The completed areas are located between junctions 28 and 35A, a stretch of 32 miles
41 M1 emergency areas have been completed between Derbyshire and South Yorkshire.
The areas have been built as part of National Highways’ National Emergency Area Retrofit (NEAR) programme.
The NEAR programme saw a £390m investment
The NEAR programme laid out an investment plan for improving safety on the UK’s road network. This includes employing technology such as stopped vehicle recognition software.
The constructed areas have been built at regular intervals on the motorway where there isn’t a hard shoulder already present, allowing drivers in emergencies to stop safely. Each area is 100 metres in length, marked with orange tarmac and blue signs, as well as an orange SOS telephone symbol.
The last 22 M1 emergency areas have been completed by Costain between Junctions 28 and 30, with these areas having their spacing between each one reduced by half.
This 32-mile stretch of road carries over 200,000 vehicles per day, and is now completely re-open for traffic at full speed.
“Additional emergency areas will increase safety”
Jacky Li, project director at Costain, 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.”
In November, Lichfields published a report titled ‘The Road Ahead: The Future Role of National Highways in Economic Growth and Housing Delivery,’ stating that National Highways can align with the New Towns programme.
Through working with local authorities, developers, and government bodies to facilitate infrastructure investments and support high-growth sectors such as logistics, advanced manufacturing, and renewable energy.
At the time, Richard Coburn, senior director at Lichfields, said: “By making its remit more explicitly focused on growth on top of its existing Licence responsibilities, National Highways can adapt to ensure it joins the top-table to be a key enabler of the UK’s economic and place-focused ambitions.
“This approach would allow National Highways to work proactively to accelerate housing delivery and commercial developments, alongside stakeholders across the country, aligned with the government’s ‘Get Britain Moving’ agenda.”
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