New moves in M23 ‘smart motorway’ upgrade

Works to convert the M23 near Gatwick Airport into a £164 million ‘smart motorway’ have taken another step forward.
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Highways England has opened a fourth lane in each direction between junction 8 for the M25 and junction 10 at Crawley.

But people are being reminded that they must stay at home to stop the spread of coronavirus and should only travel for the specific reasons set out by the government.

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Meanwhile, a 50mph speed limit will remain in place over the coming weeks while work takes place to install, test and commission new technology along the route. This work is expected to be complete - converting the M23 into a smart motorway - in June.

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Highways England says it will continue to provide a free recovery service during the work and drivers will be able to use one of 12 new M23 emergency areas if they experience difficulties.

Highways England says that CCTV cameras will continue to monitor the motorway 24 hours a day and control room operators will be able to reduce the speed limit to 40mph and display warning messages during incidents.

A variable speed limit of up to 70mph will be introduced later in the year.

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