Families of Smart Motorway crash victims to protest outside Labour Party conference

Relatives of people killed on motorways with smart lanes are to demonstrate outside the Labour Party conference to demand that the new Transport Minister keeps her promise to restore the hard shoulder.

A leaflet catalogueing Louise Haigh’s repeated pre-election promises to scrap controversial smart motorways will be handed to attendees at an event in Liverpool on Monday.

It shows that in March 2023, when Ms Haigh was shadow transport minister, she said: “The Labour Party made it clear that the hard shoulder should be reinstated on all smart motorways” because they were “unfit for use”.

The document shows how she softened her commitment after the election, saying: “Labour will review the evidence to determine whether existing smart motorways are fit for use.”

The leaflet also highlights that the new Transport Minister’s website still contains a page where she pledges to abandon the idea of ​​smart motorways.

Claire Mercer, whose husband Jason was killed on the M1 motorway when the hard shoulder was turned into a fourth lane, will be picketing outside the conference and her supporters will be handing out leaflets.

“It’s great that Louise Haigh continues to promise on her website that she will get rid of smart motorways,” the campaigner said.

“We were concerned that Labour had watered down its previous commitments, but as its own website shows, it still says the government has a duty to get rid of these roads because they are ‘unfit for use’ and ‘inherently dangerous and pose a risk’.”

“Now he’s the Secretary of Transportation, he’s the only person who’s capable of keeping his own commitment. I expect him to implement his promise very quickly.”