Yes, in this instance a departure from standard was reviewed and approved by National Highways’ Technical Specialists. Any departures of this sort are assessed on a site-specific basis, with each installation representing an improvement on the barrier it replaces. The newly installed barrier system at this location meets required safety standards and is of a type that has been thoroughly tested to confirm the type and weight of vehicles it can contain.

National Highways has funding agreed through the third Road Investment Strategy (RIS3) until March 2031 to maintain and renew the A1(M) Alconbury to Peterborough to the same standards as the rest of the network.

A c.£47m regional revenue budget in 2026‑27 funds maintenance, while around £13m of capital funding over the RIS3 period is available within wider regional renewals budgets to address priority asset needs on this route, though maintenance and renewal interventions are needs-based so specific funding is not ring-fenced solely for this section of the A1(M).

The costs associated with the A1(M) Alconbury to Peterborough DBFO contract vary by year and reflect actual payments made during the concession. Annual expenditure ranged from £5.8 million in 1996‑97 to a forecast £30.6 million for 2025‑26, with a total forecast cost to public finances of approximately £709.5 million over the 30-year concession period.

Departmental officials have regular dialogue with National Highways about maintenance on the Strategic Road Network. In the last 3 months, National Highways (NH) has carried out repairs and addressed defects on the A1(M) southbound approach to junction 7.

National Highways has a comprehensive road inspection and maintenance programme to maintain safe roads and to reduce the potential for potholes and other surface defects.

Further work will be done between 12 and 16 February. Subsequently, NH has plans to carry out further permanent road surface patch repairs within a 2km stretch of the A1(M) southbound approach to junction 7.

There is a programme of resurfacing on the A1(M) as follows:

A1(M) J1 – J6

A1(M) J1-J2 – Minor repairs were completed mid-April, with further enhanced inspections beginning week commencing 24 April 2023. Larger scale resurfacing will be undertaken dependent on inspection outcome.

A1(M) J14-J17

NH have plans to undertake some resurfacing of the A1M northbound between J15 to J16 lane 1. Works are expected to be completed around August/September 2023

A1(M) J8 – J10

National Highways has plans to carry out minor surface repairs before the end of April. No plans for larger-scale resurfacing until the next roads investment period, 2025-2030.

A1(M) J52 – J53

Reprofiling Scheme starting 05/06/2023

A1(M) J60 – J61

Climbing Lanes patching scheme work starting 18/09/2023

A1(M) J61 – J62

Hard Shoulder patching scheme work starting 30/10/2023

This carriageway is inspected on a weekly basis and 10 potholes were repaired overnight on 18 and 19 April 2023 at J1 – J2. National Highways will be conducting enhanced inspections during the week commencing 24 April 2023.

Safety inspections of the A1(M) between junctions 8 and 10 are carried out by National Highways on a weekly basis. Its last inspection was carried out on 21 March 2023 with the next due to take place on 28 March 2023.

National Highways plan to conduct minor surface repairs along this section of the A1(M) before the end of April.

National Highways’ inspectors carry out weekly safety inspections of the A1(M). Recent weekly inspections identified two safety critical defects in the area on 19 December 2022 and 28 December 2022 and both have been made safe.

Currently a resurfacing scheme for lanes one and two of the southbound A1(M) between junctions 6-5 is planned for the financial year 2024/25.

Where safety critical defects, including potholes, are identified, they are made safe within 24 hours and a permanent repair is made within 28 days.

The southbound carriageway from Newark to Gonerby Moor is due to be resurfaced in late 2023/24, National Highways are currently developing a programme to resurface the remaining sections once this work has been completed. In recent inspections, National Highways identified a need for a series of patching works between Newark and Grantham and an emergency scheme is due to start in this area in the coming weeks.

Highways England’s inspectors carry out weekly safety inspections of the A1. If any safety critical defects, including potholes, are identified, an instruction is given to mitigate any immediate safety issues within 24 hours. Repairs are carried out according to the severity of the defect, frequently within 28 days.

Highways England continues work to identify schemes for necessary resurfacing treatments and is committed to start resurfacing works on the A1 northbound carriageway between Wothorpe and South Witham at the end of the 2021/22 financial year.

The A1(M) is inspected weekly and safety critical potholes and surface defects are repaired within 24 hours. Highways England have made safe 36 potholes on the northbound carriageway and larger patch repairs across 100 square metres of carriageway between junctions 6 and 7 since December 2018. They plan to carry out other surface repairs between junctions 6 and 7 before the end of March.

