page_title: M2 motorway (Great Britain)
section_title: Original construction
hierarchical_section_title: M2 motorway (Great Britain) / History / Original construction
caption_attribution_description: The M2 junction 2 entry roundabout on the A228 and the M2 Motorway Bridge and the Channel Tunnel Rail Link Bridge crossing the River Medway, viewed from Merrall's Shaw, Ranscombe Farm, Cuxton. On the far bank we see Borstal, Fort Borstal and the motorway snaking up the Nashenden Valley while the rail link proceeds in a more direct line. Camera location51°&#160;22′&#160;53.4″&#160;N, 0°&#160;28′&#160;01.2″&#160;EView this and other nearby images on: OpenStreetMap - Google Earth
context_page_description: The M2 is a motorway in Kent, England. It is 26 miles long and acts as a bypass of the section of the A2 road to run past the Medway Towns, Sittingbourne, Faversham, and to provide an alternative route to the Port of Dover, supplementing the M20.
context_section_description: The initial section of the motorway (junctions 2 to 5) was opened by the then Transport Minister Ernest Marples on 29 May 1963, with the remainder being constructed in 1965. It was opened in three stages:
  Junctions 1 to 2 in 1965
  Junctions 2 to 5 in 1963
  Junctions 5 to 7 in 1965
  It was planned to extend the M2 to London and Dover, making it the main route between London and the channel ports, but this extension never materialised due to a lack of traffic demand. Instead the A2 was dualled and improved from Brenley Corner to Dover.
  The M2 was originally to be designated as the A2(M), but as a result of the Daily Telegraph reporting it as the M2, the Ministry of Transport adopted this, and later decided upon the M20 designation for the main London-Channel Ports link.
caption: Junction 2 of the M2, the roundabout on the A228, showing the motorway crossing the Medway and climbing up the Nashenden Valley. Alongside is High Speed 1.
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