Highways England has defended its use of all lane running to increase capacity on motorways but acknowledges that drivers’ understanding of how ‘Smart Motorways’ work needs to improve.

 

Chief executive Jim O’Sullivan, speaking to TP Weekly News last Friday, said: “Our evidence says that Smart Motorways are as safe as conventional motorways and deliver undeniable benefits.”

 

But he added that a new leaflet has been produced by the company to explain to motorists how to drive safely on Smart Motorways. This includes a reminder to never drive under a red X and to keep within the speed limit shown on the gantries.

 

“People don’t always feel safe or comfortable on our Smart Motorway network, so we need to increase their understanding of these roads,” he said, adding that “red X compliance has improved”.

 

The leaflet also gives an explanation of the difference between all lane running (where there is no hard shoulder) and hard shoulder running (where the shoulder is opened at busy times). 

 

Jim O’Sullivan’s comments over Smart Motorways follow criticism in recent weeks by Parliament’s influential Transport Select Committee over plans to deploy all lane running across 480km of English motorways.

 

Committee chair Louise Ellman had said that Government must put on hold the further use of all lane running until safety concerns are addressed (see Transportation Professional, July/August issue, page five). A particular worry is around the distance between and misuse of emergency refuge areas beside the carriageway.

 

Jim O’Sullivan responded by saying that a new signing trial will begin on one all lane running Smart Motorway scheme before the end of the year to inform motorists who may be experiencing difficulties how far away they are from the next refuge area. He declined to reveal where that might be, but added: “We will pick an area where we have had a high level of customer feedback.”

 

Two weeks ago saw Highways England publish an update to its five year delivery plan, setting out progress made with major improvement projects across the country and its performance on a range of topics against key performance targets. The focus going forwards, Jim O’Sullivan said, is around improving the safety of road workers, traffic officers and motorists. Highways England will also be looking to trial higher speed limits through roadworks towards the end of the year and improve messaging to reduce frustration for motorists.

 

The chief executive also said he is pleased with feedback from road users about a new national traffic information system that went live earlier this year. The system uses automatic number plate recognition to tells drivers how many minutes they are to the next junction.

 

He also said he is excited by the prospect of developing a ‘connected corridor’ (or a ‘wi-fi’ road) on the A2/M2 between London and Dover to provide drivers with early congestion warnings and a forthcoming trial of truck platooning in North West England.

 

But he added that earlier plans to install a ‘dynamic’ charging lane on the M1 to provide a continuous charge to electric vehicles has been shelved. “We have backed off a trial on a live motorway and will do a larger off-road trial instead next year,” he said. “We didn’t feel good about digging up a significant section of the M1 to install hardware and causing disruption.”

 

Over the last year Jim O’Sullivan says he has been pleased with progress to develop the Lower Thames Crossing at Dartford which he describes as “the most important piece of roads infrastructure” on the agenda.

 

He is also keen to further roll out the new ‘Expressways’ concept being developed for the A14 (see Transportation Professional, July/August issue, page 16) and confirmed that a route between Oxford and Cambridge “is a very likely candidate” for another Expressway. “This is the first time a new road class has been introduced in this country since motorways. People will quickly get used to them but it is our job to make sure they are intuitive,” he said.

 

Jim O’Sullivan adds that progress made by Highways England since its creation as a Government owned company in April 2015 – taking over from the Highways Agency – has been “remarkable” but added: “Is anyone going to reach perfection in their first year? No. We have delivered some success and someone did say that our ‘transition is well established’. I like that phrase.”

 

(Photo: Highways England)