The top 10 motorways drivers hate the most 鈥 and why they鈥檙e so bad
July 11, 2025 by Siobhan Doyle
Car changing is a big deal
A new ranking reveals the 10 worst motorways in England for drivers. Traffic, delays, and frustration 鈥 which ones top the list?
Stuck in traffic yet again? Well, you鈥檙e not alone.
From endless roadworks to crawling 50mph zones, some of England鈥檚 busiest motorways are driving commuters mad. Now, a new survey from lifts the lid on the worst offenders, revealing which motorways are testing drivers鈥 patience the most.
Out of 9,000 drivers surveyed, just 69% said they were happy with their journey on England鈥檚 major roads, down from 71% last year. The biggest headache? Roadworks.
National Highways has been busy adding over 150 new emergency areas on smart motorways, as part of its National Emergency Area Retrofit (Near) programme. Meanwhile, drivers are left wondering if the cones have unionised, or if they鈥檝e simply decided to settle in for the long haul as part of the scenery.
Whether you鈥檙e inching through traffic on the way to the airport to catch some rays abroad, or stuck in your daily commute, these are the 10 motorways drivers dread the most 鈥 counting down to the absolute worst.
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10. M3 鈥 A Southern Slog
What was once a reliable route to the coast has become a frustrating crawl. Connecting London to Southampton, the M3 is now a patchwork of roadworks, lane closures, and temporary speed zones. Drivers are worn down by stop-start traffic and the sense that progress, on both the road and the repairs, is painfully slow.
9. M11 鈥 Short fuse, long delays
It might not be the longest motorway, but the M11 certainly knows how to cause maximum irritation. Linking London to Cambridge, the M11 is plagued by unpredictable speed limits and endless construction zones.
One moment you鈥檙e cruising, the next you鈥檙e stuck behind cones wondering if the tarmac even needed fixing. Smart motorway upgrades here have been anything but smart for journey times.
8. M6 鈥 The never-ending work in progress
The M6 is less a motorway and more a 230-mile building site. As one of the UK鈥檚 longest motorways, its maintenance never seems to stop.
Frequent lane closures, average speed checks, and the chaos of emergency area installations have turned this once-vital artery into a driver鈥檚 endurance test.
7. M62 鈥 High hopes, low satisfaction
Spanning the north from Liverpool to Hull and cutting across the dramatic Pennine hills, the M62 is not only a vital east-west link, it鈥檚 also the highest motorway in the UK.
But what should be a scenic drive has become a stress-filled slog. Endless cones, crawling traffic, and unpredictable delays leave drivers dreading the journey.
The smart motorway upgrade here has done little to ease the pain, turning planned trips into a frustrating game of chance 鈥 especially when you鈥檙e stuck in fog at 1,200 feet, watching the clock tick.
6. M60 鈥 Manchester鈥檚 ring of rage
The M60 is Manchester鈥檚 very own merry-go-round of misery. It鈥檚 congested, confusing, and constantly under repair. Drivers report miles of cones with little visible work, and smart motorway sections only seem to make things worse. If you鈥檙e in a hurry, this is the last place you want to be.
5. M42 鈥 The Midlands maze
The M42 is meant to ease movement through the Midlands, but drivers are met with prolonged roadworks and sluggish traffic at nearly every turn.
The installation of new emergency areas over the last few years has turned commutes into treks, with some stretches crawling at a snail鈥檚 pace for what feels like eternity.
4. M4 鈥 A route in revolt
Stretching from London to South Wales, the M4 should be a major corridor of commerce and travel, but instead it鈥檚 a coned-off corridor of confusion.
Frequent lane closures, poor signage, and ambiguous diversions make this road feel more like an obstacle course than a motorway. Many drivers report rising stress levels and vanishing patience.
3. M25 鈥 The great orbital agony
Claiming third place on the UK鈥檚 worst motorways list is the M25 鈥 famous, or perhaps more accurately, infamous, for a reason.
London鈥檚 great orbital is by far the most jam-packed and unpredictable motorway in Britain. What should be a ring of convenience is more often a circle of torment, riddled with endless queues, emergency upgrades, and stop-start traffic that tests even the calmest of souls.
What鈥檚 more, the section where the M3, M4, and M40 join the M25 is one of the busiest spots in Europe. And with Heathrow Airport right nearby, one of the busiest hubs around, it鈥檚 no surprise that traffic can get so heavy.
It鈥檚 not just the number of cars; it鈥檚 everything 鈥 from freight to airport traffic 鈥 all piling in at once that makes this stretch such a headache.
2. M27 鈥 Coastal chaos
Running along the south coast near Southampton and Portsmouth, the M27 takes the silver medal in this list. It鈥檚 a bottleneck of frustration for both holidaymakers and locals.
Smart motorway works and poorly managed upgrades have ground traffic to a halt. Here, delays aren鈥檛 the exception, they鈥檙e the rule. And drivers are nearing breaking point.
1. M1 鈥 The nation鈥檚 most loathed motorway
Topping the list with a staggering drop in satisfaction to just 57%, the M1 has officially become Britain鈥檚 most hated motorway.
This crucial north-south route from London to Leeds has been swallowed by cones, plagued by slow-moving traffic, and overwhelmed by seemingly endless smart motorway retrofits.
Drivers describe it as a 鈥減lanning nightmare,鈥 where average speed checks and miles of unstaffed roadworks crush both journey times and morale.
For many, the M1 isn鈥檛 just a motorway鈥 it鈥檚 a test of endurance.
Here鈥檚 a clear ranking of the 10 worst motorway, and driver satisfaction scores from the Transport Focus survey:
| Rank (Worst to best) | Road | Overall satisfaction (%) |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | M1 | 57 |
| 2 | M27 | 60 |
| 3 | M25 | 60 |
| 4 | M4 | 62 |
| 5 | M42 | 62 |
| 6 | M60 | 65 |
| 7 | M62 | 66 |
| 8 | M6 | 69 |
| 9 | M11 | 69 |
| 10 | M3 | 69 |
But look on the bright side鈥
The M40, which links London, Oxford, and Birmingham, retains the highest satisfaction rating at 75%, according to the Transport Focus survey. This shows it鈥檚 possible to keep drivers happy even during improvement works. Hopefully, the other motorways on this list will follow suit soon.
National Highways wrapped up the Near roadworks on time in March 2025, and Transport Focus says drivers are already starting to feel better about their journeys now that the safety upgrades are done.
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