This is why smart motorways are a death trap
This is what should have been up and working from the day any
motorway is
operated as a
Smart motorway
We're upgrading motorways across the country with technology which detects stopped vehicles. Every motorway where the hard shoulder has been permanently converted to a live traffic lane will have the new radar-based technology by the end of September 2022.
This new stopped vehicle detection will enhance the existing systems that work together to help drivers feel safe and be safer on motorways without a hard shoulder. Already motorways have a system called MIDAS (Motorway Incident Detection and Automatic Signalling) which uses sensors to monitor traffic volumes and automatically set signs and signals as the motorway becomes more congested. Our upgraded motorways also include technology, Red X signs which close lanes to other traffic when a stopped vehicle is identified, emergency areas that are set back from the road for drivers to pull into, and signs and signals which can alert drivers to hazards and change the speed limit, if necessary.
How it works
We will install new radar units at the side of the road to monitor the motorway in both directions, detecting vehicles that have stopped.
The advantage of this new system is it is specifically designed to detect a stationary vehicle, typically in 20 seconds, and alert a control room operator who can see the incident on camera, close lanes and dispatch a National Highways traffic officer to attend to the stopped vehicle.
Using stopped vehicle detection means that there is a significant reduction in time taken for the control room operators to be notified of problems, to verify the presence of stationary vehicles and get help deployed more quickly.
But, then cost-cutting and tech systems not working as they should, an inquiry came up with this
During our inquiry, we heard that
emergency refuge areas, which provide an alternative place to stop in the absence of the hard shoulder, are located up to 2.5 km apart. Some 63% of drivers believe this is too far.31 Many of those we heard from during our inquiry agreed.32 According to the RAC, 79% of drivers are concerned that they would not be able to reach the next emergency refuge area if they breakdown.33 Design standards have been changed to shorten the distance on new schemes
, but no decision has yet been taken on whether to apply this new standard to existing schemes.
CCTV cameras on smart motorways are not routinely monitored.35 Instead, they are used by control room staff to verify and respond to incidents We have found no up-to-date, reliable information on the time it takes for live-lane incidents to be identified.
stopped vehicle detection will not be rolled out across all all-lane running motorways until September 2022, some six years after the then Transport Committee was told that the technology worked and that it would be part of the standard rollout for these schemes (see Box 1). There are also serious concerns about the accuracy and reliability of this technology.37
compliance and enforcement of Red X signs remains problematic. Cameras capable of enforcing compliance will not be fully rolled out until September 2022 (see Box 2).
emergency services and traffic patrol officers still struggle to access incidents in a timely manner on all-lane running motorways, especially when traffic is congested.
Turns out, the so-called smart motorways are not actually smart
And didn't work properly, from the day they opened.
Please stop blaming the drivers
news.sky.com
