Friday 28th May 1971

The first nine miles of the M3, from Popham to Black Dam, Basingstoke, England opened without fuss or ceremony, steering the Whitsun bank holiday traffic away from town.Today, the M3 runs for about 59 miles, starting in Sunbury-on- Thames, in Surrey, to the outskirts of Southampton – the last section being completed in 1995, controversially passing through Twyford Down, near Winchester.