National Highways panned over smart motorway secrecy20/06/2022 National Highways has refused to disclose the outcome of a project testing computer analysis of CCTV images for stopped vehicle detection (SVD) on smart motorways - but implicitly conceded the idea is not being taken forward. |
Shapps seeks clarity on smart motorway ERAs after rowing back17/06/2022 Grant Shapps has confirmed that National Highways will not provide emergency refuge areas on smart motorways at the minimum spacing recommended by MPs, despite his department stating that it agreed with their recommendation. |
Legacy ALR scheme moves forward16/06/2022 A major phase of the £200m project to upgrade a section of the M6 between Warrington and Wigan to an all lane running smart motorway will be completed this month. |
National Highways admits room for improvement on SVD16/05/2022 National Highways will look to upgrade its stopped vehicle detection technology on smart motorways after it recently failed to detect stationary vehicles before two serious crashes and already plans to upgrade one of the earliest installations of the technology. |
Smart motorways update shows progress but concerns remain12/05/2022 A new National Highways report on smart motorways details further improvements to the controversial roads but reveals that all lane running (ALR) schemes still raise safety concerns. |
Shapps pleads ignorance on refuge areas27/04/2022 Grant Shapps has told MPs that he does not know whether National Highways includes slip roads within its definition of emergency refuge areas (EAs) for the purpose of providing a minimum spacing on smart motorways. |
Harris to give inquest evidence05/04/2022 National Highways boss Nick Harris is set to give evidence at the inquest into the death of a woman killed on a smart motorway section of the M1 in South Yorkshire. |
Exclusive: Govt considering new type of refuge for smart motorways29/03/2022 National Highways could use some of the £390m pledged to retrofit emergency areas (EAs) on smart motorways to install a new type of place to stop on locations such as slip roads, Highways can reveal. |
Exclusive: Shapps challenged over smart motorway safety pledge18/03/2022 A senior MP has challenged the transport secretary over a select committee request for smart motorway emergency areas (EAs) to be closer together after it emerged a key safety pledge could be watered down. |
Concrete progress on smart motorway safety02/03/2022 National Highways is starting work to improve the safety of dynamic hard shoulder smart motorway schemes by upgrading the central reservation safety barriers to concrete. |
Red X camera upgrade on track for early finish24/02/2022 National Highways is on track to upgrade enforcement cameras that automatically detect vehicles in motorway lanes closed by a Red X ahead of a September deadline. |
National Highways contradicts DfT on smart motorway pledge17/02/2022 National Highways has been accused of backtacking on key commitments from ministers regarding the distance between emergency refuge areas on smart motorways. |
Smart motorway safety: Campaigners react to Shapps' pause13/01/2022 Reaction to the Government’s latest announcement on smart motorways has focused on the need to deliver additional emergency refuge areas (ERAs), while broadly supporting the freeze on new all lane running (ALR) schemes. |
DfT challenged over 'more than halfway' claim13/01/2022 Campaigners have challenged the Government’s decision to continue with work to convert a section of the M6 to all lane running (ALR), despite this week’s announcement of pause on new schemes. |
Shapps agrees to pause smart motorways rollout12/01/2022 Ministers have broadly accepted the recommendations of a report by MPs into smart motorways, including pausing both all-lane running (ALR) schemes that have not started construction and the conversion of dynamic hard shoulder schemes to ALR, and revisiting the case for controlled motorways. |
M3 smart motorway scheme first to be halted23/11/2021 National Highways has halted work on its M3 smart motorway plans following the Transport Select Committee's call for a pause to the roll-out of the controversial road design. |
MPs 'must consider smart motorway revelations'13/10/2021 A woman whose husband was killed on a smart motorway has called for a parliamentary inquiry to consider the findings of a newspaper investigation, which alleged serious failings in safety equipment. |
Mixed signals over motorway repairs08/10/2021 National Highways has said it will fix faults with overhead gantry signals on a smart motorway section of the M62, which occurred more than a month ago, ‘as soon as possible’, but did not give a timescale. |
DfT keeps 'urgent' smart motorway probe findings to itself07/10/2021 National Highways has provided the Department for Transport (DfT) with an ‘initial update’ on its investigation into allegations of serious safety failings on smart motorways but both organisations have refused to disclose the early findings. |
Viewpoint: Assumptions and predictions01/10/2021 Former director at the Department for Transport and current director of the RAC Foundation, Steve Gooding, picks up on a recent Highways investigation into smart motorways to ask important questions about models, predictions and above all what we want. |
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