M1 Traffic: Full motorway closure near Sheffield/Barnsley due to 'man in distress', police confirm

The force have confirmed the motorway closure is for a “man in distress” between junction 36 (Hoyland) and 37 (Barnsley) of the M1 in South Yorkshire. National Highways Yorkshire tweeted at around 4.10pm this afternoon to reveal South Yorkshire Police were closing the motorway in both directions.

According to the latest update from National Highways, the motorway is still closed as officers continue to deal with the incident. On Twitter, they asked motorists to “please be patient” whilst the police worked. Live traffic updates on Twitter have revealed congestion between J36 and J35A, though this is not confirmed to be linked to the ongoing incident.

Stagecoach South Yorkshire have also issued warnings of delays as bus services through Sheffield and Rotherham are encountering “heavy congestion” due to diverted traffic. The 135 service will begin terminating at Thorpe Hesley due to the traffic.