M1 and M5 emergency area retrofit programme

We'll build 20 additional emergency areas between junctions 28 and 30 of the M1 with construction work starting from Tuesday 2 April 2024. Our work is scheduled to be complete by the end of January 2025.

We’re building 20 additional emergency areas between junctions 16 and 19 of the M1. Our work is scheduled to be complete by the end of March 2025.

On occasions we'll require additional closures which will be signed on the highway.

Please remember that closure details can change at short notice.  For the most up-to-date information, please visit our daily closures page.

You can also check our X (formerly Twitter) account (@HighwaysEMIDS).

We’re sorry for the disruption this work may cause.

We encourage you to plan ahead and allow extra time when travelling.

We're building 10 additional emergency areas between junctions 4a and 6 of the M5.

All works, including testing and commissioning, are scheduled to be complete by March 2025.

However, we'll finish most of the actual construction work before the Christmas break.

We are currently continuing to: 

• install new drainage systems
• lay asphalt
• install communications cables at the new emergency area locations

We'll do some of these works overnight under lane closures in the week starting 18 November. This will allow access for the large number of delivery vehicles required.

Closures

The following closures will be in place overnight from 8pm until 6am.

Monday 18 to Thursday 21 November

M5 J6 to 5 northbound – lane 1, 2 and 3 closure
M5 J4a to 5 southbound – lane 1, 2 and 3 closure

Thursday 21 November

M5 J5 to 6 southbound - lane 1, 2 and 3 closure

Friday 22 November

M5 J6 to 5 northbound – lane 1, 2 and 3 closure

We’re sorry for the disruption this work may cause to your journey and we encourage drivers to plan ahead and allow extra time when travelling. All closures are subject to change at short notice due to unforeseen circumstances or poor weather conditions. 

Please remember that closures can change at short notice. You can check the latest information on our daily closures page or find live travel information on our Traffic England site. Our travel alerts give details of live incidents on our network.

You can also check our X (formerly Twitter) account (@HighwaysWMIDS) before travelling for the latest information.

Our investment in new emergency areas is designed to help road users feel safe and be even safer on our roads. Other improvements we're making include work on:

• technology, such as stopped vehicle detection
• better and more signs
• more information about smart motorways online and in an updated Highway Code

Through all the work we're doing, we’re determined to:

• further reduce the number of casualties on our high-speed road network
• improve public confidence in our smart motorways
• continue to build and operate one of the safest and best performing road networks in the world 

Why are the roadworks so long, and why do they need to be on both sides of the road?

Safety is our top priority. As the distance between emergency areas is relatively short, maintaining the lane closure between them is the best option as it reduces lane changes, helps keep traffic flowing and ultimately reduces the risk of any incidents.

Motorway technology often covers both sides of the road at once, and we have put roadworks restrictions, like a reduced speed limit, when work happening on the opposite carriageway affects our monitoring systems on both sides.

Why are you building all of the emergency areas at once? Why not spread them out?

We are committed to building at least 150 additional emergency areas by the end of March 2025. We are working very hard to meet the commitment and will remove the roadworks as soon as we safely can.

Why can’t I see anyone working?

We appreciate that it can be very frustrating to drive through roadworks and not see work being carried out. We’d like to assure you that we are working very hard to complete these upgrades as quickly and efficiently as possible.  We’ve completed well over a million working hours on these upgrades and are working hard to have them all complete by next spring.

What are you doing to limit delays?

We have designed the roadworks with traffic flow in mind and keeping the open lanes at full-width instead of narrowing them, as at many roadworks, is proving effective at helping to manage traffic flow. 

We continue to keep the roadworks under review and consider all options for maximising traffic flow without compromising safety. For example, where we can do it safely, we are increasing the speed limit to 60mph on the approach to the exit of roadworks to help traffic move more freely.

In exceptional cases, you may pass variable speed limits displaying on overhead gantries within the zone covered by speed limits indicated by hard signs. Should you be in any doubt about which speed limit applies in such a situation, we would recommend that you always comply with the lower of the speed limits indicated.