Best and worst motorways and A roads in England ranked by drivers – how did YOUR local major route score?

Drivers have had their say on the perfect and worst motorways and A roads in England – and it is one of many busiest routes within the nation that is acquired the bottom rating from disgruntled motorists.

The A19, which runs parallel to the A1 within the North East and connects Seaton Burn, close to Newcastle, with Doncaster, was the very best ranked main trunk highway in a survey of greater than 9,000 drivers carried out by unbiased watchdog Transport Focus. It scored 85 per cent for general satisfaction.

Whereas the M40, which spans 89 miles and hyperlinks London, Oxford, and Birmingham, was the motorway that acquired highest marks as highway customers gave it 79 per cent, with one even stating: ‘It is without doubt one of the few motorways that has few delays once I journey on it.’

Nevertheless, on the reverse finish of the spectrum is a pivotal motorway within the Midlands that has been lambasted by drivers, particularly for its ‘sensible’ stretches with variable pace limits that customers stated have been decreased ‘for no obvious purpose’. 

Drivers rated the M42 as England’s worst motorway within the annual report.

The 40-mile-long stretch, which connects Birmingham with the likes of Nottingham, Solihull, Tamworth and Redditch, was ranked final within the survey with a satisfaction rating of simply 56 per cent.

Sadly for the M42, the ballot of 9,166 highway customers was carried out on the finish of March, which coincided with main roadworks going down on the busy part round Birmingham Airport, which probably weighed on drivers’ opinion in regards to the highway.

One respondent slammed the M42’s ‘roadworks, potholes and delays’, describing it as a ‘horrible highway to drive on’.

Its sections which have been transformed to sensible motorways additionally upset motorists.

The M42 has managed motorway stretches from junction 3 to junction 3A eastbound, and junctions 7 to 9 and a piece of dynamic arduous shoulder (the place the arduous shoulder turns into an lively lane throughout congestion) between junctions 3A and seven.

These elements of the M42 all have variable pace limits, with motorists notified of adjustments by way of overhead gantries and enforced by cameras.

One driver stated the variable limits ‘don’t all the time replicate the site visitors situations,’ complaining that they have been ‘directed to cut back pace for no obvious purpose’.

Drivers have been sad with ‘sensible’ stretches of the M42 motorway with variable pace limits. One motorists stated they ‘didn’t all the time replicate the site visitors situations,’ complaining that they have been ‘directed to cut back pace for no obvious purpose’. Pictured: a Dynamic Onerous Shoulder part of the M42 in Warwickshire

England’s worst trunk highway of all – based on the ballot of motorists – is the A12. This can be a 52-mile stretch of twin carriageway operating between London and Lowestoft, Suffolk. Out of the 27 motorways and A roads rated, it was backside of the league with a lowly 55%

The second and third worst-rated motorways have been the M62 (60 per cent) and – unsurprisingly – the M25 with a satisfaction rating of 65 per cent. 

The trunk highway in England that was voted worst of all amongst motorists was the A12, which runs between London and Lowestoft, Suffolk.

Out of the 27 motorways and A roads rated, it was backside of the league with a lowly 55 per cent rating.  

The M40, which spans 89 miles and hyperlinks London, Oxford, and Birmingham, was the motorway that acquired highest marks as highway customers gave it a 79%. One respondent acknowledged: ‘It is without doubt one of the few motorways that has few delays once I journey on it’

The A19, which runs parallel to the A1 within the North East and connects Seaton Burn, close to Newcastle, with Doncaster, was the very best ranked main trunk highway within the survey, scoring 85% for general satisfaction 

The outcomes of the annual survey will make fascinating studying for Nationwide Highways, the Authorities-owned firm accountable for all motorways and A roads in England.

Transport Focus chief govt Alex Robertson stated: ‘Drivers inform us that the upkeep of motorways and main roads – how most of us get across the nation – is extra essential to them than constructing new roads.

‘With highway consumer perceptions of highway floor high quality deteriorating since 2022 – and declining satisfaction with journey instances – Nationwide Highways should proceed to concentrate on delivering protected, easy journeys.

‘We’re dedicated to working with the Authorities and Nationwide Highways to assist them to ship on highway customers’ prime priorities: improved journey instances and satisfaction with floor high quality.’

That is Cash has approached Nationwide Highways for remark.

