A RUSH-HOUR crash caused huge tailbacks and lengthy delays for commuters and other motorists.

Emergency services were called to Junction 5 of the M61 just before 6.40pm on Thursday after two vehicles were involved in a collision.

Neither driver was seriously hurt in the smash, but two northbound lanes were closed, resulting in standstill traffic and ‘very long delays’for motorists on the M61 and M60 and A666.

Police confirmed there had also been a number of other minor collisions in the area which appeared to have contributed to road users frustrations.

Traffic flow reportedly did not return to normal until nearly 10pm.

The frustrating evening for Bolton motorists comes after it was revealed that traffic jams costs the country £9 billion a year in wasted time, fuel and unnecessary carbon emissions.

According to figures from transport data company Inrix, drivers faced 1.35 million traffic jams on on the nation’s A-roads and motorways between September 2016 and August this year.The worst tailbacks left drivers stranded for up to 15 hours.

Inrix’s analysis found that the worst month for traffic jams during the relevant period was November 2016, with drivers suffering almost 170,000 hold-ups - some 50 per cent above average.

A top ten of traffic lackspots includes just one Greater Manchester road — the A6 northbound betweeen Macclesfield Road and Heaton Lane.

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