M5 traffic was brought to a standstill near Taunton on Saturday morning, June 13, after police temporarily held all vehicles because of reports of people in the road and a police incident. The disruption hit both directions between junction 25 on the A358 Taunton side and junction 24 on the A38 toward Bridgwater South.
For motorists caught in the queues, the key question was where the road had shut and how far the delay had spread. Traffic backed up to junction 26 as cameras showed figures in the carriageway, police vehicles and long lines of stationary cars, while a police helicopter could be seen overhead.
Inrix said traffic was being held and stationary, and drivers were sent on diversions that added more time to an already difficult run through the area. Southbound traffic was told to leave at junction 24, use the A38 toward Taunton and return to the motorway at junction 25, while northbound traffic was directed off at junction 25, along the A38 toward Bridgwater and back on at junction 24.
The hold was not just a short-lived interruption. Traffic appeared to be slowly moving again between junctions 25 and 24 after the police intervention, but the report also said traffic remained halted on the same stretch on Sunday, June 13, leaving unanswered how long the closure lasted and what led to the people in the road in the first place.
The scene fits a wider pattern on the M5, where a problem at one point can quickly ripple several junctions away and trap drivers for hours. A separate M5 Traffic News report on a crane breakdown and crash near Stroud showed how fast delays can build on the route when a live incident blocks the motorway.
For now, the immediate picture is clear: the M5 between junction 25 and junction 24 was the center of a police-led shutdown near Taunton, and the congestion reached back to junction 26 before any movement started to return.
