The road safety charity Brake has issued the results of a survey which suggest that only 48% of drivers know what the rules are for driving on a smart motorway.

The report, based on a survey of 2,000 drivers for Brake and Green Flag breakdown provider, found that a quarter don’t know what a smart motorway is at all.

Brake says these findings “reinforce the urgent need” to improve public awareness of smart motorways, as acknowledged by the Government in its recent stocktake and action plan. The plan, commissioned by the Secretary of State, earmarks an additional £5m investment to improve public information and awareness and what to do in an emergency, doubling the previously planned spend.

“These important findings confirm what we all suspected – drivers are confused about the rules of driving on smart motorways and communication efforts must urgently be stepped up to help avoid more tragic incidents on these roads,” commented Joshua Harris, director of campaigns at Brake. “We welcome the measures the Government has outlined to improve smart motorway safety and urge them to follow this evidence-led approach for all UK roads. With more than 75 deaths and serious injuries on our roads, every day, improving road safety must be a priority for this Government.”