The government has today announced that the rollout of “all lane running” smart motorways is to be paused in the UK amid safety concerns.
Following the publishing of the recent Transport Committee report, ministers from the Department for Transport (DfT) have said that schemes to convert stretches of the M3, M25, M62 and M40 into smart motorways will be held off on until “five years’ worth of safety data are available”.
Where work is already underway, a £390 million retrofit programme will instead see additional emergency refuge areas and Stopped Vehicle Detection technology installed where possible.
The decision to halt the controversial rollout follows a recommendation by the Commons Transport Select Committee – which highlighted that there wasn’t enough safety and economic data to justify continuing with the project.
In the review of smart motorways commissioned by transport secretary, Grant Shapps, in March 2020, the government said dynamic smart motorways were confusing and should be phased out in favour of all-lane running – which would remove the hard shoulder permanently – but MPs on the Transport Committee said that the decision was “premature” and based on insufficient evidence.
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The report urged the government to instead “consider alternative options for enhancing capacity” on motorways.
Our report on smart motorways called for a pause to the rollout of all-lane running smart motorways until sufficient safety data had been gathered, as well as other key recommendations.
Smart motorways – which were first introduced in England in 2014 to increase road capacity and manage traffic by converting the hard shoulder to a live running lane – have been heavily criticised by safety campaigners and MPs alike, with concerns voiced following a growing number of fatal incidents involving broken-down vehicles on smart motorways being hit from behind.
Most-notably, demonstrators carried 38 cardboard coffins to the Houses of Parliament last November 2021 in protest over the government’s initial motorway plan, with each coffin representing one of the people officially listed as being killed on smart motorways between 2014 and 2019.
Around 53 people are thought to have died on smart motorways since 2014.
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Claire Mercer – whose husband, Jason, died on a smart motorway stretch of the M1 in June 2019 – is one of the most prominent campaigners for the abolishment of smart motorways entirely, and is the founder of the Smart Motorways Kill campaign group.
Ms Mercer says her husband would still be alive had there been a hard shoulder, and has said that “none of this is enough”.
She wants to see hard shoulders brought back in every instance.
The rollout of “all lane running” smart motorways is to be paused in the UK amid safety concerns / Credit: RAC
Speaking on the decision to pause the smart motorway rollout for five years, Transport Secretary Grant Shapps said: “While our initial data shows that smart motorways are among the safest roads in the UK, it’s crucial that we go further to ensure people feel safer using them [and] pausing schemes yet to start construction and making multimillion-pound improvements to existing schemes will give drivers confidence and provide the data we need to inform our next steps.”
He added: “During the pause, we will continue to make sure all existing ALR smart motorways are equipped with best-in-class technology and resources and are as safe as they can possibly be.”
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Tory MP Huw Merriman – who chairs the Commons Transport Select Committee – added: “It was clear to our committee that the public needs more reassurance that these motorways are safe to use.
“With conflicting and patchy evidence covering a limited number of years, more time was required to properly assess the impact on safety.”
Campaigners have long argued that the scrapping of hard shoulders has put drivers at greater risk of accidents / Credit: Flickr
Labour’s shadow transport secretary, Louise Haigh, said ministers were “wrong to press ahead” with smart motorways when “the strong evidence warned against it,” and added that “smart motorways in their current form, coupled with inadequate safety systems, are not fit for purpose and are putting lives at risk.”
“Today’s announcement is a welcome step,” she admitted.
“But Ministers should go one step further and reinstate the hard shoulder while this safety work and the accompanying review of the evidence takes place.”
A Withington boozer has been named ‘Pub of the Year’ in South Manchester for 2026
Danny Jones
A pub in Withington has just been named the best pub in the South Manchester area for 2026, as the area continues to back CAMRA and proper boozers.
It’s not the first time they’ve picked up this kind of gong either.
Technically, it’s picked up the award for ‘Pub of the Year for Stockport and South Manchester’, but the venue itself sits on the edge of Withy and the outskirts of Fallowfield.
Operated by legendary local business, Hydes Brewery, they claim the trophy after having just missed out on the top spot in 2025, coming second behind The Crown in Heaton Mersey.
