Pause ‘premature’ smart motorway roll-out, say MPs

The controversy surrounding so-called smart motorways continues, with MPs recommending their roll-out should be paused for five years due to insufficient data on their safety.

Last March, the Department for Transport responded to widespread safety concerns with an 18-point action plan for the future of smart motorways. This included making all new schemes into all-lane-running (ALR) roads, in which the hard shoulder is permanently used as an extra lane. However, a new Commons’ Transport Select Committee report calls that decision “premature,” and says that there is