Safer ‘Smart’ Motorways

We are calling for the Government to halt the roll-out of all-lane running motorways so-called ‘smart’ motorways  until they can prove they are safe for recovery operators.

The Department for Transport initially planned to meet the increasing traffic demands over the coming years in part by rolling out ‘All Lane Running’(ALR) motorway schemes covering 300 miles of motorway by 2025. Recent reports suggest Highways England now intend to roll out more than 700 miles of ALR in total by 2025.

ALR specific type of smart motorway in which the hard shoulder is converted into a standard operating lane.

The campaign believes that to improve safety, Emergency Refuge Areas should be spaced at a distance of no more than 1 mile.

The most recent data available shows non-compliance with Red X signals to be 6% - an alarmingly high figure that is putting recovery operators at risk. We believe the roll out of All Lane Running should be halted until the Government can prove non-compliance is consistently below 3%.