I have, Dave, and will be again shortly. It did seem better but I'd need to judge it over a few more transits. Can't bloody wait... At least when I get there after me northbound trip from Bude I know that the light's at the end of the tunnel and that I'll soon be at Besses M&S Simply Food to buy a butty, followed by a gentle warming down as I head up the A56 towards Bury and the folks. Oddly, going back home heading for the M6 I haven't been stuck in any huge jams on the M60/M62 for quite a long time now. Those 50 limits and yellow average speed jobbies keep things moving.

I don't think that smartening motorways is about trying to increase their capacity, DMcG. They're about imposing much-needed discipline on drivers, especially at busy periods, to keep traffic moving. I haven't seen any stats but I suspect that there are far fewer accidents in those stretches. Almost every driver is aware of the frequent speed cameras and hardly anyone exceeds the gantry limits by more than a couple of miles per hour.