I still wouldn’t trust them, I believe in the saying “if it’s not broken, dont fix it” and I think really….the good old hard shoulder should of been left well alone.
All that’s really come out of these “smart” motorways is congestion/road closures from the works, a hell of a lot of tax payers money and sadly many completely avoidable deaths.
I find this very similar with the newer tech in cars – no more nobs for heating/radio instead a “smart” big screen etc which can cause distraction from the road with the potential of causing an accident. Cars can still of course look high tech, stylish, classy etc but also have the safer and more easily accessible nobs. I know some are still made with them but they are gradually being completely phased out, maybe I’m just old school.