Traffic is moving again on the M25 at junction 27 after the vehicles involved in an early-morning crash near Brentwood were moved onto the hard shoulder and the lane closures were lifted, but delays of around 80 minutes are still being reported. As of 08:15 BST, congestion was still stretching back from junction 28 as the queues cleared.
All lanes were stopped by emergency services on the anticlockwise carriageway at J27, where the M25 meets the M11, after a car overturned in the early hours. Queues built to five miles behind the closure while the traffic was held.
The incident was first reported at 5.38am on Friday, 2 October, and it was soon confirmed that all lanes had been stopped. National Highways put delays at around 30 minutes in the earlier updates, before they rose to around 80 minutes as the morning peak built. No information about injuries had been released in the earliest updates, and it has not yet been confirmed whether anyone was taken to hospital, how many vehicles were involved beyond the overturned car, or what caused the car to overturn.
Junction 27 is a key interchange on the north-eastern section of the M25 because it is where the motorway crosses the M11. Drivers use the junction to swap between the orbital route and the M11 corridor into and out of London, as well as northbound towards Stansted Airport and Cambridge. The junction sits between junction 26, for Waltham Abbey, to the west and junction 28, the Brook Street interchange for Brentwood, to the east, with Epping and Theydon Bois a short distance away. Traffic heading anticlockwise at junction 27 is travelling away from the Brentwood and Dartford side of the motorway and towards Waltham Abbey, Enfield and the northern suburbs.
The timing could hardly be worse for a Friday. A closure in the early hours might sometimes be cleared before the roads fill up, but with every lane stopped and queues already stretching for miles before 7am, drivers heading into the morning peak were facing a difficult start. The anticlockwise carriageway carries a mix of commuters heading towards west and north London, airport traffic changing onto the M11 and freight moving around the capital, so a full stop at this point tends to push delays well beyond the immediate area around the junction.
Drivers caught in the queues were left sitting in held traffic while emergency services dealt with the overturned car. Motorists approaching the area found congestion building back through junction 28, and local roads around Brentwood, Epping and Waltham Abbey can also become busier when drivers leave the motorway early looking for another way through, so journeys on surrounding routes may still take longer than usual on Friday morning while the queues clear.
If you have not yet set out, check the latest traffic information before you leave and allow plenty of extra time, with delays still at around 80 minutes. Drivers should follow any signs in place on the motorway itself rather than relying on residential streets. For some London-bound trips, rail may be a more reliable option while the delays clear, with the Elizabeth line calling at Brentwood and Shenfield, Greater Anglia services from Shenfield, and Epping and Theydon Bois on the Central line. Anyone heading for a flight should speak to their airline and leave considerably earlier than planned if their route would normally use junction 27 or the M11.
It is the second time in a week that a serious crash has shut part of the M25 in this corner of Essex. On Monday, a multi-vehicle crash near Brentwood closed three lanes between junctions 28 and 29 and brought long delays to the same side of the capital. Earlier in September, a crash near Heathrow closed all lanes and brought the western side of the M25 to a standstill, showing how quickly a single incident can paralyse the orbital route when every lane has to be stopped for the emergency services.
The latest closure also landed in a week when drivers are already being warned about planned M25 shutdowns and diversions elsewhere on the network, adding to the disruption for anyone travelling around London on Friday. The anticlockwise carriageway at junction 27 has now reopened, but drivers are advised to allow extra time and avoid the area if they can until the queues have cleared. London Streets will update this story as soon as more is confirmed about any injuries and the cause of the crash.
This live blog has now concluded. All lanes were reopened earlier and traffic is moving again on the M25 at junction 27.
