The Price of 'Smart' Motorways.

[Nick]

I just thought I'd throw this out there - having watched so many die as a result of the approach to constructing Smart Motorways...

 

So many people have died working in the motorway or in accidents due to the congestion and stupidly narrow lanes.

 

J15 area of the M1 is pretty much closed for a fatality a couple of times a month. Now it's starting at junctions 23-25, how many must die for the sake of this improvement to our Motorways? Surely there's a better way of going about this. It's taking years, costing a fortune and people are dying due to the methodology of the approach.

 

Surely we now have enough evidence to see narrow lanes are not the approach and the risk assessment was incorrect. How many more need to die before the government steps in and asks these contractors to do things differently?

[Guest Sharpe's Fox]

There's no difference on driving on a road with works ongoing and a normal one except they've got a 50 mph limit in them. It really isn't hard to drive on the motorway ever.

 

While we're on SMART motorways I used one the other week approaching the M25 and the number of drivers who refused to use it was appalling. These morons were doing 50/60 in the traditional middle lane while I was bombing past them at 70/80 in the hard shoulder. Every half mile there were big lit up signs saying "USE HARD SHOULDER" but people just ignored it. The problem is barely ever the roads but the morons who use them and it's probably worse during a bank holiday weekend where any thick c unt with a license is on the road.

[Nick]

The lanes are simply too narrow for two lorries side by side combined with a gust of wind which regularly results in lorries clashing and coming down on top of and jacknifeing into cars in other lanes. The slip roads from services are now also too short and are causing accidents. 

 

Im not denying we have countless people on the roads who shouldn't be certified to drive but nevertheless people are getting killed by the approach. Or it's at the least an aggravating feature in many incidents.

[anotherharboroughfox]

7 minutes ago, Sharpe's Fox said:

These morons were doing 50/60 in the traditional middle lane while I was bombing past them at 70/80 in the hard shoulder. Every half mile there were big lit up signs saying "USE HARD SHOULDER" but people just ignored it. The problem is barely ever the roads but the morons who use them and it's probably worse during a bank holiday weekend where any thick c unt with a license is on the road.

Absolutely this. It's proper bizarre that people actually drive like this.

There is a stretch of the M5 that I use regularly that's been upgraded to 4 lanes and people just seem to randomly pick a lane. Daft twats.

[separator]

The big crash today happened on a normal bit of M1 motorway, and one of the lorry drivers was arrested for drink driving. It's irresponsible driving that's the big issue really.

[Bryn]

I think these fifty zones for roadworks should be two lanes, not three. They're just too narrow, especially when there's a whacking great lorry there, or heaven forbid two. I mean I'd have lorries off the motorway entirely but that's a separate issue.

[m4DD0gg]

Smart motorways have already been proven not to work, they cost a fortune when there are other road projects that are in desperate need that get ignored and actually add to car crashes.

[EastAnglianFox]

Didn't want to start a separate thread but just seeing some pics of that crash on the M1 today, Jesus them poor people on that mini bus.

 

What on earth was happening for that to happen at about 3am on you would think a pretty empty stretch of road.

[StanSP]

2 minutes ago, EastAnglianFox said:

Didn't want to start a separate thread but just seeing some pics of that crash on the M1 today, Jesus them poor people on that mini bus.

 

What on earth was happening for that to happen at about 3am on you would think a pretty empty stretch of road.

Given there was an allegedly drunk lorry driver, I'm guessing it's veered out of its lane, possibly causing the minibus in to the other lorry, lost control and flipped about a bit to be crushed that much. Or it's got caught between both lorries and got crushed. Either way the pictures look devastating. 

 

On topic, I don't think this crash this morning can be blamed on smart motorways. 

[Strokes]

8 minutes ago, EastAnglianFox said:

Didn't want to start a separate thread but just seeing some pics of that crash on the M1 today, Jesus them poor people on that mini bus.

 

What on earth was happening for that to happen at about 3am on you would think a pretty empty stretch of road.

Two men - a 31-year-old from Worcestershire and a 53-year-old from Stoke-on-Trent - have been arrested on suspicion of causing death by dangerous driving.
The former is also in custody on suspicion of driving while over the alcohol limit following the collision at just before 3.15am on Saturday.

[EastAnglianFox]

9 minutes ago, StanSP said:

Given there was an allegedly drunk lorry driver, I'm guessing it's veered out of its lane, possibly causing the minibus in to the other lorry, lost control and flipped about a bit to be crushed that much. Or it's got caught between both lorries and got crushed. Either way the pictures look devastating. 

 

On topic, I don't think this crash this morning can be blamed on smart motorways. 

 

5 minutes ago, Strokes said:

Two men - a 31-year-old from Worcestershire and a 53-year-old from Stoke-on-Trent - have been arrested on suspicion of causing death by dangerous driving.
The former is also in custody on suspicion of driving while over the alcohol limit following the collision at just before 3.15am on Saturday.

 

Ah I see cheers, really late to the news today so did not know this. Have they mentioned if the two lorry drivers know each other or work for the same company? 

 

Either way if both arrested seems like they were both playing at who could be the bigger tw@t in a 30 odd ton lorry.