M6 Junction 44: Kingstown Interchange – A7 Carlisle
Junction 44 of the M6, known as the Kingstown Interchange, is where the M6 meets the A7, for Carlisle. The nearest city is Carlisle, about 2.5 miles to the south, with Longtown (5 miles north) also close by. Villages right beside the junction include Harker, Houghton and Cargo.
Roads that meet at or beside this junction: A7, A689. The main road at the junction is the A7.
From here, the drive north to junction 45 (Gretna) is about 6.0 miles and the drive south to junction 43 (Carlisle) is about 3.4 miles. Junction 44 is about 205 miles from the start of the M6 at junction 1 and 6.0 miles from the end at junction 45.
The nearest motorway services are Todhills rest area, between J44 and J45.
- Junction M6 J44 · Kingstown Interchange
- Signed for A7 · Carlisle (north)
- Nearest town Carlisle, 2.5 miles south
- Map section Section 8: J40–J45, Penrith, Carlisle and Gretna
Live traffic at M6 junction 44
The speed strip below shows the M6 from junction 42 to junction 45, both directions, from National Highways’ live data, checked every five minutes.
Live traffic speed flow: M6 Junctions 42 to 45
Untick all three to see just the speeds. We show the important overhead signs and the mandatory speed limits (red ring); see every overhead sign.
Go to our live M6 traffic speed flow map ›
How busy is the M6 at junction 44?
The Department for Transport counts traffic on the stretches either side of this junction. On the stretch it labels J43 to J44 it counted 53,813 vehicles a day in 2025, 17% of them lorries. See how busy the M6 is junction by junction.
| Stretch (DfT label) | All vehicles a day | Lorries | Miles |
|---|---|---|---|
| J43 to J44 | 53,813 | 8,898 (16.5%) | 3.8 |
© M6Traffic.co.uk · Statistics from the Department for Transport, 2025
Junctions either side
- J43Rosehill RoundaboutA69 · Carlisle (east) / NewcastleNearest town: Carlisle, 2.0 miles
- J45Guards MillA74(M) · Gretna / Scotland borderNearest town: Gretna, 0.9 miles
Live traffic news at M6 Junction 44
Incidents and roadworks between Junction 43 and Junction 45 that we are aware of.
M6 Southbound Jct 45 Entry slip road closure
00:305 Oct 2026reported 17 min ago
- Location
- M6 J45 southbound access from A6071/B7076
- Direction
- Southbound
- Lanes closed
- Carriageway closed
- Reason
- Roadworks
- Schedule
- 20:00 Sun 4 Oct 2026 → 06:00 Mon 5 Oct 2026
Forecast - not confirmed
+ 15 more near Junction 44 - see all the M6 traffic news →
This is the news for Junction 44 only, not the whole M6. For the rest of the motorway see all the latest M6 traffic news, the overhead signs and the speed limits in force now.
Updated 00:47 Mon 5 Oct 2026