Highways England is set to upgrade 15 miles of the M27 between Southampton and Portsmouth to a smart motorway.

The upgrade will see the addition of an extra lane in both directions, with upgraded signage, signals and technology to inform drivers about travel conditions.

Highways England delivery director Mike Grant said: “This upgrade of the M27 between Southampton and Fareham will tackle congestion and improve journey times not only for the tens of thousands of drivers who use the M27 every day, but also holidaymakers using this busy stretch of motorway to get to the south coast ports, as well as the south-west of England.”

“Drivers will also see better information about conditions through new smart motorway technology, which helps us to manage incidents, smooth traffic flow and make journeys more reliable.”

“Smart motorways are central to our ambitious plans for modernising the motorway network and will add 120 miles of new lanes to motorways in the south-east by 2020. They add vital extra capacity, improve journey times and maintain high levels of safety.

“Drivers will also see better information about conditions through new smart motorway technology, which helps us to manage incidents, smooth traffic flow and make journeys more reliable.”

The upgrade will include the permanent conversion of the hard shoulder into a live running lane in both directions between junctions 4 and 11.

New signs and signals will be used to vary the speed limit to reduce congestion during busy times.

Preliminary works are currently underway, with main construction scheduled to start later this year and slated for completion by 2021.

The M27 motorway is used by 140,000 drivers on a daily basis and serves as a key strategic road that runs between Portsmouth and Cadnam, situated to the west of Southampton.

Highways England anticipates that the upgrade will improve safety and ease congestion.