'No measures' to improve safety of smart motorway in South Yorkshire despite four deaths, says Rotherham MP

Signs of the Government's commitment to make the M1 safer following the deaths of four people in South Yorkshire have remained 'elusive', an MP has said.
Rotherham MP Sarah ChampionRotherham MP Sarah Champion
Rotherham MP Sarah Champion

Rotherham MP Sarah Champion wrote to Transport Secretary Grant Shapps following a recent inquest into the deaths of Alexandru Murgeanu and her constituent Jason Mercer who died on a stretch of the M1 where the hard shoulder had been removed.

A coroner at the hearing said the abandoning of the hard shoulder presented an "ongoing risk of death" and also proposed to write to Mr Shapps.

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Two other motorists - Nargis Begum and Derek Jacobs - have also died following collisions on the same stretch of M1.

A refuge are on a smart motorway, where hard shoulders are transformed to active, live lanesA refuge are on a smart motorway, where hard shoulders are transformed to active, live lanes
A refuge are on a smart motorway, where hard shoulders are transformed to active, live lanes

In the letter, the Labour MP described smart motorways as "fundamentally unsafe" and lobbied Mr Shapps over "slow" progress over "limited safety improvements".

She said that since a Government review into smart motorways, "no additional refuge areas had been built" on the M1 north of Watford Gap.

Ms Champion wrote: "I am gravely concerned that, despite the deaths of four people in ten months, despite serious concerns having been raised from multiple quarters and despite the Government's own acknowledgement of safety concerns stemming from smart motorways, measures to improve safety on these roads remain elusive."

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She added that she was "not aware of a single additional safety measure having been agreed, planned or implemented" between junctions 32 and 35a of the M1 - a stretch running through South Yorkshire which is currently operating as a smart motorway.

Jason Mercer was killed after stopping on a live lane on the M1 after a minor collision. His wife Claire (also pictured) has been campaigning for better safety.Jason Mercer was killed after stopping on a live lane on the M1 after a minor collision. His wife Claire (also pictured) has been campaigning for better safety.
Jason Mercer was killed after stopping on a live lane on the M1 after a minor collision. His wife Claire (also pictured) has been campaigning for better safety.

It comes as shadow transport secretary Jim McMahon spoke in the Commons today (Thursday) to say "enough is enough", highlighting 40 deaths had been linked to smart motorways, where the hard shoulder becomes a live lane to reduce congestion.

Highways England have previously argued these stretches of motorway are safer overall, although representatives conceded in the recent inquest in Sheffield that both Mr Mercer and Mr Murgeanu would likely not have died had a hard shoulder been in place when they were hit by a lorry driver using the live lane.

Transport Secretary Grant Shapps told MPs it was “absolutely tragic” that anybody ever dies on the UK’s roads, adding: “Smart motorways were an issue and are an issue which sparked a great deal of interest for me and I, as he may recall – before he was in post, last year set up a review, a stock take, which recommended 18 different measures and included spending of over £500m to put in a whole series of measures to make sure that smart motorways are not just as safe but safer than conventional motorways.

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“That stock take is now one year through and I will come back to the House very shortly to report on progress and I know he’ll take a lot of interest in that.”

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