May 5th – one of the flattest, smoothest stretches of tarmac in the UK. Gorgeous, and lovely to ride, too (I rode the length of it the M6 Toll the night before it opened), mainly because few use this white-elephant toll motorway. Crossing it on Chase Road last night, I counted 4 cars in a ten minute period. At 8pm on a Saturday.

An utterly misguided project, making money hand over fist for it’s operators, who don’t want the cost of maintaining it, so have consequently priced it beyond use. Bizarre.