‘Bring back the hard shoulder’ calls as M1 ’emergency’ lay-bys complete from junctions 23a to 25

Motorists[1] have renewed calls backed by Nottinghamshire Live for the return of the hard shoulder after National Highways lifted restrictions from a busy stretch of the M1 after more than six months of roadworks. A 50mph speed limit[2] had been in place between junction 23a and 25 of the motorway since spring as the highway agency built new lay-bys between the junctions. Six "emergency areas" have since been built along the seven-mile stretch of road and Highways will look to build 20 more areas between junction 28 and 30.

The yellow-painted zones are 100m long and equipped with telephones giving direct access to control rooms. The work caused the closure of one lane and a 50mph limit[3] to allow work to be carried out safely. For junctions 23a to 25, the work was set to end in November,[4] while for junctions 28 to 30, the work is expected to end in January.

On Friday (December 14) evening, National Highways released a statement confirming that the works are finally complete. A spokesperson for the highway authority said: "We're removing roadworks from the M1 between junctions 23a and 25 in Leicestershire and Derbyshire and six new emergency areas are now open. "We still need lane closures 8pm-6am over the next 3 nights to remove equipment such as temporary average speed enforcement cameras." It comes after Nottinghamshire Live started a petition and published a number of stories over the last two years calling for change as drivers highlighted the dangers of removing the hard shoulder.

When the campaign was launched in May 2023[5], we highlighted a total of 79 deaths on roads where there is no hard shoulder. Those mourning their loss included widow Wendy Steer,[6] who believes smart motorways are "the worst thing that has ever been built". She is the wife of the 79th person to die following incidents on smart motorways.

Her late husband, 53-year-old Andrew Steer, died in January, 2022, after his van hit a stationary lorry on a stretch of the M1. Adam Majstrow, a Nottingham driving instructor,[7] was among the people calling for a hard shoulder to be re-introduced on all motorways - saying he nearly crashed into a lorry as he was heading to the East Midlands Airport. "Smart motorways are not smart", he added. "I was driving to East Midlands Airport and I nearly crashed the lorry that broke down on the first lane.

A hard shoulder should be available in those cases. Drivers stay away from the left lane because they think it is more dangerous. Normally, you should feel safer on the first lane."

In its response to the Transport Select Committee's report, 'the roll out and safety of smart motorways', the Government committed GBP390m over the duration of the second Road Investment Strategy to roll out an emergency area retrofit programme. This would see over 150 additional emergency areas being added to ALR motorways in operation and construction. National Highways said it had "listened" to drivers' concerns about being able to find a safe place to stop in an emergency on all lane running smart motorways and the emergency areas.

It says the latest safety data continues to show that all three types of smart motorway are "safer than conventional motorways" in terms of deaths or serious injuries. But following yesterday's announcement[8] by Highways confirming the removal of the roadworks, motorists were quick to share their concerns. Dave Barnes labelled the original removal of the hard shoulder as a "ridiculous design error" but did acknowledge that the "right thing has nearly been done" through the introduction of the six new emergency areas.

He said: "How many lives have been lost because of the ridiculous design error? At least the right thing has nearly been done, just need to re-instate the rest of the hard shoulder." Another motorist, Matt Hudson, added that Highways should "bring back the hard shoulder." Jeanette Taylor Ford agreed and said: "Getting rid of the hard shoulder was the worst ever idea.

"I know they don't have them in other countries, because the traffic knows what to do in the case of a hold up in order to let emergency vehicles through, but drivers here don't know because we've all grown up with the hard shoulder. "What happens if you break down and you're not in a convenient place to pull off the road? So dangerous." An X user, @SirPennies, added: "How long until all the emergency areas link up into one long, continuous one...

You could call it something like a 'hard shoulder'..." Speaking in May, last year, Dean Watson,[9] who owns a haulage company in Leicester and travels on motorways every day, added: "Driving a car on a smart motorway is bad enough - in a big truck is dangerous. "I think having no hard shoulder on smart motorways contributes quite a lot to crashes and road accidents.

I just do not think they are safe. If a lorry breaks down on a smart motorway, the police[10] have to close down the lane behind. So it actually delays the traffic."

The lack of a hard shoulder for cars to pull over in emergencies has been widely criticised since the introduction of the smart motorway in the UK. Of the relatively small percentage of motorway stretches in the UK that are currently smart, the hard shoulder has either been converted into a lane to make four lanes, or is simply open to drivers during busy periods. But the lack of space to pull over has led to accidents where cars have crashed into stationary vehicles.

In April 2023, the Government scrapped plans for more smart motorways.

Speaking in May 2023, a spokesperson for the Department for Transport said: "Drivers deserve to have confidence in the roads they use and, recognising public concerns, the Government has cancelled plans for all new smart motorway schemes.

Working with National Highways, we continue to invest GBP900 million in further safety improvements on existing smart motorways."

References

1. ^ Motorists (www.nottinghampost.com)
2. ^ 50mph speed limit (www.nottinghampost.com)
3. ^ one lane and a 50mph limit (www.nottinghampost.com)
4. ^ end in November, (www.nottinghampost.com)
5. ^ campaign was launched in May 2023 (www.nottinghampost.com)
6. ^ Wendy Steer, (www.nottinghampost.com)
7. ^ a Nottingham driving instructor, (www.nottinghampost.com)
8. ^ yesterday's announcement (www.facebook.com)
9. ^ Dean Watson, (www.nottinghampost.com)
10. ^ police (www.nottinghampost.com)