MPs on the Transport Select Committee have urged the Government to pause the Smart Motorway Programme amid rising safety concerns.

The MPs want to see the Office for Rail and Road start a probe into the safety of all-lane running motorways, which have no hard shoulder, and scrutinise the Government’s recent £500m package of measures to make Smart motorways safer for motorists.

It described the government’s decision in March 2020 that all future smart motorways would be all-lane-running versions as “premature”.

The Commons’ Transport Select Committee said there was not enough safety and economic data to justify continuing with the plans.

It recommended the Department and National Highways should pause the rollout of all-lane running motorways until five-years of safety data is available for the remaining 112 miles of all-lane running motorway introduced before 2020.

National Highways has already committed to ensuring all new stretches of all-lane-running ‘smart’ motorways are fitted with emergency refuge areas (ERAs) no more than one mile apart at any point and 0.75 miles apart wherever possible.

The Transport Committee, in its report published today, has now called for these same measures to be taken on the existing smart motorway network, with ERAs retrofitted at these same intervals.

The Department for Transport said it would consider the recommendations.

R&D tax relief specialist Recoup Capital has launched a land remediation relief service where land owners can claim 50p in the pound back in relief for removing ground abnormalities such as asbestos, knotweed or any structures predating 1998.

Land remediation relief (LRR) is a generous corporation tax relief available to investors and developers incurring expenditure on the remediation of contaminated land, including derelict structures.

The scheme is designed to encourage the clean-up of brownfield and contaminated sites to bring them back into economic use.

Land remediation relief is calculated on 150% of qualifying expenditure. Property investors and land owners are able to claim the full 150% in the year in which the expenditure was incurred.

It includes developments, refurbishments, fit-outs and regeneration projects and can be backdated two financial years.

Recoup Capital partner Anthony Doran said: “Recoup supported the construction sector throughout Covid with £20m in Research and Development rebates. Our national client base in the sector has found these services invaluable.

“Here at Recoup we strive to help all sectors we care about unlock capital they may not have been previously aware of. We have now launched land remediation relief with our chartered tax advisers as well as R&D, Stamp Duty, Capital Allowance providing a suite of products to assist with cash flow and profitability of all schemes.

“It all starts with an initial ten minute call to ensure you qualify.”

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https://www.thegraduatemag.com/?p=1115