Widow Pledges Unwavering Campaign for Hard Shoulder Reinstatement

Claire Mercer, whose husband died on a smart motorway section, has called for the government to abolish these roads entirely, arguing that the absence of a hard shoulder results in “scenes of utter carnage.” Her husband, Jason Mercer, 44, and Alexandru Murgeanu, 22, were struck by a lorry on the M1 near Sheffield in 2019 after a “minor bump,” as they had no safe place to stand while awaiting assistance. Mrs. Mercer has directly appealed to Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander, asserting that smart motorways lack adequate space for passengers to safely exit their vehicles. The Department for Transport has stated its intention not to implement any new smart motorways and has committed to introducing a “comprehensive new Road Safety Strategy.” A spokesperson for the department also commented: “It will be the first in over a decade – to reduce tragic deaths and injuries on our roads and we will share more details in due course.” The spokesperson added: “The Secretary of State takes the safety of all our roads extremely seriously and our thoughts remain with Ms Mercer.” Mrs. Mercer told the BBC: “I said to Heidi Alexander, this is on your watch now and the buck stops with you.” Smart motorways are defined as road segments that employ technology to manage traffic flow and alleviate congestion. Currently, there are 193 miles of “all-lane-running” motorway, where the hard shoulder has been permanently removed to create an additional lane. Across all smart motorways, radar and cameras are designed to detect broken-down vehicles, with warning signs then intended to close affected lanes. However, figures obtained by Panorama in April revealed hundreds of incidents where crucial safety equipment was out of action. National Highways’ latest data suggests that if a vehicle breaks down on a smart motorway without a hard shoulder, the occupants are three times more likely to be killed or seriously injured than on a motorway with a hard shoulder. Mrs. Mercer also informed the BBC that despite the government’s announcement 18 months ago that no new smart motorways would be constructed, roadworks are continuing to complete projects that were in the planning stage at the time of the declaration. In response to the Department for Transport’s statement to the BBC, Mrs. Mercer stated that she has heard “platitudes” and the phrase “in due course” for five years, but “nothing meaningful” has been achieved. Mrs. Mercer also wrote in her letter that her husband and Mr. Murgeanu were “smashed to bits” across four lanes of a motorway because “we now have roads that don’t allow for physics.” She recounted that her husband’s body remained on the motorway for eight hours because a coroner could not access the scene. Additionally, it took emergency services four hours to inform Mrs. Mercer of his death because vehicles and possessions were flung “so far and wide,” hindering identification. In her letter, Mrs. Mercer further wrote: “I have control room operators emailing me saying they dread going on shift because they have to sit, watching screens, knowing that they are powerless to help motorists that become stranded on these dangerous roads and all they can do is sit there and watch them get maimed or killed.” She added: “One actually wrote that it’s not unusual to see operators watching the screens in tears.” She stated that grief has “completely changed her as a person,” leading to disorganisation, forgetfulness, and frequent illness. Nevertheless, she affirmed her resolve to continue campaigning. Mrs. Mercer declared: “I’m not stopping. “I’m not stopping until we’ve got the hard shoulder back on every single motorway.”