Labour could end controversial traffic scheme for first time in nearly 20 years amid huge safety concerns

Drivers and experts have now called for the Government to urgently release its fourth annual safety Stocktake report on road safety.

The first smart motorway was trialled on the M42 in 2006, with the opening of the hard shoulder to traffic at times of peak congestion. But now a recent survey found that motorways where the hard shoulder can be switched on and off at peak times caused the highest level of concern.

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A staggering 34 per cent of drivers said they felt "a lot less safe" on these types of roads. In contrast, 66 per cent of respondents said they felt "a lot safer" on traditional motorways with a continuous hard shoulder.

Only 16 per cent felt safer on motorways with no hard shoulder but with emergency refuge areas spaced at 1.5 miles apart. This figure improved slightly to 18 per cent when emergency areas were positioned closer together at 0.75 miles apart.

Drivers expressed strong concerns in the survey, with one stating: "I believe smart motorways are incredibly dangerous. Another added that they would not feel safe if they broke down on one. "They are anxiety inducing," commented a third respondent.

But other drivers were more forceful in their criticism, with one person stating: "MIDAS doesn't work, and taking away the hard shoulder was a (redacted) idea."

These comments highlight the genuine fear many motorists experience when using smart motorways. The AA noted these responses "underline the fear people feel towards driving on 'smart' motorways."

There are four types of motorways in the UK, conventional motorways with continuous hard shoulders, ‘All Lanes Running' with no hard shoulder but emergency laybys, 'Dynamic Hard Shoulder' where the hard shoulder becomes a running lane during peak times and 'Controlled Motorways' with permanent hard shoulders but variable speed limits.

At least 79 people have been killed on smart motorways between 2010 and 2024. Figures suggest drivers who break down on a smart motorway without a hard shoulder are three times more likely to be killed or seriously injured than on traditional motorways.

The AA has opposed smart motorways since their introduction in 2010. In an attempt to improve safety on existing smart motorways, the previousGovernment pledged nearly £1billion in 2020.

This included plans to build 150 more emergency areas to reduce the distance between them from 1.5 miles to 0.75 miles. However, around half of these promised improvements remain incomplete.Work is still ongoing on sections of the M1, M3, M4, M5, M20 and M25.

The AA noted that "drivers are frustrated with the perceived lack of urgency to complete the work." While many upgrades have been finished, several major motorways only began improvement works last year.

Jack Cousens, head of roads policy for the AA, said: "Given the choice between 'smart' motorways relying on technology or motorways with a hard shoulder, drivers are clear which they prefer.

"In the last few years, there have been numerous reports of signal outages and CCTV failures across the network. The overdue Stocktake must be released so we can understand the impact of these technical failures."

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He added that while more emergency areas will help, they don't address the fundamental concerns drivers have with the system.

"Both the AA and drivers say this experiment has failed and urge for the reinstatement of a permanent hard shoulder," Cousens shared.