Lymm Interchange

Lymm Interchange is junction 20 of the M6 and junction 9 of the M56.

History

When first opened in 1963, Lymm interchange was a grade-separated roundabout with the A50 carried over the M6 on two bridges. The B5158 met the A50 at a priority junction to the east of the roundabout. The roundabout was rather large, leading some to speculate that it was designed to accommodate possible conversion to a three-level roundabout with the M56 over the top.

In the 1970s the M56 was built, crossing the M6 half a mile to the south of the roundabout. The interchange was vastly expanded southward with new bridges and slip roads, and diversions of the original south-facing slip roads.

In the 1990s the M6 was widened to D4M standard between the M62 and M56, and the two original bridges were not long enough to accommodate the proposed width. In an advance contract before the main widening contract, the original large roundabout was converted to a dumbbell, with two roundabouts and one new bridge, and the B5158 was diverted to connect into the eastern roundabout.

At about the same time, two further new roundabouts were built nearby, one at the A50/B5356 junction to the west, and one at the entrance to the new truckstop to the east, so there is now a string of four consecutive roundabouts on the A50.

Three alignments of the B5158 are visible: in order from west to east, the current one, the original pre-M6 one, and the one that applied for about 30 years from 1963.

Routes

Route	To	Notes
M6	Preston, Liverpool, Leeds, M'cr (N) (M62)
M6	Birmingham
M56	NORTH WALES, Chester, Runcorn
M56	Manchester (S & Airport)
A50	Warrington, Appleton, Stretton
A50	Knutsford, Macclesfield (A537), Services
B5158	Lymm

Strip Maps

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  Lymm Interchange as it was in 1963

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  Lymm Interchange as it was in 1972

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  Lymm Interchange as it was in 1973

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  Lymm Interchange as it was in 1974

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  Lymm Interchange as it was in 1976

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  The current layout of the interchange.