Police blocked a stretch of the M5 after they were called due to concern for a pedestrian's welfare near Bristol this afternoon (March 18). The route was blocked at junction 21 in both directions for approximately one hour as officers dealt with the incident.
The closure was first put in place at 1.15pm and remained in place until roughly 2.20 pm. But the road was eventually reopened after the pedestrian was confirmed to be safe.
Traffic camera images showed queues building up on the motorway. The incident also led to delays along the A370 towards Congresbury as drivers tried to avoid the road block.
Read more: M5 traffic latest: Motorway reopens after police called to incident near Weston-super-Mare
A spokesperson for Avon and Somerset police said at 2.30pm: "A road closure was put in place on the M5 Jct 21 in both directions at approximately 1.15pm today due to concerns for the welfare of a pedestrian. The pedestrian is now safe and the road is expected to fully re-open shortly."
Traffic reporting system Inrix posted an update at 2.56pm which said: "Severe delays and queuing traffic due to earlier police incident on M5 in both directions at J21 A370 ( Weston-super-mare ). Congestion to J20 ( Clevedon ) heading Southbound.
"Northbound queues are back to Sedgemoor Services. There are also delays on the A370 towards Congresbury as people avoid the delays.
"All lanes have been re-opened. Travel time is over 60 minutes. The road was blocked until 14:20. Traffic was stationary for just under an hour."
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