ENGLAND’S worst motorway has been revealed as drivers are plagued by constant roadworks and delays, a new survey has revealed.
The M27 in Hampshire was given the title of the worst motor route by drivers, according to watchdog Transport Focus.
The busy motorway has faced delays and drivers are often met with roadworks Credit: Alamy Stock Photo
One respondent described roadworks on the motorway as “terrible” as they cause reduced speed and narrow lanes despite the respondent “very rarely” seeing any work happening.
The road has seen long-running work for surfacing and junction modifications.
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Elsewhere, Kent’s M20 was ranked the country’s favourite motorway, with a satisfaction rating of 79%.
Across all motorways and major A roads, 71% of drivers were satisfied with their journey, up from 69% last year.
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Ratings for journey times, road surfaces and roadworks management all improved year-on-year.
It comes as England’s network of motorways and major A roads is entering one of its largest maintenance periods since much of it was first built in the 1960s.
National Highways is embarking on a five-year renewals programme as part of the third Road Investment Strategy, which is likely to involve more roadworks.
Transport Focus director Louise Collins said: “Overall satisfaction has increased and there are encouraging signs that drivers are noticing improvements in key areas, however drivers continue to tell us that roadworks can make or break a journey.”
Satisfaction with journeys on smart motorways rose from 60% last year to 66%.
Transport Focus attributed this to the completion of work to retrofit 150 additional emergency refuge areas, which involved widespread roadworks causing delays.
Drivers on sections of smart motorway continued to feel less safe than those on conventional motorways, at 78% and 82% respectively.
The A30, which runs between west London and Cornwall, was ranked the best A road, with a 79% satisfaction score.
At the other end of the scale, the A12 between the east of the capital and Suffolk had the lowest rating, at 64%.
A National Highways spokesperson said: “We manage our roads to ensure the highest levels of safety while minimising disruption to drivers.
“The survey results show our work to improve road conditions and incident response times have had a positive impact for drivers.”
Best and worst motorways RANKED – how does your usual route fare?
A30 (79%)
M20 (79%)
M56 (78%)
M5 (78%)
A19 (77%)
A23 (77%)
M4 (76%)
A14 (76%)
A303 (74%)
M40 (74%)
M1 (74%)
A1(M) (74%)
M3 (72%)
A5 (72%)
A3 (72%)
A38 (72%)
A2 (72%)
A64 (71%)
A46 (71%)
M61 (70%)
A34 (70%)
M11 (70%)
A1 (69%)
A47 (69%)
A27 (69%)
M62 (68%)
M6 (65%)
M25 (65%)
A12 (64%)
M60 (63%)
M42 (61%)
M27 (56%)
