Motorists facing delays as M1 is closed after lorry overturned

The M1 is currently closed between junction 16 (Upper Heyford) and junction 15a (Rothersthorpe Interchange) on the southbound carriageway while specialist teams work to recover the stricken vehicle.

Two lanes also remain closed on the northbound carriageway while work takes place at scene.

National Highways has also treated a fuel spillage following the incident.

The incident occurred shortly before 8am this morning with signage set within 60 miles of the incident advising of the closure to help motorists avoid the area and to keep disruption to a minimum.

Jo Dean, National Highways duty operations manager, said: “This is a complex incident and we’re working hard to get the affected part of the M1 southbound back open to motorists as soon as it is safe to do so.

“We’re still working at scene alongside specialist recovery teams to remove the lorry and while that process continues, we’d advise motorists to avoid using the M1 southbound while we deal with the incident.

"We’d like to thank people for their patience while we carry out this work.”

The southbound side of the road is set to remain closed for the rest of this afternoon with a diversion route in place for drivers.

Work is ongoing to help remove the vehicles caught up in congestion on the southbound side of the road.

For live traffic updates follow the @HighwaysEMIDS Twitter feed. The National Highways 24/7 customer contact centre team can also provide up-to-the minute information on 0300 123 5000.