4 gets narrower on the final approach to Europe’s biggest city.
The M4 into London was one of the UK's earliest and most ambitious motorway projects. It was bold, pioneering... and almost instantly regretted.
The most unique motorway in Britain owes its identity to its fifties architecture. Much of it is in danger of being removed or irreperably altered. This page documents it in detail.
