M49 motorway

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 from Avonmouth docks, Central and southern Bristol and South West England.

Compared to driving via the M4/M5 interchange, using the M49 cuts the distance travelled by 6.2 miles. Having a two-way grade separated roundabout junction with the M4, it also fulfils the additional role of providing a bypass for the busy stretch of the M5 between the Avonmouth Bridge and the M4 in case of that route being shut.

Original plans provided for an intermediate junction with the A403, to serve an expanded industrial area and Severn Beach.{{cn|date=September 2024}} Construction of Junction 1 commenced summer 2018 and was completed late in August 2020.[https://highwaysengland.co.uk/projects/m49-avonmouth-junction/ Highways England - M49 Avonmouth junction] Despite this, the junction is not currently connected to the local road network, so cannot be used to access the motorway.{{Cite web|last=Baker|first=Hannah|date=2020-08-18|title=New £50M junction on M49 finished – but traffic can't actually use it|url=https://www.bristolpost.co.uk/news/bristol-news/new-50m-junction-m49-finished-4434730|access-date=2021-07-22|website=BristolLive|language=en}}

The M49 is anomalously numbered, as it is entirely to the south of the M4 and should therefore begin with a 3.{{cn|date=September 2024}}

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. The dispute initially emerged between Highways England, South Gloucestershire Council, and the development company Delta Properties, as a result of privately owned land on the development which surrounds the junction.{{Cite web|last=Gogarty|first=Conor|last2=Baker|first2=Hannah|date=2021-02-10|title=Link road to £50m 'dead-end' motorway junction to finally be built|url=https://www.business-live.co.uk/economic-development/link-road-m49-dead-end-19807019|access-date=2021-07-22|website=Business Live|language=en}}

In February 2021, the West of England Combined Authority agreed to supply £1{{nbsp}}million towards the construction of the link road, but by May a further deficit of £1{{nbsp}}million had arisen.{{Cite web|last=Gogarty|first=Conor|date=2021-05-17|title=Dead-end motorway junction saga descends into 'royal mess'|url=https://www.bristolpost.co.uk/news/bristol-news/dead-end-motorway-junction-saga-5420982|access-date=2021-07-22|website=BristolLive|language=en}} 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 authorised compulsory purchase orders for the land purchase, with National Highways providing an additional £7{{nbsp}}million for the council to buy the land.{{cite news |url=https://www.bristolpost.co.uk/news/bristol-news/m49-ghost-junction-not-fault-8146037 |title=M49 ghost junction 'not our fault' says South Gloucestershire Council as CPOs approved |last=Postans |first=Adam |newspaper=Bristol Post |date=14 February 2023 |access-date=21 February 2023}}

{{RJL|date=December 2021}}

Data from driver location signs are used to provide distance and carriageway identifier information.{{cite web|url=http://www.trafficengland.com/map.aspx |title=Traffic England Live Traffic Condition Map (selected Popups) |publisher=Highways Agency |access-date=2009-11-11 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120210221222/http://www.trafficengland.com/map.aspx |archive-date=2012-02-10 }}

{| style="margin-left:1em; margin-bottom:1em; " class="wikitable"

|- style="background:#0080d0; text-align:center; color:white; "

| colspan="5" | M49 motorway junctions

|-

!scope=col|miles

!scope=col|km

!scope=col abbr="North-west bound"|North-west bound exits (B carriageway)

!scope=col|Junction

!scope=col abbr="South-east bound"|South-east bound exits (A carriageway)

|- align="center"

|- align="center"

| rowspan="2"| 0.0

| rowspan="2"| 0.0

| London, Bath, Bristol, The Midlands M4(E)

| rowspan="2"| M4 J22
terminus

| The South West, Avonmouth, Bristol Airport 15px, Weston-super-Mare M49

|- align="center"

|- align="center"

| South Wales, Cardiff, Newport M4(W)

| Start of motorway

|- align="center"

|rowspan="2"|5.3

|rowspan="2"|8.5

| Start of motorway

| rowspan="2"| Terminus
A4, M5
J18 & J18A

| Avonmouth, Bristol, Airport 15px A4

|- align="center"

| South Wales, Cardiff, Newport (M4(W)) M49

| The South West, Weston-s-Mare, M5

|- align="center"

|-

|colspan=5|Notes

• Distances in kilometres and carriageway identifiers are obtained from driver location signs/location marker posts. Where a junction spans several hundred metres and the data is available, both the start and finish values for the junction are shown.
• Junction 1 is under construction.

|-

{{jctbtm|keys=}}

Information above gathered from Advanced Direction Signs May 2011

• List of motorways in the United Kingdom

{{reflist}}

{{Attached KML|display=inline,title}}

• [http://pathetic.org.uk/current/m49/ Pathetic Motorways – M49]
• [https://highwaysengland.co.uk/projects/m49-avonmouth-junction/ Avonmouth Junction - M49]

{{UK motorways}}

{{Motorways and Trunk Roads in England|state=collapsed}}

{{Transport in Bristol}}

{{Transport in Gloucestershire}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:4-0049}}

Category:Motorways in England

Category:Roads in Bristol

Category:Transport in South Gloucestershire District