31/03/2020 Former traffic officer calls for Highways England to be prosecuted after court hears smart motorways may have led to deaths

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2020/03/28/former-traffic-officer-calls-highways-england-prosecuted-court/ 1/7

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Former traffic officer calls for Highways England to be prosecutedafter court hears smart motorways may have led to deaths 

A retired police officer has written to Essex Police urging them to prosecute HighwaysEngland over two deaths

By Steve Bird

28 March 2020 • 6:20pm

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Police are being urged to prosecute Highways England for corporate manslaughter after a

judge said two smart motorway deaths could have been prevented if there had been a

hard shoulder.  

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31/03/2020 Former traffic officer calls for Highways England to be prosecuted after court hears smart motorways may have led to deaths

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2020/03/28/former-traffic-officer-calls-highways-england-prosecuted-court/ 2/7

Sevim Üstün, 49, and Ayse Üstün, 68, were killed when a lorry hit the car they had been in

after it broke down and became stranded on the M25 in Essex. Murat Üstün, was driving

his Audi 3 with his mother, grandmother and sister in the car, when a puncture caused

him to pull over in a live lane because he could not reach an emergency refuge area.  

Overhead gantry signs run by Highways England did not close the lane or warn of a

broken-down vehicle.  

A court heard that Krzysztof Zarebski, 35, had a “momentary lapse in concentration”

before his lorry hit the Audi then the safety barrier behind which the family had been

sheltering.

The two women were killed and Mr Üstün’s 10-year-old sister suffered life-changing

injuries. Mr Üstün survived.  

Sentencing the Polish lorry driver to just four months, suspended for a year, for causing

death by careless driving, Judge Gratwicke said: “I accept that if there had been a hard

shoulder or a refuge into which Mr Üstün could have steered, that collision would not

have occurred.  

“However it is not for this court to make any judgments or observations on the wisdom of

smart motorways or the strength of safety barriers.”   Now Mike Rawson, a retired

Metropolitan Police traffic officer who served in the force for 35 years, has written to Ben-

Julian Harrington, the chief constable of Essex Police, urging him to prosecute Highways

England over its “callous disregard” for human life.  

31/03/2020 Former traffic officer calls for Highways England to be prosecuted after court hears smart motorways may have led to deaths

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2020/03/28/former-traffic-officer-calls-highways-england-prosecuted-court/ 3/7

The Audi A3 suffered a puncture but the driver could not reach an emergency refuge area CREDIT: Highways Agency

In his letter seen by the Sunday Telegraph, Mr Rawson asked: “Would you consider, given

the absence of an emergency hard shoulder being the primary cause of this tragic

accident, recommending the Crown Prosecution Service consider prosecuting Highways

England for corporate manslaughter?”  

He added: “One person has died on a smart motorway every six weeks during the last five

years, and it is time to end the policy and return emergency hard shoulders to ensure as

safe an environment as is possible for those lawfully using motorways.  

“This will only be achieved following successful prosecutions of Highways England.”

A spokeswoman for Essex Police said: “We have received a letter and will review the

contents and get back to the author.”  

Chelmsford Crown Court heard last month how Zarebski, from Coventry, had just four

seconds to react after seeing the car which had its hazard lights illuminated while tucked

into the inside lane near Waltham Abbey.  

After the crash, Zarebski, who lost his driving job, was heard to say: “It’s my fault, but no

hard shoulder.”  

Benjamin Waidhofer, representing Zarebski, underlined the controversy surrounding

smart motorways and argued that there could have been just one second for him to avoid

the impact.  

He said: “If there had been proper provision for refuge areas, the accident wouldn’t have

happened.” He also said the overhead gantry sign directed motorists to the A1 rather than

warned of a broken down vehicle  

Mr Üstün's younger sister suffered damage to her spleen, as well as breaks to her shoulder

and right scapula in the crash in 2018.   Now aged 12, it has emerged her left hip had

stopped growing, leaving her hips uneven.

31/03/2020 Former traffic officer calls for Highways England to be prosecuted after court hears smart motorways may have led to deaths

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2020/03/28/former-traffic-officer-calls-highways-england-prosecuted-court/ 4/7

She was immobile for six weeks due to the surgery needed for her pelvic and hip fracture.

She has required physiotherapy, speech therapy and leg therapy.  

Mr Rawson, from Cheshunt in Hertfordshire and who attended the court hearing, said:

“Highways England has shown a callous disregard for the safety of people using these

smart motorways.

“They have placed too much reliance on technology because they have assumed

technology will provide safety on its own. It doesn’t.”  

Highways England was unavailable for comment.

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31/03/2020 Former traffic officer calls for Highways England to be prosecuted after court hears smart motorways may have led to deaths

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31/03/2020 Former traffic officer calls for Highways England to be prosecuted after court hears smart motorways may have led to deaths

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31/03/2020 Former traffic officer calls for Highways England to be prosecuted after court hears smart motorways may have led to deaths

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