Smart motorway at Brighouse and Rothwell saves drivers 30 minutes every week

Drivers using the M62 smart motorway are saving up to 30 minutes each week.
Drivers using the M62 smart motorway are saving up to half an hour each week as the number of people using the road increases, according to a report.Drivers using the M62 smart motorway are saving up to half an hour each week as the number of people using the road increases, according to a report.
Drivers using the M62 smart motorway are saving up to half an hour each week as the number of people using the road increases, according to a report.

The £136m Highways England scheme between Brighouse and Rothwell, which was finished in 2013, is designed to make journeys easier for motorists in the busiest periods.

People travelling westbound in the evening towards Brighouse are saving almost five minutes each day, according to the statistics. The study also shows that the journey time savings have been achieved as the number of drivers using the 15.5 mile stretch of the M62 between junction 25 (Brighouse) and junction 30 (Rothwell) has increased.

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An average of 155,000 vehicles now travel between junction 26 (Chain Bar) and junction 27 (Gildersome for the M621) every day – an increase of six per cent.

The figures were published on Tuesday after Chancellor George Osborne said that work to upgrade the M62 to a four-lane smart motorway from junctions 25 to 20 (Rochdale), would be accelerated in his Budget.

Roger Wantling, service delivery team leader for Highways England, said: “These latest figures show that the smart motorway really is making a difference to people’s lives saving commuters an average of 30 minutes a week, which works out at over a day a year.”

What do you think? Has the upgrade made your daily journey better? Let us know by emailing [email protected]