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| Version 3 | Version 4 |
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| New smart motorway plans being scrapped | New smart motorway plans being scrapped |
| (32 minutes later) | |
| Emergency bays give cars space to pull off the road when there's no hard shoulder | Emergency bays give cars space to pull off the road when there's no hard shoulder |
| Plans for all new smart motorways have been scrapped, it has been announced. | Plans for all new smart motorways have been scrapped, it has been announced. |
| Fourteen smart motorways will be removed from government road building plans due to a lack of public confidence and financial pressures, the Department for Transport said. | Fourteen smart motorways will be removed from government road building plans due to a lack of public confidence and financial pressures, the Department for Transport said. |
| Smart motorways are a stretch of road where technology is used to regulate traffic flow and ease congestion. | Smart motorways are a stretch of road where technology is used to regulate traffic flow and ease congestion. |
| They also use the hard shoulder as an extra lane of traffic, which critics claim have led to road deaths. | They also use the hard shoulder as an extra lane of traffic, which critics claim have led to road deaths. |
| Rishi Sunak said "all drivers deserve to have confidence in the roads they use to get around the country". | Rishi Sunak said "all drivers deserve to have confidence in the roads they use to get around the country". |
| Are smart motorways dangerous? | Are smart motorways dangerous? |
| Fourteen planned smart motorways, including 11 that had already been paused and three that had earmarked for construction, will be removed from road building plans. | Fourteen planned smart motorways, including 11 that had already been paused and three that had earmarked for construction, will be removed from road building plans. |
| Initial estimations suggested constructing the smart motorway schemes would have cost more than £1bn, the government said, and cancelling the schemes would now allow more time to track public confidence in smart motorways over a longer period. | Initial estimations suggested constructing the smart motorway schemes would have cost more than £1bn, the government said, and cancelling the schemes would now allow more time to track public confidence in smart motorways over a longer period. |
| Speaking on the ban he pledged last year during his leadership campaign, Mr Sunak said: "Many people across the country rely on driving to get to work, to take their children to school and go about their daily lives and I want them to be able to do so with full confidence that the roads they drive on are safe." | Speaking on the ban he pledged last year during his leadership campaign, Mr Sunak said: "Many people across the country rely on driving to get to work, to take their children to school and go about their daily lives and I want them to be able to do so with full confidence that the roads they drive on are safe." |
| Transport Secretary Mark Harper said: "Today's announcement means no new smart motorways will be built, recognising the lack of public confidence felt by drivers and the cost pressures due to inflation." | Transport Secretary Mark Harper said: "Today's announcement means no new smart motorways will be built, recognising the lack of public confidence felt by drivers and the cost pressures due to inflation." |
| Smart motorways have been criticised by MPs and road safety campaigners, including the AA and RAC. | Smart motorways have been criticised by MPs and road safety campaigners, including the AA and RAC. |
| Claire Mercer, whose husband died on a smart motorway in South Yorkshire in 2019, welcomed the move but pledged to continue campaigning for the hard shoulder to return on every road. | Claire Mercer, whose husband died on a smart motorway in South Yorkshire in 2019, welcomed the move but pledged to continue campaigning for the hard shoulder to return on every road. |
| Jason Mercer and another man, Alexandru Murgeanu, died when they were hit by a lorry on the M1 near Sheffield after they stopped on the inside lane of the smart motorway following a minor collision. | Jason Mercer and another man, Alexandru Murgeanu, died when they were hit by a lorry on the M1 near Sheffield after they stopped on the inside lane of the smart motorway following a minor collision. |
| Mr Mercer's wife Clare Mercer said: "I'm particularly happy that it's been confirmed that the routes that are in planning, in progress, have also been cancelled. I didn't think they'd do that. | Mr Mercer's wife Clare Mercer said: "I'm particularly happy that it's been confirmed that the routes that are in planning, in progress, have also been cancelled. I didn't think they'd do that. |
| "So it's good news, but obviously it's the existing ones that are killing us. And I'm not settling for more emergency refuge areas." | "So it's good news, but obviously it's the existing ones that are killing us. And I'm not settling for more emergency refuge areas." |
| 38 killed on smart motorways in last five years | 38 killed on smart motorways in last five years |
| Mrs Mercer's MP, Labour's Sarah Champion for Rotherham, said she was relieved the government has listened to motorists. But she said she wanted to know if schemes currently in construction would be restored and why the ban took so long despite a government review and two parliamentary select committee inquiries. | Mrs Mercer's MP, Labour's Sarah Champion for Rotherham, said she was relieved the government has listened to motorists. But she said she wanted to know if schemes currently in construction would be restored and why the ban took so long despite a government review and two parliamentary select committee inquiries. |
| AA president Edmund King said: "We have had enough coroners passing down their deadly and heart-breaking judgments where the lack of a hard shoulder has contributed to deaths. | AA president Edmund King said: "We have had enough coroners passing down their deadly and heart-breaking judgments where the lack of a hard shoulder has contributed to deaths. |
| "At last the Government has listened and we are delighted to see the rollout of 'smart' motorways scrapped… | "At last the Government has listened and we are delighted to see the rollout of 'smart' motorways scrapped… |
| "We would also like to see the hard shoulder reinstated on existing stretches in due course." | "We would also like to see the hard shoulder reinstated on existing stretches in due course." |
| Smart motorways make up 10% of England's motorway network. The roads use technology to regulate traffic flow and ease congestion. | Smart motorways make up 10% of England's motorway network. The roads use technology to regulate traffic flow and ease congestion. |
| What is a smart motorway? | What is a smart motorway? |
| There are three main types: | There are three main types: |
| controlled, which have a permanent hard shoulder, but use technology such as variable speed limits to adjust traffic flows | controlled, which have a permanent hard shoulder, but use technology such as variable speed limits to adjust traffic flows |
| dynamic, where the hard shoulder can be opened up at peak times and used as an extra lane; when this happens, the speed limit is reduced to 60mph | dynamic, where the hard shoulder can be opened up at peak times and used as an extra lane; when this happens, the speed limit is reduced to 60mph |
| all-lane running, where the hard shoulder has been permanently removed to provide an extra lane; emergency refuge areas are provided at regular intervals for cars that get into trouble | all-lane running, where the hard shoulder has been permanently removed to provide an extra lane; emergency refuge areas are provided at regular intervals for cars that get into trouble |
| All three models use overhead gantries to direct drivers. Variable speed limits are introduced to control traffic flow when there is congestion, or if there is a hazard ahead. These limits are controlled by speed cameras. | All three models use overhead gantries to direct drivers. Variable speed limits are introduced to control traffic flow when there is congestion, or if there is a hazard ahead. These limits are controlled by speed cameras. |
| Existing stretches of smart motorway will remain but have a previously announced safety refit so there are 150 more emergency stopping places across the network, as well as further improved stopped vehicle detection technology. | |
| Construction of two stretches of smart motorway from junctions six to eight on the M56 and from 21a to 26 on the M6 will continue as they already are more than three quarters complete. | |
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| Related Topics | Related Topics |
| Department for Transport | Department for Transport |
| Rishi Sunak | Rishi Sunak |
| Road safety | Road safety |