South Yorkshire campaigner argues new plans on smart motorways just a 'sticking plaster'
The government announced fresh proposals last week
A Rotherham widow - tells us government plans to install 'extra emergency lanes' on smart motorways are just a 'sticking plaster'.
The proposals were announced last week after new data found smart motorways are three times more dangerous to break down on.
It's following a new report by Government-owned company National Highways, which also showed the rate of incidents involving people being killed or seriously injured (KSI) during breakdowns on three out of five smart motorway stretches, with five years' worth of safety data, increased since the hard shoulder was removed.
Claire Mercer's husband Jason died on a stretch of the road near Sheffield back in 2019 - She now campaigns against Smart Motorways:
"Refuge areas do absolutely nothing for emergency service workers.
"How does a refuge area allow an ambulance through? A fire truck through? They don't, is the simple answer.
"It's not enough, we need the hard shoulder back on the full length of all motorways.
"People get stuck in these live lanes, and they've got traffic thundering past them.
"You're then told to get out of the vehicle and get over the barrier?
"Well, in my husband's case, he couldn't get over the barrier as there was a thirty-foot drop on the other side."
In April, Prime Minister Rishi Sunak announced the cancellation of planned projects to build all-lane running (ALR) smart motorways, which use the hard shoulder as a live traffic lane.
He said this was due to cost pressures and a lack of confidence among some road users.
However, he has refused to reinstate the hard shoulder on existing smart motorways.
National Highways announced last Thursday that extra emergency stopping areas will be installed on 11 smart motorway sections.
It's part of a £900 million investment aimed at improving the network by 2025.