Highways Agency - Safe roads, Reliable journeys, Informed travellers

Introduction

This consultation will provide an opportunity for interested parties and individuals to comment on the legislative changes, by way of the following draft Regulations, required to allow for the implementation of variable speed limits and hard shoulder running:

• The M42 (Junctions 3A to 7) (Actively Managed Hard Shoulder and Variable Speed Limits) (Amendment) Regulations 200X;
• The M40 (Junction 16 to M42 Junction 3A) (Northbound) (Variable Speed Limits) Regulations 200X;
• The M42 (Junctions 7 to 9) (Variable Speed Limits) Regulations 200X; and
• The M6 (Junctions 4 to 5) (Variable Speed Limits and Actively Managed Hard Shoulder) Regulations 200X.

A further consultation will be undertaken at a later date for the following (provisionally titled) M6 (Junctions 8 to 10A) (Variable Speed Limits and Actively Managed Hard Shoulder) Regulations 2XXX;

The proposed draft Regulations will allow for variable speed limits to be utilised according to prevailing traffic conditions with speed limits to be clearly displayed above each lane of the main carriageway.

Where actively managed hard shoulder running will be introduced the Regulations are needed to modify the Motorways Traffic (England and Wales) Regulations 1982 (SI 1982/1163) with regards to those roads specifically defined (the changes will not apply nationally).

The scheme will introduce control and signaling to enable proactive management of the motorway network adjacent to the Birmingham conurbation. Hard shoulder running will be implemented where appropriate.

This consultation exercise is concentrated on the draft proposed Regulations which are needed in order to implement active traffic management by way of variable speed limits and hard shoulder running. Copies of which are included at Annexes C to F. We could welcome comments specifically on how the draft Regulations could affect your organisation or those you represent. Similarly we welcome your comments on the Impact Assessment which can be found in Annex A. Consultees are invited to offer views on the treatment of costs and benefits in the accompanying Impact Assessment, and the results will feed into the final assessment which will be published alongside the final Regulations. This is not, however, a consultation on the operation of the Birmingham Box Active Traffic Management scheme.

The introduction of Variable Speed Limits Hard Shoulder Running

The Highways Agency is committed to expanding the Active Traffic Management ('ATM') Pilot project (variable speed limits with the addition of hard shoulder running), which has been in operation on the M42 from junctions 3A to 7 since September 2006. The expansion of ATM will contribute to:

• Reducing congestion;
• Providing more reliable journey times;
• Reducing the impact of accidents/incidents;
• Increasing information for the driver;
• Maintaining current safety levels; and
• Reducing driver stress.

The M42 Active Traffic Management Pilot has provided additional congestion relief benefits without the need for widening or land take and has provided the tools for the Highways Agency (HA) to undertake the Network Operator Role.

The key to the success of ATM is the innovative 'Operational Regimes' introduced to make best use of the existing road space. An Operational Regime is the scenario or plan that the operator or system implements in response to real time traffic conditions. The Operational Regimes include the introduction of variable speed limits and hard shoulder running which use the latest technology to make best use of existing road space whilst maintaining and, where possible, improving current safety standards.