M1: Smart motorways unsafe says crash victim's sister

The sister of a man who died following a crash on a smart motorway said existing lanes needed to be made safer.

David Levett, 53, was seriously injured and later died after the stationary car he was in got struck on the M1 near Daventry, Northamptonshire, in 2018.

His sister, Angie Mower, said she agreed with a coroner's report that said the death might have been avoided if a hard shoulder was active.

National Highways said it had committed £900m to make roads safer.

Smart motorways use technology to regulate traffic flow and ease congestion, with the hard shoulder often used as an extra lane for vehicles.

On 28 January 2018, Mr Levett was a rear passenger in a car on the M1 southbound that had pulled over to aid a broken down vehicle.

The car he was in was hit by a lorry and then pushed into the rear of the faulty one.

Northamptonshire coroner Anne Pember said in a Prevention of Future Deaths report there was nowhere safe for the stranded vehicle to stop because there was no hard shoulder.

Ms Mower said when police told her and her parents about the crash on the smart motorway, "at the time I think ourselves and a lot of other people didn't know what they were or how they functioned".

She said her brother lived in a care home, had mental and physical disabilities, and she was worried about people in similar positions.

"My huge concern is that vulnerable people would have real problems with getting out quickly if it was a live running lane on a smart motorway," she said.

In April, the government announced plans to scrap new smart motorways due to cost and safety concerns.

Existing smart motorways - making up 10% of England's motorway network - would remain.

Ms Mower said scrapping them was "good news", but added: "The existing ones, that is a huge concern because how are they going to make those safe?"

She said when driving she tried to avoid the stretch of motorway where her brother was hit, but sometimes she was unable to.

"I'm looking at the smart lane and it's absolutely horrendous. It brings back so many emotions," she said.

Northamptonshire Police said the lorry driver, a Turkish national, was charged with causing death by dangerous driving, but was believed to have fled back home before court proceedings began. A warrant has been issued for his arrest.

National Highways' regional director, Andrew Jinks, said it was "continuing to make our network as safe as possible".

"We have committed £900m to safety improvements on the network, including building additional places to stop in an emergency and installing new technology to spot stopped vehicles," he said.

"Safety on our roads remains our absolute priority and we will continue to build on the work and safety improvements already under way to help drivers and passengers feel and be safe."

The government said 150 more emergency stopping places would be installed on smart motorways. In April, Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said "all drivers deserve to have confidence in the roads they use to get around the country".

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