Police in Derbyshire were been called to nearly 60% fewer crashes on a stretch of the M1 in the year after it became a smart motorway with the hard shoulder becoming a fourth lane, it has been revealed.
The Burton Mail reports that figures obtained by a Freedom of Information Act show Derbyshire Constabulary’s officers were called to 124 collisions between junction 28 at Alfreton and junction 31 at Aston near Sheffield in the year before the smart motorway was introduced, but only 52 crashes on the same stretch in the year after.
Furthermore The latest figures show that between the end of last March and the start of January, officers have been called to 20 collisions on the stretch.
Recently the AA suggested that drivers think smart motorways are more dangerous than traditional carriageways, something discussed by Smart Highway editor Paul Hutton on BBC Breakfast.
