Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
The junction lies at the far end of Junction 6 of the M6 - Gravelly Hill Interchange, better
known as Spaghetti Junction - the most complicated motorway interchange in Britain, offer-
ing freeflow routes between the M6, A38M and A5127, linking various local roads and also
allowing the passage of horse towlines, still in use at the time of construction in 1972. Most
of this happens in three dimensions and is best seen from this canal, as roads snake through
the air in all directions. It begins gently at first, a pipe bridge, a lattice canal footbridge and
an arched cable bridge. Then it develops in earnest as slip roads flail through the air, the M6
crosses, the Birmingham to Lichfield railway passes through and ever more slip roads arc
over, until the canal passes into a large box tunnel with two towpaths below the A38M Aston
Expressway. It emerges into the relative simplicity of Salford Junction below the M6. The
interchange deteriorated badly after its completion and repair work involved jacking up the
deck of sections of slip road still in use to extract the decaying crosshead beams that needed
to be replaced.
Part of the Gravelly Hill Interchange complex, through which the canal passes
.
