The M606 Bradford Spur motorway in England leaves the M62 motorway at junction 26, near Cleckheaton, and heads into Bradford, to join the A6177 Bradford Ring Road. It opened in 1973.

Britain's first dedicated motorway car share lane

In 2007, work started on the M606 to create the UK's first motorway carsharing lane (also known as high-occupancy vehicle or HOV lane). The 1.7mile (2.75 km) lane scheme is on the M606 Southbound and will allow vehicles with more than one person in the car a fast track onto the M62 Eastbound at Junction 26.

Configuration of the terminal junctions

Staithgate

The north end of the M606, closest to the city, was built with a large raised roundabout crossing the Bradford Ring Road, but the original plans to continue the motorway under the roundabout were not carried out: access was only by slip roads to and from the roundabout.

In 1999 a new slip road was built that allowed eastward traffic on the ring road, via a mini-roundabout, to enter the motorway directly and avoid the Staithgate roundabout.

In 2004 the junction was further remodelled, so that traffic leaving the motorway and wishing to turn eastward on the ring road continues under the roundabout, and round to join the roundabout from the opposite site, so that it has a left rather than a right turn to make (via two sets of traffic lights).

Staithgate roundabout is very close to the Odsal Stadium, the home of the rugby league team Bradford Bulls.

Local people often refer to Staithgate roundabout as "Stairgate Roundabout".

Chain Bar

The southerly junction with the M62 is known as the Chain Bar Interchange and features free-flowing sliproads from the Manchester direction M62 traffic to Bradford, but not the Leeds direction, which has to use the traffic-light controlled roundabout.Since late 2007 there is a 2+ lane leading from the M606 straight on to the M62 without having to stop at Chain Bar Interchange.

List of Junctions

M606 Motorway
Southbound exits	Junction	Northbound exits
M62: Leeds, Hull, Huddersfield, Manchester A638: Batley, Dewsbury A58: Leeds, Halifax	J1	Start of Motorway
Euroway Trading Estate	J2	Euroway Trading Estate
Start of Motorway	J3	A6036: Odsal, Wibsey A6177: Ring Road, City Centre, Bowling

References

1. Highways Agency Press release
2. The BBC news story about the car-sharing lane
3. CBRD Histories: M606

External links

• Pathetic Motorways - M606
• The Motorway Archive - M606