Watch as we test out M6 Junction 10 after £78 million upgrade and four years of upheaval

Walsall Council and National Highways West Midlands finally opened all lanes of the M6 Junction 10 island in Walsall on Thursday, marking the completion of the mammoth project.

However, as all lanes are finally opened, I decided to take a drive on the re-worked island to see if it has made a difference.

The junction has been under heavy scrutiny by residents since it was announced that upgrade works would take place in March 2020, with some residents saying the project was "a waste of time".

As a Walsall resident, I was already a regular user of the new island to get to the Wolverhampton Express & Star offices – so I decided to let my out-of-town friend Sam Wilks, drive the route to get a fresh take on the island.

Approaching from Wolverhampton Road, we were both shocked by how little traffic was actually forming around the island, 10am is notoriously a busy time for Junction 10, and Walsall Town Centre was holding an Easter Festival on the day, which should have added to the regular traffic issues.

Entering the junction, we decided to come back on ourselves – doing a full 360 turn – which would mean having to cross the complete island and utilising all of the new lanes.

Sam, 35, originally from a Walsall but now living in a small hamlet near Bangor, Wales, was thrown by the size of the island and the number of lanes, saying it was "a bit confusing".

He said: "It was a bit confusing. There's a ton of lanes to cross to get back on yourself. It's a bit scary when you first look at it, but it's fairly well-marked.

"There was a bit of an issue right at the end there, you have to move over three lanes to get into the correct one, it felt a little dangerous and pressured, but it was alright in the end."

The island features four lanes with a divider branch that splits traffic to exit via the M6, the Black Country Route, the B4464, Wolverhampton Road, or to remain on the junction.

Sam continued: "Honestly, I'm glad there was no traffic, if there was I probably would have had to go around again, but it seems the island did the job. It seemed like there was hardly anyone on it.

"Once you have done it once or twice I could imagine it actually being easy, but it's quite jarring the first time."

The island also features a number of traffic management lights, which Sam said "adds to the pressure".

He continued: "The lights made it seem like you only had a short amount of time to make your move, I could imagine you relying on someone letting you in.

"It's not bad, the majority of it is really good, but it does rely on you being in the right lanes to start with. But yeah, it's quite good. However, it may be a different story at peak rush hour when the kids are back at school."

Junction was completed on Thursday, March 28, with the total cost of repairs and upgrades coming to £78 million.

Let us know what you think by emailing daniel.walton@jpress.co.uk or in the comments below.