M56 motorway

M56 shield
M56
North Cheshire Motorway

Shown in North West England

Shown with the UK motorway network
M56 motorway from A5117.JPG
Looking east from Junction 14
Route information
Part of E22
Maintained by National Highways
Length33.3 mi (53.6 km)
Existed1971–present
History
  • Opened: 1971
  • Completed: 1981
Major junctions
East endCheadle
Major intersections
West endMollington
Location
CountryUnited Kingdom
CountiesGreater Manchester, Cheshire
Primary
destinations
Road network
M55 M57

The M56 motorway serves the Cheshire and Greater Manchester areas of England. It runs east to west from junction 4 of the M60 at Gatley, south of Manchester, to Dunkirk, approximately four miles (six kilometres) north of Chester. With a length of 33.3 miles (53.6 km), it connects North Wales and the Wirral peninsula with much of the rest of North West England, serves business and commuter traffic heading towards Manchester, particularly that from the wider Cheshire area, and provides the main road access to Manchester Airport from the national motorway network.[citation needed]

Between junctions 9 and 16, the motorway forms part of the unsigned European route E22 on its route in the UK between Holyhead in Anglesey and Immingham in Lincolnshire.