M2 motorway closed in Kent, England after monster 15ft-deep sinkhole suddenly opens up in central reservation

Euan Stretch
The Mirror, UK
Tue, 11 Feb 2014 16:40 UTC

The Highways Agency said the hole measured 16ft (5m) by 6ft (2m) and was 50ft (15m) deep

Thousands of motorists were caught up in travel misery tonight after a monster, 15ft-deep sinkhole appeared in the middle of a busymotorway.

A ten-mile section of the M2 in north Kent was closed off this afternoon when the 16-foot-wide hole appeared in the central reservation.

Highways Agency experts are examining the hole - the size of a double decker bus - which is believed to have been caused by recent heavy rainfall.

It is thought that both carriageways between junction 5 near Sittingbourne and junction 6 near Faverham would not re-open until tomorrow at the earliest.

A Highway Agency spokesman said: "We have had to close both carriageways because of the discovery of a hole in the central reservation."

It's mouth is five metres by two metres wide and it is about 4.5 metres deep.

"The problem is we don't know how it is affecting the integrity of the carriageway surface which is why we have closed a section of the motorway.

"We have people on site at the moment examining it and establishing how it can be repaired.

"It would not surprise me if it is some sort of sinkhole caused by the recent rain.

© Roddy Mansfield

"Our focus is on getting the carriageway open as soon as we can."

Around 55,000 motorists a day pass along the M2 motorway at junction 5.

The agency was advising drivers for the eastbound M2 to exit at J5 and take the A249 south to the M20 (J7) and then join the M20 east and exit at J8.

Drivers would then have to take the A20 east to Charing and join the A252 north.

Then at Challock they would take the A251 north to J6 of the M2.

Solid black square markers indicate the route.

For the M2 westbound, motorists were being advised to take the above route in reverse, marked with solid black squares.

The agency added: "Road users may wish to consider seeking alternative routes and allowing extra time for their journeys."

Comment: Note the comment here by AA president Edmund King:

"Thankfully this was on the central reservation. If a hole of this nature had opened up on a carriageway it could well have led to tragedy. I don't think this is anything to do with potholes or general maintenance. There seems to have been some structural anomaly - perhaps some sort of geological fault or an old mineshaft.

Clearly, it's a concern that this has happened on a busy motorway that leads to and from the coast. Engineers will want to deal with this as soon as possible. If the stretch of motorway stays shut it will cause traffic problems, but safety must come first."