Chapter 6 – Motorway Rules
Motorway facts
The national speed limit on motorways for cars and motorcycles 70 mph and the maximum speed limit for vehicles towing trailers and large vehicles speed limit is 60 mph.
Vehicles towing trailers cannot travel in the right-hand lane of a motorway (unless all other lanes are closed.
The left-hand lane can be used by any vehicle.
The left-hand lane should be used for normal driving. Use the center and right-hand lanes for overtaking.
When joining a motorway, give way to traffic already on the motorway
The hard shoulder should normally only be used for stopping in an emergency. You can, however, travel on the hard shoulder when signs direct you to do so.
An Emergency Refuge Area is an area on a motorway for use in cases of emergency or breakdown.
If your breakdown but can’t get to the hard shoulder you should turn on your hazard warning lights.
When leaving the hard shoulder to re-join the main carriageway you should gain speed on the hard shoulder before moving out into the carriageway.
If your breakdown on a motorway and need to call for help it may be better to use one of the emergency roadside phones, as this way your location will be accurately known.
If you use a mobile phone you can check your location from the marker posts on the left. Marker posts tell you the location of the nearest emergency phone.
Most of the emergency phones are linked to the Highways Agency Control Centre.
Marker posts at 100-meter intervals point you in the direction of the nearest phone.
Highways Agency Traffic Officers can stop and direct anyone on a motorway.
A red cross displayed above a lane means does not travel in the lane.
A crawler lane on a motorway is found on a steep gradient.
A number displayed above a lane i.e. 50 means the speed limit for the lane is 50 mph.
If you get a puncture on the motorway you should use an emergency phone to call for help
Continuous high speeds make vehicle breakdowns more likely. Constant speed also helps to improve overall journey time.
In a contraflow system, there are likely to be lower speed limits.
When going through a contraflow: don’t switch lanes, don’t get too close to the vehicle in front
You may find traffic officers only on A-class road in England
You should stop on a motorway:
- If red lights show above every lane
- When told by the police
- When signaled by a Highways Agency Officer
If you have to stop on the hard shoulder:
- Turn on your hazard lights
- Switch on your sidelights if visibility is poor
- Don’t open the offside, those nearest the carriageway, doors
- You and your passengers should leave the car from the nearside doors and wait on the embankment.
The following cannot use the motorway:
- Learner car drivers
- Farm tractors and other slow-moving vehicles
- Cyclists
- Learner motorcyclists
- Motorcycles under 50cc
- Horse riders
Motorway studs. There are 4 studs on the motorway. They are:
GREEN – between carriageway and slip road
AMBER – between carriageway and central reservation
WHITE – between carriageways
RED – between hard shoulder and carriageway.
Active Traffic Management (ATM) ATM tries to reduce congestion and make journey times more reliable. Where in use, mandatory speed limit signs will show on the gantries above the motorway lanes.
In the ATM area, the hard shoulder is sometimes used as a normal traffic lane. If a speed limit sign is active above the hard shoulder, then the hard shoulder can be used as a normal lane.
If A red cross shows above the hard shoulder, it cannot be used as a normal lane.