Driving into the future

Motorists, however, have significant concerns about changes currently being made to the UK’s strategic road network as the Government expands its smart motorway plans to increase future capacity.

The way the vehicles we drive are powered is undergoing a sea-change. Encouraged by technological developments on the part of manufacturers – driven, in the EU at least, by requirements on carmakers to cut CO2 and nitrogen oxide emissions – as well as more general concerns about climate change and air quality, there is a movement towards vehicles with no tailpipe emissions at all. But to what extent are lower emission models on the radar of today’s motorists?

The number of drivers who say they plan to buy an electric car next has doubled this year: the 2019 Report shows 6% of motorists, the equivalent of more than 2 million people, intend to buy a pure electric battery-powered car when their existing vehicle needs to be replaced.  

This proportion increases to 15% who say they plan to buy some form of zero or ultra-low emission vehicle next – including pure-electric, plug-in hybrids and hydrogen fuel-cell vehicles. In 2018, the rate was 12%. And there is an increased willingness, up to 21% from 17%, to buy conventional hybrids, which use a combination of a traditional combustion engine and a battery charged by the engine. (The battery on a plug-in hybrid is topped up via a mains connection, whereas a pure-electric vehicle is powered entirely by a mains-charged battery.)

The average motorist, however, does not expect to acquire their first pure electric vehicle until 2030, and less than 1% of all the cars on the UK’s roads are pure electric. The high upfront price of electric cars compared to similar-sized conventional vehicles is still a barrier to widespread take-up, but concerns about vehicle ranges and nationwide availability of recharging points are now, in reality, becoming lesser issues despite drivers’ perceptions.

It is not surprising that motorists in London – where concerns about emissions are higher, incomes are higher and charging points are more prevalent, – are far more likely to intend to buy an ultra-low emission car next (26% say they plan to do so versus a national average of 15%). Recent increases in the capital in charges and penalties for using older diesels and petrols may also be playing a part here.

The way our motorways operate is changing. Hundreds of miles of motorways in England are being transformed into what are called smart motorways or more recently ‘digital roads’ – where an additional lane is introduced to increase capacity. Gradually, drivers will be using motorways that feature no hard shoulder at all – known as ‘all lane running’ smart motorways – which instead have SOS areas every 1-1.6 miles apart.

This year’s Report quizzed motorists on their experience of and views on all lane running – 54% of drivers, the equivalent of 21 million people, have experience on such roads – and found a considerable level of concern about the potential impact of breakdowns or accidents on safety and congestion.

76% of motorists think a breakdown on an all lane running motorway leads to increased congestion, while as the above chart shows 68% believe the removal of the hard shoulder compromises safety to some extent.

Most drivers (70%) worry they would be unable to reach the next SOS area – which could be up to 1.6 miles (2.5km) away – in the event of mechanical failure. However, 53% are confident Highways England would be able to detect and assist a stationary vehicle that could not reach a refuge area.

Only half of drivers (50%) say they know what to do if they break down on a smart motorway and are unable to reach a refuge area.

Six in every 10 drivers (60%) say they often see speed limits on smart motorways reduced for no apparent reason, although most (54%) have confidence in the accuracy of electronic signs in general.

Finally, around half of motorists – 52% – agree that smart motorways are a cost-effective way to increase capacity on congested motorways, with 14% disagreeing.