Motorists face travel chaos this morning on a major motorway following a serious crash that has led to hazardous chemicals leaking.
Southbound lanes of the M40 are closed between Oxford and Watlington following the collision, involving a car and a tanker at approximately 7:45pm Monday. A statement from National Highways, emergency services are at the scene working with specialist teams to "safely contain and clear a spillage of bitumen from the damaged tanker".
A National Highways spokesperson said: "Emergency services responded to the collision where thankfully nobody was injured but a large spillage of Bitumen was confirmed and the road closed to safely respond to the scene."
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Road users travelling on southbound on the M40 are advised to follow traffic diversions as congetion grows in Oxfordshire.
Motorists are advised the hollow circle diversion symbol visible on local road signs, National Highways have said, as closures are already causing delays of up to 30 minutes as unsuspecting motorists come face to face with blocked roads.
The M40 and imacted carriageways and junctions impacted will reopen as soon as it is safe to do so.
Motorists travelling southbound on the M40 have been met with a wall of congestion in Oxford, with traffic held up for half
Congestion has backed up between junctions J9 and J8A as drivers come face to face with closures and diversions for Tuesday morning, November 18
Closures are impacting M40 southbound between J8A (Oxford) and J6 (Watlington) following a serious collision last night after a tanker-car crash and subsequent chemical spill.
Motorists should seek alternate routes, or follow the recommended diversions as per advice from National Highways.
National Highways says there is "no estimated" time to reopen the M40 southbound following a serious collision which has led to a chemical leak.
A latest message read: "There is currently no estimated time of when the road will re-open."
It followed a post stating: "The #M40 southbound remains closed between J8A (#Oxford) and J6 (#Watlington) following a collision. A significant spillage has caused damage to road surface and resurfacing is required in lanes 1 and 2. Recovery are en route, 1 lane will reopen once recovery is complete."
The reopening of the southbound section of the M40 at Oxford has been pushed back once again, as specialist crews continue to assess the damage.
Crews are working to haul away the punctured tanker responsible for spewing hot bitumen across the M40 last night, with the chemical spill responsible for "significant damage", as per Traffic England.
As per National Highways data, normal traffic conditions are now inching closer to a 12pm restoration time (Tuesday, November 18).
The motorway, carriageways, and various slip lanes vary in restoration timeframes, but expectations are currently set to an 11.30am reopening.
Bitumen spills pose a range of risks to health and safety thanks to its high handling temperature, high output of carbon emissions, creation of environmental pollutants, and a potential cause for serious damage to roadways like the M40.
Specialist crews from National Highways have since confirmed the latter to be true, as responders assess the damage after the motorway crash and chemical spill.
It has since been confirmed the chemical compound, which had cooled as emergency responders made the site safe, the spill caused significant damage to the carriageway between Oxford and Watlington.
It will require further motorway closures and roadworks to make the section of road safe again for motorists.
BP Bitumen Health Safety Security Environmental Quality advisor for Germany Ingeborg Schroder warned the roadwork industry of the dangers of hot bitumen, speaking to UK-based road planning publication Global Highways back in 2012.
The interview from the archives saw her issue a stark warning: “Bitumen itself is not classified as hazardous material and is therefore often not considered to be dangerous.
“Big mistake,” she added.
“The typical handling temperature of around 180°C alone does pose a threat to everybody dealing with bitumen.”
There has been significant damage on the M40 as a result of a chemical spill, National Highways has confirmed.
A replacement tanker and specialist recovery team arrived on scene at approximately 3:40am on Tuesday morning to transfer the remaining load of bitumen from the damaged tanker and begin recovery the tanker from the scene.
National Highways engineers have assessed the road surface and confirmed 'significant damage'.
Because the bitumen has hardened on the carriageway, simple clean-up isn’t enough, the affected lanes will need to be planed and resurfaced. – this work can only be done safely under a full closure, the authority say.
National Highways has released a picture of crews working at the scene while the M40 remains closed.
It's been confirmed that no-one was injured as a result of the incident. However, the road remains shut with specialist teams working to safely contain a spillage of bitumen from the damaged tanker.
The site of a traffic collision, which resulted in a bitumen spill and saw roads shuttered as of late Monday night, is expected to reopen in the middle of peak hour.
Southbound access to shuttered motorway M40 remains restricted, but National Highways data indicates that peak hour will become magic hour for those needing to use the arterial road.
The M40 southbound, the M40 southbound entry slip at junction seven, junction eight access to the M40, and the M40 southbound between junctions 8A and six are expected to be back in operation by 7.30am Tuesday morning, November 18.
All lanes are open on the M40 northbound between junction six at Watlington and junction seven at Thame.
There are no residual delays on the northbound carriageway.
Heading in the other direction, southbound carrigeways of the M40 remais closed between junctions eight at Oxford and six at Watlington as a complex recovery mission continues as authorities work to mop up the bitumen spill.
A replacement tanker is en route to the scene of the two-vehicle crash in Oxfordshire, with reports indicating the truck is expected to be on site by 3am Tuesday morning.
It is expected to arrive at the site of the motorway crash and chemical spill at about 3am Tuesday morning, November 18.
The tanker will transfer the bitumen remaining from the damaged truck and off-site.
Once the bitumen has been safely cleared, recovery of the crashed tanker will then begin.
Next comes a detailed inspection by roadway experts to assess any damage – the road will reopen as soon as it is safe to do so.
Emergency crews will remain at the scene of the crash and chemical spill throughout the night with motorists advised to steer clear.
Road users travelling on the M40 southbound are advised to follow the hollow circle diversion symbol visible on local road signs, National Highways have said.
Once the motorway is clear of excess bitumen, which is expected at some time after 3am, road inspectors will assess the carriageway for damage.
The M40 and imacted carriageways and junctions impacted will reopen as soon as it is safe to do so.
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