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M11 motorway

This page is about the M11 motorway in England. For the M11 motorway in the Republic of Ireland, see N11 road.

The M11 motorway in England is a major road running approximately south-north from northeast London to Cambridge.

Table of contents
1 South of J4
2 Redbridge to Loughton (J4 to J6)
3 Loughton to South Harlow (J6 to J7)
4 South Harlow to A120 (J7 to J8)
5 A120 to Quendon (J8 to J9)
6 Quendon to Stump Cross (J9 to J10)
7 Cambridge Western Bypass (J10 to J14)

South of J4

The M11 begins at junction 4. The motorway-standard A406 (North Circular Road and South Woodford to Barking Relief Road) continues southwards from this point, crossing the A12 (Eastern Avenue) and ending at a junction with the A13 at Beckton.

Redbridge to Loughton (J4 to J6)

This section was constructed between September 1973 and April 1977.

Junction 4. The M11 begins at a free-flowing junction with the North Circular Road (A406) near South Woodford railway station in the London Borough of Redbridge, and heads north-northeast, crossing the boundary from Greater London into Essex.

Junction 5. Heading northeast, the motorway crosses the A1168 road at this junction southeast of Loughton and just south of Debden railway station.

Junction 6 (Theydon Interchange). This is a full two-level intersection with the M25 motorway that encircles London.

Loughton to South Harlow (J6 to J7)

This section was constructed between October 1974 and April 1977.

Junction 7. The motorway passes beneath a roundabout giving access to Harlow New Town.

South Harlow to A120 (J7 to J8)

This section was constructed between October 1972 and June 1975.

Junction 8. The motorway passes beneath a roundabout joining it to the A120 road. This is the exit for Bishop's Stortford, Birchanger Green service station, and traffic between Stansted Airport and the north.

A120 to Quendon (J8 to J9)

This section was constructed between May 1977 and November 1979.

Junction 8A. This junction, opened in December 2002, is dedicated to traffic between Stansted Airport and London. North of here the M11 has only two lanes in each direction, whilst most British motorways have three or more. Just before Junction 9 the motorway enters the county of Cambridgeshire.

Quendon to Stump Cross (J9 to J10)

This section was constructed between May 1977 and November 1979.

Junction 9 (Stump Cross). This restricted junction near Great Chesterford allows northbound access from London to the A11, and southbound access from the A11 to London. A spur of the M11 about 2 km long runs to the A11, which then heads north-northeast towards Thetford in Norfolk.

Cambridge Western Bypass (J10 to J14)

This section was constructed between January 1977 and February 1980.

Junction 10. At Duxford the motorway passes through a cutting and under a roundabout joining it to the A505. This gives access to a site of the Imperial War Museum, some of whose hangars and aircraft can be seen from the motorway. In 1977 the main runway was shortened to 6,000 ft (1829 m) to enable the motorway to be built, and aircraft landing from the west or undertaking displays have at times come to rest on the motorway or just beyond it.

Junction 11. The motorway passes under another roundabout, from which the A10 leads southwest to Royston, and the A1309 leads northeast to Trumpington, a suburb of Cambridge.

Junction 12. The motorway passes under a flyover carrying a diamond junction with the A603 (Barton Road). This road heads southwest to Sandy and northeast to Newnham, a south-western suburb of Cambridge.

Junction 13. This is a restricted half-diamond junction with the motorway passing under the A1303 (Madingley Road). Only south-facing slip roads have been built. The upper road heads west to St Neots and central Cambridge.

Junction 14 (Girton Interchange). This is named after the nearby village of Girton, northwest of Cambridge. Here the M11 ends in a T-junction with the A14, and with restricted access to a number of other roads. The northwest direction of the A14 leads to towards Huntingdon, while the easterly direction leads to north Cambridge, Norfolk and the east-coast port of Felixstowe. At this junction the A14, despite being part of the European Union's Ireland/United Kingdom/Benelux Road Link and the Trans-European Road Network, narrows to one tightly-curved 30 mph (48 km/h) lane in each direction.

See also: List of motorways in the United Kingdom.