MP claims he was misled about Smart Motorway rollout
The UK's network of Smart Motorway ARL roads have come under fire this morning, with even the MP who helped to roll them out calling for a U-turn
THE SMART MOTORWAY network has come under fire this morning with everyone from MPs and the families of people who have lost their lives on them calling for them to be scrapped.
The news coincides with demonstrations outside the houses of parliament and the admission from one MP that he was ‘misled’ while backbench MPs are stating that the rollout ‘must be halted’.
MPs misled on Smart Motorway rollout
One prominent MP who was part of the team that delivered the Smart Motorway roll-out was Mike Penning MP who chairs the parliamentary group on roadside rescue and recovery. He’s been quoted by Good Morning Britain as saying:
“He was misled, Smart Motorways have been implemented in a way that is vastly different to what was proposed to me back then. I fully support the recommendations [to reconsider them] of the committee and I urge the government to adopt them as a matter of urgency.”
Alongside the MPs calling for the roads to be scrapped is the voice of Claire Mercer. Her husband, Jason Mercer was killed on one of the roads when his vehicle was struck by a lorry after they broke down, seemingly unable to make it to the ‘safety' of a roadside refuge.
Jason and Alexandru Murgeanu were both killed in the crash, an incident that it is thought would not have happened had a hard shoulder been available to seek refuge in.
'They were stranded in a live running lane.'
The rollout of smart motorways should be suspended due to safety concerns, according to MPs.
Claire Mercer's husband died on a smart motorway in 2019 and she is now campaigning against smart motorways. pic.twitter.com/fj05EWxYeD— Good Morning Britain (@GMB) November 2, 2021
Ms Mercer and the other protesters have carried coffins across London’s Westminster Bridge, each one representing a death that has taken place on one of the new roads since the introduction of the scheme.
From there they marched to Parliament Square, where they have been called for All Lane Running Roads to be scrapped.
Simon (AKA Toad) has been working within the motorcycle industry for more than twelve years, and a member of the motorcyclist family since birth. Growing up around British-built single and twins, it was inevitable that a life on two wheels was on the cards, from a very early age!