Highways England have also recently completed road surface condition surveys of the A1(M) and other strategic roads in the region. These will be used to determine a prioritised programme of resurfacing work on the A1(M) and other roads over the next 3 years.

In addition, construction of the A1(M) junctions 6 – 8 smart motorway starts in the next financial year. Construction will include resurfacing at various locations in both directions between junctions 6 and 8.

The Government recognises that the A1(M) is a route of strategic importance.

A smart motorway upgrade between junctions six to eight, which is the busiest section along that route, is in the Road Investment Strategy being delivered by Highways England. The early design work is underway and the current Highways England delivery plan target is for this scheme to start work on site by March 2020. It is expected to have a two to three year construction phase. The completed section will have an additional running lane, providing three traffic lanes in both directions.

This work is part of a £1.5 billion investment to upgrade the A14 in Cambridgeshire and widen the A1 to three lanes between Brampton and Alconbury.

The narrow lanes are in place to allow for preparatory works to be carried out close to the existing carriageway and allow for traffic to be put into contraflow safely as required.

The speed restriction is necessary to create a safe working environment for construction teams and protect road users as they travel through the works. There is also a requirement to aid recovery operations in this area, which requires the 40mph speed limit to do so safely for everyone.

The Department for Transport issued its Road Investment Strategy in December 2014. In this plan we set out details of the £15 billion to be invested in the England’s Strategic Road Network between 2015/16 and 2020/21. The A1(M) junctions 6 to 8 is one of the East of England schemes in this Strategy.

This scheme is in its early stages of development. The current forecast start of construction works in this scheme is March 2020 and the current forecast end of construction is July 2021. Both dates are provisional and subject to confirmation once the detailed design stage is completed.

The government’s current Road Investment Strategy provides for investment in various parts of the A1(M) including a commitment to upgrade junctions 6-8 of the A1(M) to smart motorway standard to increase capacity and improve safety. The capacity of the A1(M) in the East of England has been further investigated as part of the A1 East of England Strategic Study published last year. The final report of that study was published in November 2016. These documents are available on gov.uk

In addition, Highways England are currently preparing Route Strategies providing an assessment of the entire strategic road network in terms of performance and pressures on it. The Strategic Study and Route Strategies will inform the preparation of the next Road Investment Strategy.

Highways England only hold traffic flow counts at road link level i.e. one junction to another. The number of vehicles using the same road would be different from one link to another as vehicles join or leave the road at junctions.

The number of vehicles using A1(M) northbound links ranges from approximately 5.5 million to 17 million vehicles per year and southbound links from 5 million to 17.1 million vehicles per year.

The A1(M) Junctions 6 to 8 Smart Motorway scheme will involve upgrading the existing two-lane section of the A1(M) around Stevenage to Smart Motorway to provide additional capacity. Signs, signals, CCTV cameras and the monitoring system will be installed and the current hard shoulder will be strengthened to become a permanent running lane.

Highways England Delivery Plan, published in 2015, includes the introduction of smart motorways on the A1(M) between Junctions 6 and 8. This will provide improved capacity and better access, and should unlock much of the growth potential around Stevenage.

The scheme is commencing design development works now.

The Department for Transport published the Roads Investment Strategy in December 2014, which set out plans to invest £15 billion in England’s motorways and major A roads between 2015/16 and 2020/21. Highways England subsequently published a Delivery Plan in March 2015, which outlined how this investment would be delivered across various projects. The Delivery Plan includes the introduction of Smart Motorways on the A1(M) between Junctions 6 and 8 will provide improved capacity and better access, and should unlock much of the growth potential around Stevenage.

The scheme is expected to start design development works early in 2016 and to commence construction by March 2020 at the latest, subject to determining the right operational solution and achieving a solution that is value for money.

I cannot provide an exact start date for construction. However, as stated in Highways England Delivery Plan 2015-2020, construction of the A1(M) Junction 6-8 smart motorway scheme in Hertfordshire is planned to start construction in late in the 2019/20, and complete approximately 12 months later.

The next step is the detailed design and planning of the scheme, plus consultation with the local community to produce the best possible scheme. That work will be taken forward by Highways England and is expected to start shortly.

Initial work to define the scope of the A1 East of England Strategic Study will start in late March 2015 and an engagement strategy for stakeholders is being developed to commence in early summer.