It informed us: ‘We’ve dedicated to delivering further security advantages on our motorways and can take away roadworks as quickly as we will. All our initiatives are rigorously deliberate to minimise disruption and preserve the nation transferring.

‘We would like motorists to have higher end-to-end experiences on our roads. We pay attention rigorously to our prospects, via unbiased analysis like this, alongside our personal, to fulfill their wants.

‘The M42 is a key a part of our community linking the M5, M40, M6 and M1. We not too long ago accomplished some long-term security work and, with the enhancements at Junction 6 subsequent 12 months, drivers will begin to expertise the advantages of our funding.

A spokesperson added: ‘Sustaining and investing in our roads is a precedence and our most up-to-date evaluation reveals that over 96 per cent of them are in good situation.

‘We’ve got a sturdy programme of enhancements which is able to present long run advantages for motorists, together with shorter and extra dependable journeys.’

The survey discovered that drivers’ normal notion of England’s busiest trunk roads was bleaker this 12 months than it was when 9,000 motorists have been polled in 2023

The ballot suggests delays and floor situations on main roads are getting worse

The survey confirmed that drivers’ general notion of England’s busiest trunk roads is bleaker in 2024 than it was final 12 months.

The satisfaction rating for respondents’ final journeys on motorways or main A roads declined from 73 per cent in 2022/23 to 71 per cent in 2023/24.

Satisfaction with journey instances additionally fell, dropping from 71 per cent final 12 months to 68 per cent this.

The examine comes simply days after the Division for Transport printed information displaying that delays on Nationwide Highways’ roads have peaked to report ranges.

Common hold-ups have been 11 seconds per car per mile (spvpm) within the 12 months to the tip of June, which was the longest time in information relationship again to March 2016, when the determine was 8.6 spvpm.

The ballot discovered that drivers had change into more and more annoyed with journey instances all through the 12-month interval between March 2023 and the identical month in 2024. This comes after the DfT launched information displaying that journey instances in Britain had hit report ranges of delays

New statistics from the DfT confirmed the common hold-ups on motorways and A roads in England managed by Nationwide Highways reached 11 seconds per car per mile (spvpm) within the 12 months to the tip of June 2024. That’s the longest time in information relationship again to March 2016, when the determine was 8.6 spvpm

Transport Focus famous that site visitors ranges on motorways and main A roads rose by 2.3 per cent from 2022 to 2023, however remained 1 per cent beneath pre-coronavirus ranges.

It additionally stated roadworks regarding the continuing programme of retrofitting 150 further emergency stopping areas on sensible motorways is ‘an additional problem’.

The unbiased watchdog’s analysis is additional proof of motorists’ frustration with the nation’s crumbing highway community,

Transport Focus discovered additional proof of declining highway floor situations in England. The report comes after greater than 40 drivers suffered in depth car harm after hitting potholes on the M4 and M25 inside every week this month

There was chaos on the M4 (pictured) when motorists plunged right into a ‘large’ pothole close to junction 5 – simply days earlier than an identical sized crater triggered carnage on the M25

Satisfaction with highway floor high quality dropped from 73 per cent to only 68 per cent.

This ties in with the newest report from the AA printed this week, which highlighted that the breakdown supplier’s patrol had attended nearly half 1,000,000 pothole-related callouts between January and September, which is 10,000 greater than the identical interval in 2023.

Final 12 months noticed pothole-triggered breakdowns attain a five-year excessive.

Nevertheless, the motoring teams warns that current heavy downfalls and flooding mixed with falling autumn temperatures will nearly definitely see 2024 exceed final 12 months’s figures.

Consequently, highway security teams have mounted strain on the brand new Labour Authorities to introduce new funding and measures to raised keep Britain’s pothole-riddled roads. 

And this is not simply native routes. 

There have been a spate of current high-profile situations of drivers struggling critical harm to their automobiles after hitting potholes on main motorways. 

This week, MailOnline solely obtained photos of a ‘large’ pothole that crippled 20 automobiles on the M4. This follows the report of an identical sized crater inflicting carnage on the M25 solely final week. 

Nationwide Highways informed us that it undertakes its personal situation surveys throughout the trunk highway community yearly and the outcomes are used to determine resurfacing necessities. 

‘These defects are categorised and we purpose to restore probably the most critical ones inside 24 hours,’ it stated.

Within the ballot performed by Transport Focus, simply 49 per cent of respondents stated they have been happy with the administration of roadworks, which is analogous to final 12 months.

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