Seven in 10 drivers (69%) want existing all lane running smart motorways converted back to traditional motorways, despite the Government saying it would be too disruptive and costly.

Only 31% of the public say the hard shoulder shouldn’t be restored on existing all lane running smart motorways

PM Prime Minister Rishi Sunak confirmed last week that plans for 14 smart motorways had been cancelled due to safety and cost concerns.

But despite calls from motoring groups and road safety campaigners, the Government has said it won’t reinstate the hard shoulder on existing all lane running schemes as it would be too disruptive and costly.

The RAC said its research showed drivers are clearly expecting further action on smart motorways – just 31% said the hard shoulder shouldn’t be restored.

Road safety spokesman Simon Williams said: “Certainly, it’s regrettable that so much public money has already been spent on such deeply unpopular roads, but will the driving public accept anything less than the return of the hard shoulder? What’s more, the Government is making a saving of more than £1bn by virtue of it deciding to cancel future smart motorway schemes in the first place.”

Around 10% of England’s motorway network, or some 235 miles, is made up of smart motorways – these include ‘all lane running’ schemes where the hard shoulder has been permanently converted to a live lane and ‘dynamic hard shoulder’ where the active lane only operates part-time.

While the Government has said that existing smart motorways will continue to get safety improvements, including 150 extra emergency refuge areas and technology to spot broken-down vehicles under a previously announced £900m package, this doesn’t go far enough for many drivers.

Williams continued: “Many felt they were dangerous from the outset and now it’s clear the Government has totally lost faith in these types of road as well. Today, it remains the case that anyone unlucky enough to break down who can’t get to an emergency refuge area remains incredibly vulnerable where the hard shoulder has been taken out.”

The RAC added that reinstating hard shoulders on all stretches of road where they’ve been converted into a permanent fourth lane was “the right thing to do” and said the Government should then immediately start monitoring the impact this has on congestion.

Another option would be to convert as many all lane running stretches as feasible into dynamic hard shoulder schemes, which are already used on parts of the M42, M4 and M5 and have a good safety record. In these locations, the hard shoulder is only opened at times of peak traffic to help reduce congestion and remains in place throughout most of the day and night.

“Whatever action the Government decides to take, the status quo – where we still have hundreds of miles of motorway without hard shoulders – simply isn’t sustainable.

“Longer term, a hotch-potch of different motorway schemes, some with hard shoulders and some without, surely isn’t the answer either.”