Not this time, though, as the Hydes pub located along Wilmslow Road won this year’s prize by some distance, in fact.
The Salford-born beer makers obviously have lots of sites all over Greater Manchester, many of whom regularly pick up monthly Campaign for Real Ale (CAMRA) awards – not to mention collecting a fair few annual ones – The Vic in Withington is one thought to have been long overdue for the grand prize.
Beloved by regulars and other nearby residents in and around the borough alike, the local community believe this place to be much more than just another watering hole.
For example, it’s been celebrated for its diversity and grassroots work throughout the area, with the team receiving praise for their extensive charitable efforts, such as with the Mero’s World Foundation.
The organisation was established by native Manc mum, Kelly Brown, in memory of her son Rhamero West, who was tragically stabbed to death in Manchester in 2021 at the age of 16; the charity aims to combat knife crime and support youth in the community through various initiatives.
As for The Vic, they’ve helped support the cause for many years, raising vital funds through their New Year’s Eve ticket sales, raffles, and with the management team taking on multiple athletic and endurance challenges on behalf of the cause.
Put simply, husband and wife landlords, Alyson and Paul Mitchell, are absolute legends.
Commenting on the win, Alyson said in a statement: “We’re so proud to win this award, and it is a real honour to be named the best pub in the region by CAMRA. We love what we do, but we couldn’t do it without our amazing team and the incredible support and top-quality ales we receive from Hydes.
“The Victoria is a truly special place for us, and we genuinely have the best customers you could ask for, from students to our local regulars. Winning this year after coming so close previously proves that our collective hard work has really paid off.”
Aside from serving a regular lineup of five or five Hydes cask beers, showing all the games on the box, and generally becoming a bit of a cornerstone of the community, Vic customers also helped raise £1,000 for the Withington Civic Society to install a much-needed community defibrillator outside the premises.
These are the kinds of things we want to hear happening in public houses across the ten boroughs, and it’s yet another instance of South Manchester, specifically, enjoying its moment in the sud-soaked sun.
Manchester City win first Women’s Super League title in a decade
Danny Jones
After a decade of hope and hard work, Manchester City have finally won the Women’s Super League once again in a huge moment for the local club.
Lifting not just their first division title in 10 years, but only their second WSL trophy since the modern female football era began in 2010, it felt like only a matter of time to many supporters.
Ending a six-year Chelsea supremacy, this is also manager Andrée Jeglertz’s first at the helm of Man City’s women’s team, who arrived at the club with a strong silverware record at the start of this season.
These were the scenes at home base as one key result sealed their status as champions:
— Manchester City Women (@ManCityWomen) May 6, 2026
City Women secured the WSL title following third-placed Arsenal’s 1-1 draw against Brighton on Wednesday evening.
They even managed to do so with a game to spare and a six-point gap over the west London club, which has won so much over the past few years.
Speaking in an interview with club media after confirmation of the win, captain and Euro 2025-winning Lionesses defender, Alex Greenwood, said: “[It feels] absolutely incredible. “A moment – we as a team, me personally – us as a club has waited so long for”.
“An incredible moment, it’s an incredible feeling. I’m so glad we got to spend this moment together as a group. Just an absolutely incredible feeling.”
With fans watching both at home, along with the first team themselves, the celebrations have already begun as the team shared a look back at how they got here.
You can see the recap posted on social media in full below.
Commenting on his latest accolade, the Swedish head coach added in a full club statement: “There’s never been doubt about the talent in the group, but there is something else about talking about being winners and champions. We started that early, and we believed in that. That’s led us through this year.
“It hasn’t been easy; it’s been hard work every day, but we had a strong belief that we could be sitting here in May and be champions. That is the first thing, and we definitely deserve it.”
Congratulations to the Cityzens on a well-deserved and long-awaited WSL title; could this be the start of another sporting dynasty of dominance over in East Manchester? Only time will tell…
In other news around the Etihad Campus, the women’s, EDS and academy team stadium is also set to host the final of the FA Youth Cup later this month.
Emily Sergeant -
12th January 2022 
