M45

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The M45 is a pretty pointless road for one to be a motorway: it runs from the M1 to the A45 and is signposted for south Coventry. However, the majority of people heading to Coventry would use the M6 anway, leaving it pretty quiet.

The motorway is actually older than the M6, it was built with the M1, the first long-distance motorway project connecting London to the Midlands. The plan was to build the M45 to take traffic for Birmingham off the M1, likewise the M10 was built to take traffic not heading to London off at the other end.

Eventually, the M6 and M40 were built leaving the motorway with only 4 lanes, no central barrier, no junctions for Rugby and no purpose. A small junction was later added near Dunchurch, which is limited access. Otherwise, the M45 is rather like a 'Heritage Motorway' - it shows what the M1 was like when it was first built.

See a tour of the motorway at www.cbrd.co.uk/media/video/m45.shtml