The DEATH of the hard shoulder

AdrianC

Bonniepurple said:

AdrianC said:

Meanwhile, people forget not all motorways are created equal in the first place...
https://goo.gl/maps/Fx1DtGt6EXe8DMz87

Is that J3?  If so, I agree it’s horrible, especially at night.  Used to hate doing that one.

Herefordshire's only motorway junction...

onomatopoeia99

fred246 said:

I am amazed people don't understand the risks. Say your cambelt snapped and you were in lane 3 of a 4 lane motorway with no hard shoulder. What would you do? Where would you steer to? You can only brake. Which lane do you choose to stop in. Lane 1 and get hit by a 44 tonne truck or lane 4 and get hit by a 100MPH car? Or lane 2 or 3?

This literally happened to me.  With no power I pulled as far to the left as possible and stopped.  The traffic behind me backed up fast with a stationary car in the way that they had to avoid and the two nearside lanes were down to walking pace very quickly, so I got out (driver's door, the transmission tunnel was too big for a passenger door exit),  climbed over the barrier and called the AA then remained there until they were able to load my car onto the transporter and take me home.  No lorries hit my car, but even if one had I was 10 yards away, at right angles and slighty forward so it wasn't going anywhere near me.

Really, anyone should be able to figure that out.

Someone described the hard shoulder as a safe place on a motorway.  It surely is not, it's an incredibly dangerous place.

Bonniepurple

AdrianC said:

Bonniepurple said:

AdrianC said:

Meanwhile, people forget not all motorways are created equal in the first place...
https://goo.gl/maps/Fx1DtGt6EXe8DMz87

Is that J3?  If so, I agree it’s horrible, especially at night.  Used to hate doing that one.

Herefordshire's only motorway junction...

Wrong - J4 on the M50 is also on Herefordshire (at least, it was last time I looked!).  Ironically J2 is for Ledbury (Herefordshire) but is actually in Gloucestershire, while J3 is for Newent (Gloucestershire) but is in Herefordshire.  My Dad lives in Newent so I’ve done J3 many, many times.

Car_54

Bonniepurple said:

AdrianC said:

Marvel1 said:

AdrianC said:

Marvel1 said:

EssexExile said:
As for "How many people driving would know what a Smart motorway is" - I would hope most of them, they aren't exactly secrets.

I didn't know what they were until last August (lockdown was eased) driving in England as it was being built.

It's 26 years since the first variable speed limits on the M25, 16 years since the first M42 sections, and 12 years since wider roll-out started...

But, really, all you need to know is how to interpret some very basic signage - especially what a bloody great big red X above a lane means.

Ah, thought it something different.

"Smart motorway" is a blanket term for a range of things, from variable limits, through all-lane-running, dynamic hard shoulder, and fully managed.

It's ALR and DHS that are specifically being objected to here. Yet the feedback to drivers, and the info provided to the control centre, are pretty similar to good ol' variable limits.

Meanwhile, people forget not all motorways are created equal in the first place...
https://goo.gl/maps/Fx1DtGt6EXe8DMz87

Is that J3?  If so, I agree it’s horrible, especially at night.  Used to hate doing that one.

It is less than ideal, but when I used it daily about 20 years ago there was seldom any traffic. Has that changed? The StreetView photo is busier than I ever saw.

AdrianC

Bonniepurple said:

AdrianC said:

Bonniepurple said:

AdrianC said:

Meanwhile, people forget not all motorways are created equal in the first place...
https://goo.gl/maps/Fx1DtGt6EXe8DMz87

Is that J3?  If so, I agree it’s horrible, especially at night.  Used to hate doing that one.

Herefordshire's only motorway junction...

Wrong - J4 on the M50 is also on Herefordshire (at least, it was last time I looked!).

J4's a r'a'b, not a junction...

Car_54

A roundabout is a junction, but a junction is not necessarily a roundabout.

williamgriffin

Car_54 said:

A roundabout is a junction, but a junction is not necessarily a roundabout.

Is the roundabout at said junction a motorway junction? It won't be covered by any motorway regs as the travellers rest is at the end of the M50.

AdrianC

williamgriffin said:

Car_54 said:

A roundabout is a junction, but a junction is not necessarily a roundabout.

Is the roundabout at said junction a motorway junction? It won't be covered by any motorway regs as the travellers rest is at the end of the M50.

The motorway starts at the roundabout's exit (or stops at its entrance) - the roundabout itself is not motorway.

williamgriffin

AdrianC said:

williamgriffin said:

Car_54 said:

A roundabout is a junction, but a junction is not necessarily a roundabout.

Is the roundabout at said junction a motorway junction? It won't be covered by any motorway regs as the travellers rest is at the end of the M50.

The motorway starts at the roundabout's exit (or stops at its entrance) - the roundabout itself is not motorway.

So it's a junction just not a motorway junction.

Car_54

williamgriffin said:

AdrianC said:

williamgriffin said:

Car_54 said:

A roundabout is a junction, but a junction is not necessarily a roundabout.

Is the roundabout at said junction a motorway junction? It won't be covered by any motorway regs as the travellers rest is at the end of the M50.

The motorway starts at the roundabout's exit (or stops at its entrance) - the roundabout itself is not motorway.

So it's a junction just not a motorway junction.

It's a motorway junction (4), but not itself part of the m'way. Same as junction 1 of the M1, and no doubt many others.