Driving on the hard shoulder

tb2000 said:
Not necessarily, no. But most of the ones you see have their bonnets up meaning they probably pulled off fairly quickly.
The times when my dad used it was because of a tyre problem (front tyre lost it's tread, then the spare got a puncture and had a blow out!), and second time was the vehicle started to overheat as it had a water leak.
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Do you believe that your experience is more valid that those that conducted the 12 month trial period ~ have you called them to let them know?

I would also advise that your dad invests in some basic car maintenance before he causes an accident that may involve someone else.
 
CaPtBlaCk said:
Do you believe that your experience is more valid that those that conducted the 12 month trial period ~ have you called them to let them know?
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I believe my experience is just as valid because most of the time these trials are highly dubious. If the government want something to go a certain way they will make it so - and in this case it's a good way to widen the motorway without spending out and doing it properly.
CaPtBlaCk said:
I would also advise that your dad invests in some basic car maintenance before he causes an accident that may involve someone else.
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It was on the caravanette as it happens. As my dad is a mechanic with over 35 years in the trade under his belt, he is well versed in car maintenance, plus he is one of the safest drivers i've been with.
The case with the tyre was unfortunate. It must've just been faulty as they are checked before the journey commences. The spare was also unfortunate as it got a puncture on the road after setting off. The reason it overheated (which was a couple of years later) was because of a cam belt cover bolt (which for some reason enters the water ways) had come loose - this isn't the sort of thing you normally check before you set off though! However, after rectifying the problems he hasn't had any problems since, and admittedly, hadn't had to use the hard shoulder for many years before either. :)
 
ci_newman said:
If anyone was watching the BBC news this morning, they had an interview with Ruth Kelly. Where this additional hard-shoulder lane is in place, the ENTIRE stretch of it is covered by CCTV. In the event of someone breaking down, the lane is simply shut again and because it's monitored 24/7 by the human eye then break-downs etc get spotted very quickly.

Before people lay into this project, they really need to know the full ins-and-outs.
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This is just insane! Once people start to use the hard shoulder thats it! It's no different from allowing cars to drive in bus lanes, where I live no one gives a **** for the bus lane and if they did close it what would happen?

Drivers would stay on the hard shoulder until they got to another car then just drive round it, I see drivers just red lights EVERY day and I only drive a few miles to work. This is as stupid as the talk of allowing drivers to turn left WHEN IT'S CLEAR, WTF? do they think people won't take risks? I know drivers that go through red lights to turn left to avoid traffic backed up by an EMPTY bus lane.
 
DannyDan said:
I think the hard shoulder closes when a slip road is approaching.
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This reminds me of that nasty stretch on the clockwise M25 (north of the junction with the M40) where the left hand lanes keep merging in. Surely this just causes more slowing down and dangerous last minute lane changing?

Hard shoulders may be empty most of the time, but surely that's the whole point? They're somewhere to escape to if things go wrong. Terrible short sighted idea.
 
My local stretch of dual carriage way has never had a hard shoulder and the speed limit has always been 50MPH. Doesn't seem to have cuased to many problems for people who have had to stop for one reason or another.
 
Lunatic Dreyfus said:
Hard shoulders may be empty most of the time, but surely that's the whole point? They're somewhere to escape to if things go wrong. Terrible short sighted idea.
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Exactly. Also, where are emergency service vehicle supposed to go if the motorway is blocked (which usually happens very quickly when there's just been an accident)?
 
Oblivious said:
Rubbish, Its not set at 40-50 all the time. Its set to 40-50 in busy periods where there is a lot of congestion. It does actually work well and the traffic flows a lot better than it used to before the scheme was introduced.
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i agree fully, it works wonders.

as for having this on all M roads, i think it would fail on huge stretches of the M25. from staines down to leatherhead there are always foreign lorries on the hard shoulder and also then there is the bridge legs and other obstructions on the hard shoulder which would stop traffic flowing.
 
CaPtBlaCk said:
Nobody appears to be taking any notice of you! :confused:

I use it virtually every working day, in rush hour and can see first hand that it is safe, easy to use and best of all you get no stop/start driving as happens else where. Cruising at 50mph is great after the torment this stretch used to offer!

