Does X mark the spot?

An increasing number of drivers have been caught ignoring Red X signs on smart motorways.

A Freedom of Information request by IAM RoadSmart reveals that more than 53,000 motorists have been caught by police enforcement cameras disobeying Red X signs since 2021.

The problem appears to be getting worse.

Seeing red

In 2021, nine police forces were enforcing against Red X infringements, with 4,393 drivers caught, according to the FOI request to police.

By 2022, a further eleven forces began prosecuting against the contravention, resulting in 20,773 motorists being captured by cameras.

2023, a total of 21 forces used enforcement cameras to catch 28,231 drivers breaking the law.

Almost all police forces with smart motorways within their boundary areas are now actively pursuing this type of criminality.

Sign of the times

IAM RoadSmart, which conducted the study, said it demonstrates that the Government must give “serious thought” to the future of roads.

Adherence to red X signs is critical to safety on smart motorways with hard shoulders converted into live running lanes.

This means that broken down or stopped vehicles will block a motorway lane.

National Highways staff are supposed to switch on the closed lane signs when stopped vehicles are detected in live lanes.

This prevents them from being hit from behind and helps protect the emergency services attending the scene.

IAM RoadSmart director of policy and standards Nicholas Lyes said: “Ignoring a red X sign on a smart motorway is dangerous because it risks a serious collision and, for this reason, we welcome police forces clamping down on those who break the law.

“The majority of drivers have serious reservations about the safety of smart motorways where the hard shoulder has been removed, and these figures are unlikely to persuade them they are safe.

“We know that no new all-lane running smart motorways will be built, but it does beg the question of what we do with the existing stretches that are in operation.

“This is something the new Government needs to give some serious thought to.”

Breaking down

Smart motorways without a hard shoulder were created to increase capacity at a lower cost than widening roads.

Then-prime minister Rishi Sunak cancelled all future planned smart motorway projects in April last year, citing financial pressures and a lack of public confidence in the roads.

It led to calls for reinstating the hard shoulder on existing smart motorways.

RAC road safety spokesperson Rod Dennis said: “These figures sadly underline the fragility of one of the systems designed to keep stricken drivers safe on smart motorways.

“The safety of any driver unlucky enough to stop on a smart motorway depends entirely on other people seeing the red-X sign and moving to another lane.

“It’s therefore terrifying to think that so many people have either ignored them or failed to spot them in the first place.”

A picture of danger

Enforcement cameras, which have been able to enforce contraventions since 2019, automatically detect vehicles passing illegally under a Red X.

This can result in a fixed penalty notice of up to £100 and three points or, in some cases, more severe penalties or a court appearance.

Between 2021-23 inclusive, Surrey Police topped the table with 11,360 drivers caught committing Red X offences along stretches of the M3, M23 and M25.

Thames Valley Police had the second highest volume, with 9,957 motorists being snapped by cameras over the same period.

Further north, Greater Manchester Police had the third highest national number of intended prosecutions, with 6,120 drivers committing Red X offences on motorways.

Bedfordshire Police did not begin enforcement until 2023, meaning only 28 drivers were caught ignoring the Red X sign by the police on this county stretch of the M1.

Pulling up

Many road safety experts believe all hard shoulders should be reintroduced.

Dennis at the RAC says: “It’s largely roadside signs that communicate which lanes are closed which are harder for drivers to read than gantries that span the carriageway and have signs over each lane.

“It’s for this, and other reasons, that we’ve called on the new Government to convert all-lane running stretches of smart motorway to either controlled motorways – with hard shoulders permanently restored – or to dynamic hard shoulder schemes, where a hard shoulder is in place for much of the day and night, and only opened to traffic at the busiest times of day.”

Thinking sense

The first motorway to convert the hard shoulder into a part-time running lane was the M42 in 2006.

In 2013, the M25 was the first motorway to have stretches of hard shoulder removed altogether and replaced with a running lane.

As of April 2024, there are 396 miles of smart motorways in England, which include all-lane running (hard shoulder permanently removed), controlled (hard shoulder retained and variable speed limits), and dynamic (hard shoulder sometimes open to traffic) configurations.

Drivers encountering problems on an all-lane motorway should head for emergency refuge areas (ERAs); however, not all make it.

Data suggests there were 24 fatalities on a smart motorway in 2022, of which 14 occurred on motorways without a hard shoulder.

Concerns have also been raised about whether radar technology to detect stranded vehicles is reliable.

Investigations have found faulty equipment, a lack of appropriate coverage, delays in reporting and warning of broken down vehicles, and low morale amongst staff.

Recent IAM RoadSmart research revealed that almost 89% of 2,000 motorists surveyed believed that the hard shoulder on smart motorways should be reinstated immediately, indicating continued public hostility to the schemes.

Lyes added: “The majority of drivers have serious reservations about the safety of smart motorways where the hard shoulder has been removed, and these figures are unlikely to persuade them they are safe.”

According to National Highways, work is ongoing to raise awareness among road users, with nine Red X awareness campaigns launched since 2016.

“A Red X signal is there to increase the safety of everyone using the road by highlighting an issue ahead,” said a National Highways spokesperson.

“Above 90% of drivers observe Red X signals, but ignoring Red X signals is an offence and puts themselves and others at risk.”