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Difficulty: HardSmart Motorways and Active Traffic Management

You have stopped in an Emergency Area on an All-Lane Running smart motorway to resolve a vehicle issue. Having safely rectified the problem, what action must you take before pulling out onto the live carriageway?

  1. A
    Accelerate briskly along the refuge bay and merge directly into the nearside lane when you judge a gap in moving traffic
  2. B
    Place an advance warning triangle 45 metres behind your vehicle on the carriageway before moving off
  3. Use the emergency roadside telephone to contact National Highways so they can set signals to assist your departureAnswer
  4. D
    Switch on your hazard warning lights and drive along the verge until your speed matches live traffic

Answer

Use the emergency roadside telephone to contact National Highways so they can set signals to assist your departure
Under Highway Code Rule 270, you must always use the dedicated emergency roadside telephone inside the Emergency Area to speak with National Highways before rejoining the carriageway. Because emergency areas do not feature an acceleration lane, control centre operators must actively manage traffic upstream—typically by displaying a Red X signal over the nearside lane or setting reduced variable speed limits—to create a protected window for your vehicle to rejoin safely.

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Identify the structural characteristics of an Emergency Area (EA) on a smart motorway
Recognise that emergency areas are short, isolated refuge bays without standard motorway acceleration lanes.
Building sufficient speed from a dead stop directly into an active live lane is impossible without active traffic intervention.
2
Apply the mandatory Highway Code procedure (Rule 270) for leaving an Emergency Area
Determine that the driver must remain in the vehicle or bay and use the emergency roadside telephone.
The regional operating control centre can monitor the area using CCTV and close the nearside lane (displaying a Red X) or lower speed limits to let the vehicle merge safely.

Key Concept

Highway Code Rule 270: Emergency Area rejoining protocol and active traffic management support
Estimated Time:1m 0s
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Topics

Smart Motorways and Active Traffic Management

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