Thousands of motorists were stuck in long delays west of Nottingham after the M1 southbound was shut for more than 28 hours.
The road was closed between junctions 23A and 22 close to Kegworth, where a man climbed an overheard motorway gantry on Sunday and refused to come down.
He eventually climbed back down to the roadside just after 4pm on Monday – after 28 hours. Police re-opened the road shortly afterwards.
The closure caused queues on the A52 east into Nottingham and on the route at the Nottingham Knight and Wheatcroft Islands as drivers took long detours towards the A46 to avoid the closure.
Leicestershire Police dealt with the incident and said the decision to shut the road had been taken “in the interests of public safety”.
Officers were called to the scene in the parish of Copt Oak just after midday on Sunday, where they found the man had climbed a maintenance ladder leading up to a platform at the back of the electronic gantry sign.
East Midlands Airport warned passengers to allow for extra time to get to the airport after thousands of passengers struggled to catch flights on Sunday due to the closure and people leaving the Download festival at Castle Donington.
M1 s/bound still closed J23a – 22.
Alt. routes also busy with extra traffic for airport and Download Festival. Allow enough travel time.— East Mids Airport (@EMA_Airport) June 13, 2016
Assistant Chief Constable Phil Kay of Leicestershire Police said: “I have the greatest of sympathy with everyone whose plans and daily activities have been affected but our primary responsibility is the safety of the man himself, my own officers at the scene, and all road users, and we cannot do anything that compromises their safety.”
