Guided tours of Britain’s notorious Spaghetti Junction are proving a hit – with organisers revealing they are fully booked for the next two months.
Sightseers flocked over the weekend for a glimpse underneath the nation’s busiest motorway junction, recently dubbed the ‘most unlikely tourist attraction’ in the UK.
For £13.50 a head, people get an organised tour learning what lies beneath the labyrinth of winding roads that carry the M6 over Birmingham.
The tangle of roads is one of the biggest motorway interchanges in Europe and more than 200,000 vehicles travel on it daily.
On Sunday, a dozen punters took the opportunity to see the hidden charms of the Gravelly Hill Interchange and have spoken of their enthusiasm at the unlikely landmark.
Tours of the winding roads on the M6 proved so popular they’re sold out for the next 2 months
The group stood to see the hidden charms of the Gravelly Hill Interchange with a tour guide
It is one of the biggest motorway interchanges in Europe used by over 200,000 vehicles daily
They spent one hour and 45 minutes exploring canals, rivers, a park, a lake, towpaths, wildlife and street art.
Among the group was physiotherapist William James, 27, who wanted to learn more about Birmingham after recently moving to the second city.
He said: ‘I actually really like how it looks. It’s quite strange and dystopian. Everyone has seen it from above but I’ve never been beneath it before.
‘The tour stood out to me because I find things commonly thought of as being undesirable or ugly innately interesting.
‘I’m aware there’s distaste towards things like Spaghetti Junction and it not being something to be proud of in Britain.
‘But stuff like this a crucial part of our history.
‘I just wanted to take the opportunity to do it and be informed by somebody who is passionate about it as well.
‘It’s been really good. I now like Spaghetti Junction even more than I thought I did.
‘To learn about its history and relevance and how is still has a vital role in modern society and how important it is to Birmingham was really interesting.
‘And how also so many people were displaced when it was built, I don’t think many people consider that, but it gives context to the monument that is the motorway.’
The 52-year-old concrete structure even appears in the Guinness Book of World Records as ‘the most complex interchange on the British road system’.
‘I now like Spaghetti Junction even more than I thought I did’: said William James, 27
The group spent an hour & 45 minutes exploring canals, rivers, a park, a lake, towpaths, wildlife and street art.
Spaghetti Junction was opened in 1972 and took four years to complete costing £10 million
Spaghetti Junction has 559 concrete columns and is reinforced by 13,000 tonnes of steel
All four tours so far were booked to their capacity and are now sold out for next two months
Organisers Explore Birmingham said all four tours so far were fully booked to their capacity of 12 and they have now sold out for the next two months.
Tour guide Al Hassall 49, said: ‘It’s just unique to Birmingham, you don’t really get places that look like that here.
‘I believe the popularity is down to it being a lot more interesting historically than people think.
‘Everyone knows it. It’s synonymous with Birmingham for not so great reasons. It was a hugely impressive feat of engineering in the first place.
‘But most people don’t realise it’s got a complex water system below it. It’s got a lot of history. There was a whole community and shops that were lost.
‘For me, I live nearby, but had never actually been under it. I only went underneath it 18 months ago and it’s not as loud as you think.
‘I used to commute through it. On a misty day with the columns looking up at you, it’s quite a sight to see.
‘People do look for things that are a little bit different. We did sell out.. I focus on small groups, only 12 people.
‘Now I’ve moved the tours until twice a month, the next two months are sold out too.
‘It’s actually a 1hr 45 minute tour. We meet at Aston train station and walk down the canal and discuss that. We talk about everything.
‘The way I do my tours and approach them is to make them more personal.
‘I don’t stick the headphones in their ears and make them follow me around. I’m always interested in people’s perceptions.
‘The majority of people start with a ‘I haven’t given it much thought’ approach. Then most of them come away with a new level of understanding.’
Spaghetti Junction was opened in 1972 and took some four years to complete at a cost of £10 million.
It has 559 concrete columns – some reaching 80 feet high – is reinforced by 13,000 tonnes of steel and covers an area of 30 acres.
If you wanted to drive along every road at Gravelly Hill Interchange, you would need to travel about 73 miles and it also serves 18 different routes.
