Although most of the Ringways plan was cancelled in 1969 the M12 motorway project was still included in the Roads for Prosperity white paper published in 1989 along with major proposed developments to the A12 road.

[citation needed] It was not formally cancelled until 30 March 1994 by the Secretary of State for Transport, John MacGregor.

Due to the cancellation and the scaling back of London Ringways during the 1970s, few of these ambitious plans were realised except of East Cross Route which was part of Ringway 1 and the M11 Link road (designated as the A12) which was opened in 1999 despite considerable opposition from the M11 link road protest.

The motorway would have ended a short distance beyond the M25 on the Brentwood Bypass (A12).

The M12 to Chelmsford would have run on the alignment previously described to Havering-atte-Bower, then continued north-east to meet the M25 (where an additional junction would have been constructed) south of Wattons Green at the administrative boundary between Greater London and Essex.