Not so Smart Motorways

'Smart Motorways'.

As you will know by now we at The AADI are out and out against the new ‘smart motorways’. We can see nothing smart, or even remotely clever about this new shortcut to save HMG money. How can taking away the Safe Area of a motorway for use in Emergencies be a good idea, this was nothing short of an exercise in making an extra lane available to use without constructing one. Peoples lives are at risk on an hourly and daily basis.

The first time I used one was on my drive to Leicester for the The AADI AGM and it really was an eyeopener, I have never felt so vulnerable on a motorway in my life. I, like every other ADI in the country has spent all my time convincing pupils and others that the safest lane to be in on a motorway is the left hand lane as you have the hard shoulder to escape to.........it’s gone...... all to save money. How much is a life worth? 

How much is a life worth? This is the question being asked by so many families since they have been built. Innocent people killed on motorways because they did not have the hard should der to go to in the event of a breakdown emergency. Did you know that for the original design that was proposed to the Minister at the time Sir Mike Penning was so much safer with more closely spaced emergency laybys (increased by 4 times the original distance) and the surveillance equipment now not even included never mind reduced. If you are lucky, they may get to you in 34 minutes – their own figures, until then you are sitting stranded in a live lane with traffic whistling past you just inches away at up to 70mph – God help you!!! That’s just Highways England’s vehicles as well because the emergency breakdown will not attend you until the area is made safe – their own guys have had so many near misses that they have said enough is enough – the bosses don’t want to be done for corporate manslaughter sending their guys out there and do you blame them?

The Police, Fire Service, Ambulance service, everyone who would have to work on these stupid things was against them from the beginning and still the Department for Transport went ahead......because on the information given to them at the time said it was a safe wise and ECONOMIC move. The Minister Sir Mike Penning at the time is now also dead against them claiming he and his department were misled. Radio broadcasters LBC, the BBC’s Panorama and the BBC itself are all against the idea of these smart motorways.

At The AADI we have campaigned against this terrible idea and written to our MPs on the matter, our President, Chairman, Treasurer, Membership Secretary and individual members and if you want to join use we have a letter/ email that you can adapt to suit yourself and write to your MP, just drop us a line through our https://www.theaadi.co.uk/contactus page. Perhaps if the planners had listened to all those who were against this from the beginning then the dozens who have died on them may still be alive today.

Mr Shapps our Secretary for State with responsibility for these has said all construction will be stopped on them until a full audit has been carried out, it seems that either message did not get through or he is being ignored. How does this happen in a civilised society?

Thank you for taking the time to read this and keep safe.