wymberley Posted April 22 Report Share Posted April 22 Have to confess that I'm biased never having liked them. Are we set for another 'Post Office' as it were with the powers that be saying that they're perfectly safe but with the hands on workers saying that they're downright dangerous? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oldypigeonpopper Posted April 22 Report Share Posted April 22 (edited) Hello, This is one stupid idea and putting it mildly , already people have died, there is a TV programme on this tonight, is there a map of UK showing all the roads with these Smart motor way sections, not that i drive much these days Edited April 23 by oldypigeonpopper Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gordon R Posted April 22 Report Share Posted April 22 It would be nice to think that the people who dreamt it up and implemented it might face corporate manslaughter charges at some point. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mice! Posted April 22 Report Share Posted April 22 They are a complete mess, the constantly changing speeds on some is a nightmare, people can say what they like but everyone in three or four lanes all doing 50/60/70 mph is just not right or safe. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sam triple Posted April 22 Report Share Posted April 22 I’m shocked that the EHS hasn’t been all over these rediculous things from the start with the number of people killed on them Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TIGHTCHOKE Posted April 22 Report Share Posted April 22 The ONLY way Smart Motorways are safe is when they are EMPTY. Bloody awful idea from the start. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jaymo Posted April 22 Report Share Posted April 22 7 minutes ago, TIGHTCHOKE said: The ONLY way Smart Motorways are safe is when they are EMPTY. Bloody awful idea from the start. Agree. I have a major aversion to using what is meant to be the hard shoulder. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JohnfromUK Posted April 22 Report Share Posted April 22 About 5 years ago a major accident occurred only a few vehicles in front of me when travelling on the "Smart" section of the M5 in Worcestershire. We all came to a rapid halt and it was clear that one vehicle (a small hatchback) was very badly damaged. Because the whole motorway in that direction had stopped the emergency services were unable to get through for quite some time and had to come down the (closed) carriageway against the normal direction of traffic as the whole 'behind' the accident was solid with no hard shoulder and no way for fire engines to get through. Sadly there was a fatality. Whether the emergency services getting there sooner would have helped I don't know, but it can't have helped that assistance took quite a while to get there. I can't really say how long as I was (perhaps fortunately) just screened from sight by other vehicles in front of me. I was sat in the car stationary for several hours whilst the 'investigation team' did their stuff. Not a nice day - and it highlighted to me how when there is an accident, emergency services can't get proper access if all lanes are blocked. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Westley Posted April 22 Report Share Posted April 22 3 hours ago, TIGHTCHOKE said: The ONLY way Smart Motorways are safe is when they are EMPTY. Bloody awful idea from the start. The only way ANY motorway is safe is when it is empty. Or any other road for that matter. I read this week that road workers are being attacked by irate idiot drivers who dislike having their journey disrupted. While these clowns are driving on our roads, no road is safe. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
udderlyoffroad Posted April 23 Report Share Posted April 23 Yes, way overdue these things were retired. Orr, at £0 cost to the taxpayer, the matrix signs permanently 'X'd out what should be the hard shoulder, regardless of traffic conditions. But that would be too sensible. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TIGHTCHOKE Posted April 23 Report Share Posted April 23 13 hours ago, Westley said: The only way ANY motorway is safe is when it is empty. Or any other road for that matter. I read this week that road workers are being attacked by irate idiot drivers who dislike having their journey disrupted. While these clowns are driving on our roads, no road is safe. If the REFUGE that is the HARD SHOULDER is taken away and used as a LIVE LANE there is NO REFUGE. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Westley Posted April 23 Report Share Posted April 23 1 hour ago, TIGHTCHOKE said: If the REFUGE that is the HARD SHOULDER is taken away and used as a LIVE LANE there is NO REFUGE. So it's a bit like a breakdown in lane 3 then ? Pushing your car across 2 live lanes is not really an option ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TIGHTCHOKE Posted April 23 Report Share Posted April 23 1 hour ago, Westley said: So it's a bit like a breakdown in lane 3 then ? Pushing your car across 2 live lanes is not really an option ? Usually you would use your momentum to get across to the hard shoulder on the left. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mice! Posted April 23 Report Share Posted April 23 Just reading about this elsewhere and something I hadn't considered, pulling back out from the stupid little lay buys from a standing start into traffic going 50-60-70mph yeah that's going to be fun 😳😳 Worst idea ever on the Motorway. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
London Best Posted April 23 Report Share Posted April 23 One of the original design features which defined a road as a motorway was the fact that it had a hard shoulder. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gordon R Posted April 23 Report Share Posted April 23 Gotta love the junior lay-bys every so often. Only useful if you conveniently break down at that spot. Slim chance and no chance. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wymberley Posted April 23 Author Report Share Posted April 23 As we're informed that these roads and the associated technology are perfectly safe ,I'm sure any minor glitches will be resolved and travel on them even safer when vehicles have no need for a driver. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
London Best Posted April 23 Report Share Posted April 23 5 minutes ago, wymberley said: As we're informed that these roads and the associated technology are perfectly safe ,I'm sure any minor glitches will be resolved and travel on them even safer when vehicles have no need for a driver. Can’t wait! And when that time comes, I’m going nowhere! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scouser Posted April 24 Report Share Posted April 24 Close them down easy, can of yellow paint and double line them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Westley Posted April 25 Report Share Posted April 25 On 24/04/2024 at 09:20, scouser said: Close them down easy, can of yellow paint and double line them. And everyone ignores them anyway.......especially if they leave their shopping lights on ! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scouser Posted April 26 Report Share Posted April 26 Maybe, but at least the chances of being killed are less, in a perfect world it might have seemed a good idea, BUT it’s not a perfect world. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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