Costain Completes Additional Refuge Areas On M1 Smart Motorway Ahead Of Schedule

Costain has successfully finished the construction of 41 new emergency areas on the M1 smart motorway ahead of the planned timeline.

This development marks a significant enhancement in safety for drivers on this key route, which spans 51.5km between junctions 28 and 35A, covering Derbyshire and South Yorkshire.

The newly installed emergency areas were delivered by Costain as part of its work in the SMP Alliance, which features Fluor, WSP, Jacobs Engineering, Costain, Balfour Beatty and Bam-Morgan Sindall JV.

The works are part of the National Highways’ National Emergency Area Retrofit (NEAR) programme, which represents a £390M initiative aimed at augmenting safety measures across the UK’s road network. The NEAR programme also incorporates advanced technology such as stopped vehicle detection systems to further enhance motorway safety.

In 2023, the government cancelled plans for any new smart motorways, due to cost pressures and the lack of driver confidence. A major source of disquiet for drivers on all lane running smart motorways was the lack of a hard shoulder to pull into when required, with emergency refuge areas only dotted along the edge of the carriageway.

In 2021, the transport select committee’s inquiry into smart motorways found that the refuge areas were too far apart and recommended that new ALRs have them at an optimum distance of 1km and a maximum distance of 1.5km from each other. It also recommended that additional areas be retrofitted to existing ALR roads to improve driver safety.

This was taken up by National Highways, which has been working with its contractors to add the refuge areas to ALRs.

These emergency areas are essential for motorists, particularly on stretches of motorway that lack a permanent hard shoulder. Each area measures approximately 100m in length and is designed to provide a safe refuge for vehicles in distress. They are easily identifiable thanks to their distinctive orange tarmac and blue signage, which features an orange SOS telephone symbol.

The construction of the final 22 emergency areas on the M1 saw the distance between these safe stopping points halved, enhancing accessibility for drivers in emergencies. With the completion of this segment of the M1, which accommodates over 200,000 vehicles daily, traffic is now fully open at the national speed limit, thereby improving regional mobility in both Derbyshire and South Yorkshire.

This successful project follows Costain’s previous achievements, including a 16km upgrade of the M6 motorway in the North West and the completion of a new 14.5km stretch of dual carriageway on the A30 in Cornwall, demonstrating an ongoing commitment to infrastructure development and safety enhancements across the UK.

Costain project director Jacky Li said: “It’s a fantastic achievement to have delivered these three schemes, which cover more than 30 miles of one of the UK’s busiest motorways, ahead of schedule. Through a collaborative approach and a like-minded group of delivery and supplier network partners in SMP Alliance, we’ve been able to efficiently and safely deliver all 41 emergency areas for National Highways.

“Our work will improve the resilience of the local road network, and the additional emergency areas will increase safety, reduce disruption and improve mobility for road users for many years to come, helping to drive prosperity across Derbyshire and South Yorkshire.”

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