Amey and Arup to design Smart Motorway Programme

Amey, together with Arup on behalf of Highways England has been awarded package two of the Smart Motorway Programme (SMP) valued up to £25 million. The four year contract, which has been procured through Highways England’s Collaborative Delivery Framework (CDF) will see Amey and Arup work on two key projects across the M1 to design a ‘smart’ motorway to relieve congestion between junctions 24 and 25 and junctions 13 and 16. Working across 45km of road network, Amey and Arup will design the technology and infrastructure required to operate a smart motorway; including strengthening of the hard shoulder, creation of emergency refuge areas, new signage, gantries and central reservation barriers. This will follow a detailed evaluation of the motorways current performance to ensure the new design will provide a better experience for road users as well as managing the environmental impact of the work. Andy Milner, managing director of Amey’s Consulting and Strategic Infrastructure division said: “This project brings together the best of experience and talent from the private sector to deliver a new approach for Highways England’s Smart Motorway Programme (SMP). Our highly experienced consulting and engineering experts will manage the design of the project from the initial concept through to delivery, with a focus on reducing congestion and providing a sustainable solution for the M1. This project demonstrates our complete end to end capability from the development and design through to considering the operational and maintenance needs of road assets and surrounding infrastructure.” Tony Marshall, Global Highways Business Leader, Arup, said: “Highways England has made a strong commitment to deliver smart motorways within a strategic programme.  We are delighted to be part of this programme delivery.  By working in collaboration, we can help improve efficiency and safety on the strategic road network and reduce disruption.  We are looking forward to working with Amey and the wider programme team, bringing innovation and international design and operational experience to the Smart Motorways Programme (SMP)”.