MOTORISTS travelling south of Crewe on the M6 have faced a day of delays after a diesel spillage damaged the road surface.

Around 9pm tonight Highways England were still reporting delays of more than two hours with eight miles of congestion resulting from a two-lane closure between Junction 16 and 15.

Earlier motorists had found themselves stuck in gridlock on the Cheshire/Staffordshire border after an early morning collision between two lorries left a section of the surface of the M6 badly damaged from diesel spill.

Police and the Fire and Rescue Service closed two lanes pushing all traffic down a single contraflow lane after the accident soon after 6am.

Highways England recovered the lorry responsible for the spill and highways staff have spent the day resurfacing the motorway and repairing a damaged barrier. But the motorway restrictions have seen traffic flow grind almost to a halt in the region and at one point in the afternoon queues of over 12-miles long built up.