M6 partly reopens near Birmingham's Spaghetti Junction after a van fire and diesel spill shut it for over two hours

Two lanes of the M6 southbound near Birmingham reopened at around 18:30 after a van fire and diesel spill triggered a full three-lane closure lasting over two hours on Halloween afternoon. National Highways received the call at 15:35 GMT, and the closure between junction six at Spaghetti Junction and junction five near Castle Bromwich was in place by 16:00. No injuries were reported, and only the single van was involved. Delays of around 30 minutes remain on the approach while lanes one and two are still shut.

Drivers caught inside the closure were released via lane four before the partial reopening began to ease the backlog.

At their peak, delays on the approach stretched to 60 minutes, with motorists diverted via the A5127, B4137 and A47 eastbound back to junction five.

National Highways contractors are still treating the road surface following what they described as a 'significant diesel spillage'.