Bring back the hard shoulder: ‘safety stocktake’ prompts new calls to scrap smart motorways

"Shockingly, the M62 J10-12 had a system failure for almost a month," he added. "This loss of safety technology, which drivers have been asked to put their trust in, meant they were put in unnecessary danger." According to King, it's no surprise that AA polling suggests a third of drivers feel less safe on motorways today, than they did three years ago. He says it's time to accept that smart motorways have failed, and to side with the majority of drivers, who want to see hard shoulders reinstated everywhere.

The UK roads regulator is the Office of Rail and Road (ORR), and it says that while National Highways appears on track to complete a package of safety improvements by its 2025 deadline, it looks "unlikely to meet its target of halving KSIs on the strategic road network".

According to the ORR, available data shows that at a national level, Stopped Vehicle Detection continues to meet the performance requirements set by National Highways. Worryingly though, it also says some individual schemes missed targets, with seven out of 36 metrics below target across 12 tested sites. "Despite this, the SVD system continues to deliver safety benefits for road users," the ORR says.

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