Hi Claire
Thank you for sharing your letter to Keir Starmer – it is brilliantly put. You could not be any clearer in asking why they are seemily renaging on this promise. I was all set to vote Labour for the first time in my life based on my respect for Keir Starmer and this election promise made some years ago, but on approaching our would-be Labour MP for Bognor and Littlehampton with my questions about Smart Motorways and her position and her party’s position on scrapping them – TWICE over the last few weeks, I am yet to have a reply.
Our would-be Liberal Democrat MP however, replied promptly to me with this response, so he will be getting my vote:
Thank you for your email. I’m glad that you’ve raised your concern with me, and I agree with you. While the variable speed limits and average speed controls I think are beneficial additions to motorways, the removal of the hard shoulder is certainly not something I support. I’ve travelled along the M27 on its smart stretch and have seen how dangerous it is when someone is stopped in the inside lane, unable to get to one of the refuge areas.
If elected I would definitely aim to work with National Highways on a plan to reinstate hard shoulders as quickly as possible to the motorways that have lost them. Whether that would mean cordoning the lane permanently or reconfiguring the lanes would be something I would follow advice on, as I don’t have the necessary expertise on planning safe and functional highways myself!
Hi Claire
Thank you for sharing your letter to Keir Starmer – it is brilliantly put. You could not be any clearer in asking why they are seemily renaging on this promise. I was all set to vote Labour for the first time in my life based on my respect for Keir Starmer and this election promise made some years ago, but on approaching our would-be Labour MP for Bognor and Littlehampton with my questions about Smart Motorways and her position and her party’s position on scrapping them – TWICE over the last few weeks, I am yet to have a reply.
Our would-be Liberal Democrat MP however, replied promptly to me with this response, so he will be getting my vote:
Thank you for your email. I’m glad that you’ve raised your concern with me, and I agree with you. While the variable speed limits and average speed controls I think are beneficial additions to motorways, the removal of the hard shoulder is certainly not something I support. I’ve travelled along the M27 on its smart stretch and have seen how dangerous it is when someone is stopped in the inside lane, unable to get to one of the refuge areas.
If elected I would definitely aim to work with National Highways on a plan to reinstate hard shoulders as quickly as possible to the motorways that have lost them. Whether that would mean cordoning the lane permanently or reconfiguring the lanes would be something I would follow advice on, as I don’t have the necessary expertise on planning safe and functional highways myself!
Best regards
Henry