M6 Traffic Trends

Is Friday really the worst day on the M6? Which hour is slowest on a Monday morning, and where does the queue start? These pages answer that from our own analysis of National Highways’ live speed data: we regularly take a reading for each stretch of the M6 and keep the average for every hour, northbound and southbound.

For what is happening on the road right now, see the live M6 traffic flow map and the latest M6 traffic news.

Pick a day to see how traffic on the M6 moved hour by hour, compared with the same day a week earlier. Each page updates regularly.

Speeds are colour-coded the same way as our live M6 speed flow map: 50 mph and over, 30 mph to 49 mph, under 30 mph. The colour shows the speed actually achieved; the usual speed is shown in bold beside it.

MondaysMonday 19 October 2026: slowest hour 07:00 (7am) southbound, 53 mph against a usual 60 mph.TuesdaysTuesday 20 October 2026: slowest hour 08:00 (8am) northbound, 53 mph against a usual 58 mph.WednesdaysWednesday 21 October 2026: slowest hour 17:00 (5pm) northbound, 56 mph against a usual 58 mph.ThursdaysThursday 22 October 2026: slowest hour 15:00 (3pm) northbound, 55 mph against a usual 59 mph.FridaysSo far today: slowest hour 03:00 (3am) northbound, 55 mph against a usual 57 mph.SaturdaysSaturday 17 October 2026: slowest hour 00:00 (midnight) northbound, 58 mph against a usual 59 mph.SundaysSunday 18 October 2026: slowest hour 12:00 (midday) northbound, 62 mph against a usual 64 mph.

© 2026 Corporate Ace Limited. The analysis, wording, charts and conclusions on this page are our own, produced from the live information we collect, including National Highways’ data. You may not copy, republish or reproduce them on any website, app, broadcast or publication without our prior written permission, which must set out how and where they will be used. To ask, please contact us. Powered by National Highways’ Transport Data Feeds.