Vehicles stranded on smart motorways without a hard shoulder had to wait an average of nine minutes and 49 seconds before being attended to by traffic officers, National Highways figures seen by the PA news agency have revealed.
The government agency responsible for overseeing English motorways committed to reducing its average response time from 17 minutes in 2020 to 10 minutes by July 2021. However, the goal was only accomplished over a year later.
The response time relates to stretches of all-lane running (ALR) smart motorways where emergency areas are more than a mile apart.
National Highways said it is reaching stranded drivers more quickly after buying extra patrol vehicles, recruiting additional traffic officers and introducing satellite “outstations” and “park-up points” around the busiest smart motorway sections to make it easier for traffic officers to react to incidents.
“We have made considerable progress cutting the average time it takes...