As with the media coverage today, folks just like to moan without knowing the facts or experiencing it first hand......
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I was on this very stretch today, going from Bromsgrove to Solihull and was cruising along happily at 50mph on the hard shoulder, as you say it beats how it was before with the constant stop and starting.

Heck, moving at 30mph on the motorway is better than grid lock, or constant start stops.

Will this scheme work on every motorway? Who knows, but the M42 3a - 6 is hardly a quite piece of motorway so a success such as this deserves recognition to be rolled out nationwide.

I'm at the Holiday Inn BIA tomorrow and will be on the same stretch. Brother now drives on the M42 more than me since I moved call area in my job, and he agrees that it's a great idea.
 
Personally, having driven quite a few times through the trial area on the M42 during congested times, it works really well. The traffic is slower to 40 or 50 via the matrix signs, which also tell you to use the hard shoulder. A couple of signs before a junction, it says the hard shoulder is closed again, people filter back in, after the on slip, it re-opens again.

I believe the traffic is monitored via CCTV very closely when the hard-shoulder is open to traffic, and in the event of a breakdown, it'd be a simple task to change the sign before to tell people to move over. Heck, even if they didn't it's not hard to spot a stationary car and move over.

Don't knock it till you've tried it! ;)
 
seems a good idea to me. it will only be like certain dual carriage ways with No hard shoulder and that doesn't seem to be too bad
 
!bluetonic! said:
My main gripe is with the motorways not being used correctly anyway.

If they were, I'm sure we'd have plenty of room for all.

(hint: Right lanes for overtaking, middle lane not for 'cruising' )
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HAH
so true,
JCT 34 M1 Southbound slip road.

I was entering the M1, this is one of those sliproads where the sliproad actually becomes a lane of the motorway rather than merging, the chap in his punto or similar is driving pretty slow, and the motorway is pretty empty, as soon as it's possible to move over 1 lane he moves into the middle lane and continues!!! Left lane is totally empty mind, making me change 2 lanes to get past, what's the deal here?
 
[TW]Fox;10346519 said:
I initially thought the same as well. But then I got wondernig.

Hands up everyone here who has had cause to immediatly pull over and stop on the hard shoulder of the Motorway in the last 5 years.
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me... flat tyre. but saying that i dare say i would have been able to crawl to one of the "Refuge Areas"

i think the idea is a good one though, after all it is mostly a waste of space on the side of the road. germany use this during peak times i think. As long as the road signs change fast if anyone does block that lane... plus the public are gona take a while to get used to it lol

dannyjo22 said:
I drive 40 miles on the M11 every day and there are always broken down cars on the hard shoulder pulled over. I'd say thats pretty much everyday.

They probably pulled over carefully but thats still a lane that would then cause massive issues for the rest of the traffic as they filter into the next lane.
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hmm ive noticed this a lot about the M11 too.... even late at night theres always 1 person stopped on the way to stansted from london... strange.
 
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Dogbreath said:
That's ok then, I'm sure the average OAP will have no problem pushing their car up to 500 yards.
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Jeez, let it go man!

The traffic is moving at 40 to 50 mph, which is basically four lanes of solid traffic but all moving at the same speed. If you breakdown then you either coast into a refuge or slow to a stop in lane. The traffic behind you is going to slow with you and stop. You only risk being rear ended by a blind man or a total unobservant buffoon.....

At the end of the day I am sure that everybody with a vested interest including the H&S folks will have had their say and gave it the all clear. Remember in 12 months there has been less accidents and no major incidents on one of the busiest stretches of motorway in the UK.
 
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the m42 has been like this for ages. didnt cause me trouble, always seemed to flow well, sometimes too well which left me checking the post carefully for two weeks

i drive a golf, i therefore dont have 'breakdowns' (;)) and if there is, people will just revert to not using the hardshoulder

when the hardshoulder was in use, im sure the road was limited to 50mph
 
BigglesPiP said:
If I'm in in one of these situations and I get a puncture, I shall stop there and then to swap it, if my oil light comes on, I shall stop there and then and arrange a tow/pick-up.

And there is nothing those "Dayglow Wombles" in their black and yellow battenburgs can do about it.
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It's good that you were in the top 3% of drivers as you only had 2 minors in your test.

Unfortunately that doesn't result in you being a "good driver".
 
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