Exactly why a stretch of motorway had to be shut by police for 30 hours

Three HGVs, two vans and four cars were obliterated in the major collision

06:26, 10 Jul 2025

National Highways has explained why part of the M60 needed to be fully closed for 30 hours after a horror crash involving three lorries on Monday morning. Emergency services responded to the incident at junction 27 in Portwood, Stockport, at 11.26am after the major collision involving three lorries, two vans and four cars.

One HGV smashed through the central reservation, with another shedding beer barrels. Cars were written off as debris and oil exploded over the carriageway.

A full closure was initially put in place, with National Highways officers, police, fire crews and paramedics closing the motorway in both directions.

The incident resulted in major delays and congestion spilling out into nearby Stockport and Tameside, and the road block on both sides remained in place for 26 hours.

It was not until around 1.45pm on Tuesday when highways officers were finally able to reopen the anticlockwise carriageway, with one lane closed due to barrier damage.

Then after around 30 hours, the clockwise carriageway then fully reopened to traffic, with miles of delays taking some time to clear.

A closure of two lanes on both sides was also put in place overnight, into Wednesday for further repairs to be carried out.

National Highways said: "A lengthy clear-up and repair operation has continued overnight and today (July 8) with National Highways working hard to reopen the motorway in both directions.

"Significant damage was caused in the collision and complex infrastructure repairs have been required, including replacing a large section of central reservation barrier and undertaking repairs to a damaged bridge parapet.

"Both carriageways needed resurfacing following a large diesel spillage across all lanes. Lampposts damaged in the collision also needed to be isolated from the electricity supply and removed.

"As these repairs are steadily completed it has been possible to reopen two lanes of the M60 anticlockwise between Junction 1 (Stockport) and Junction 25 (Bredbury). Lane 3 of 3 will remain closed for safety reasons as further repairs continue."

No serious injuries were reported in the incident, with three people taken to Stepping Hill Hospital as a precaution for minor injuries.

Greater Manchester Police is now appealing for dashcam footage and witness accounts of the incident.

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