Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many miles of smart motorway on the M1 were covered by stopped vehicle detection technology in (a) March and (b) December 2020.

Since March 2020, six emergency areas have been constructed as part of the upgrade project between J13 and J16, which is currently in construction. These emergency areas will come into use when the first section of this project (Junction 13 to Newport Pagnell services) opens to traffic in Spring 2022. There are currently no other All Lane Running (ALR) upgrade schemes on other stretches of the M1 that have entered into design since March 2020.

The Government’s Smart Motorway Safety Evidence Stocktake and Action Plan asked Highways England to accelerate its plans and install stopped vehicle detection technology (SVD) on ALR motorways within the next 36 months. The roll out of SVD is planned across the network by March 2023. Page 29 of Highways England’s Delivery Plan 2020-25 sets out an indicative delivery programme over the years 2020-23 for each section of ALR motorway.