England’s motorways and major A roads ranked from best to worst

England’s 32 motorways and major A roads have been ranked from best to worst following a survey of more than 9,500 drivers in March.

The survey, carried out by watchdog Transport Focus, found that 71 per cent of drivers were satisfied with their journeys across the country on motorways and major A roads, up from 69 per cent last year, with improvements in journey times, road surfaces and roadworks management.

However, the M27 in Hampshire was described as the least satisfactory due to persistent roadworks and subsequent delays. Only 56 percent of drivers using the 48-kilometer road were satisfied with their journey.

One frustrated attendee described roadworks as “horrible”, citing reduced speeds and narrowing of lanes, despite “very rarely” witnessing any actual work being carried out. The M27 has been subject to extensive ongoing projects, including resurfacing and junction changes.

In contrast, Kent’s M20 became the country’s most popular motorway with a satisfaction rate of 79 per cent.

England’s network of motorways and major A-roads is undergoing one of its biggest periods of maintenance since the 1960s, when much of it was first built.

National Highways is embarking on a five-year renewal program under the third Highway Investment Strategy, which is likely to include more roadworks.

Transport Focus director Louise Collins said the survey results showed “positive improvements to road user experience are possible”.

He continued: “Overall satisfaction has increased and there are encouraging signs that drivers are noticing improvements in key areas, but drivers continue to tell us that roadworks can make or break a journey.

“National Highways has the opportunity to apply positive lessons learned from recent programs to ensure roadworks are well planned, clearly communicated and disruption is minimized wherever possible.”

Satisfaction with journeys on smart highways increased from 60 percent to 66 percent last year.

Transport Focus attributed this to the completion of work to retrofit 150 additional emergency shelter areas, including extensive roadworks causing delays.

Drivers on some sections of the smart highway continued to feel less safe than on traditional highways, with rates of 78 percent and 82 percent respectively.

The A30, which runs between West London and Cornwall, was named best A route with a satisfaction score of 79 per cent.

At the other end of the scale, the A12 between the east of the capital and Suffolk received the lowest rating at 64 per cent.

A National Highways spokesman said: “We manage our roads to provide the highest level of safety while minimizing disruption to motorists.

“The survey results show that our work to improve road conditions and incident response times is having a positive impact on drivers.

“When roads are well maintained, businesses and communities benefit and we are committed to tackling an aging network head on to keep the country moving forward and providing better experiences for motorists.”

The survey was conducted with the participation of more than 9,500 drivers in the 12 months until the end of March.

Ranking of England’s motorways and major A roads

Results based on Transportation Focus survey with overall satisfaction scores in parentheses