£100 fine for drivers who ignore smart motorway lane closures

Motorists who drive in closed lanes on smart motorways can automatically be handed a £100 fine and three penalty points from next month.

Police will be given the power to punish drivers caught on traffic cameras ignoring red X signs, under new Home Office legislation coming into force on June 10. Currently motorists who drive in closed lanes are only fined if they are caught by an officer at the time of the offence

Hundreds of miles of motorways across England have been converted into smart motorways, (sections of motorways that use traffic management methods to increase capacity and reduce congestion in busy areas, such as using the hard shoulder as a running lane and using variable speed limits to control the flow of traffic.)

Red Xs are used to indicate when a lane is closed, such as when a vehicle has broken down away from emergency laybys. However, motoring groups have warned that smart motorways create a safety risk as vehicles that break down in live lanes risk being hit from behind.

Highways England has issued more than 180,000 warning letters to drivers who have ignored red X signs since the beginning of 2017. According to research, one in 20 drivers continues to drive in red X lanes even when they’ve seen it.

Where are the Smart Motorways?
London: Sections of M1, M3, M20, M25, M26
Birmingham: Sections of M6, M40, M42
Manchester: Sections of M60, M62
Bristol: Sections of: M4, M5 
The North: Sections of: M1, M62

Click here for a map of Smart Motorways