Narrower motorway lanes to ease jams

[empip]

......Instead of widening carriageways by building an extra lane, the Highways Agency will next month reveal proposals to scrap the hard shoulder and mark out four lanes on stretches of motorway in Yorkshire that carry three lanes of traffic.
Each lane will be 6in narrower than at present and vehicles will be forced to adhere to a variable speed limit dictated by congestion levels throughout the day.
The radical plan to increase capacity has prompted concerns from motoring groups. Cars have grown in recent years to fit in more safety features such as airbags and bigger crumple zones.
The scheme is being considered for the M1 between Chesterfield and Leeds and for the M62 between Huddersfield and Leeds. Under the proposals, the hard shoulder will be removed in both directions and emergency refuge areas will be created at regular intervals. A separate 8ft-wide strip will be built into the verge for emergency vehicles....

Ok folks, panic over, tis only in the cold north ...

Sounds dangerous to me ... If you break down - and due to traffic intensity at that precise moment - cannot make the 'refuge' area ... You are left sitting in the inside lane .... Possibly too close to barrier to exit via passenger door ... You are perhaps an invalid and therefore unable to scramble into passenger seat.. also afraid, due to exit time, and space available (6" leass than current ) required to exit via driver's door ... Fancy that on a dark wet morning, or any time ??

When will this 'GCSE' level road engineering lunacy end??

 

[big-all]

this is exactly what they done on certain sections of the m25 some years ago

 

[empip]

M25 ... Thankfully 120 miles away!!...

 

[ban-all-sheds]

Even when you are on the M25, there's always a bit that's 120 miles away.


Just behind you.....

 

[breezer]

at the minute well for the next 2 1/2 years they have narrowed the lanes on the M1 -jnc 10 - 8 and imposed a 40mph speed limit, with average speed, speed cameras. (oh and no hard shoulder)

Day 1 it worked very well, since then some one has a crash, or breaks down very rarely does it actually work as it should.

I will say though the section on the M25 with variable speed limits does actually work, not surprising really when you know there are 13 sets of speed cameras in either direction. (one camera for each lane)

 

[plastered]

......
The scheme is being considered for the M1 between Chesterfield and Leeds ....

oh, that section, is that the one where, for the last ten years, they've had road works forcing the lanes to be 6inches narrower than normal and done away with the hard shoulder in order to create another ( 6 inches narrower) lane
No change there then!
....and then theres this

hard shoulders will be scrapped in both directions.....a seperate 8foot wide strip will be built into the verge

woe betide any being who deigns to view this 8ft wide strip as a hard shoulder. It is not, NOT, in any way shape or form a hard shoulder...it is an 8ft wide strip built in to the verge.

 

[Steve]

The M1 at Sheffield is a massive bottleneck - the Tinsley viaduct, near Meadowhell, its one big road junction. For anyone who doesn't know it, The M1 goes from 3 lanes to 2, to go over the viaduct, and the deck below the M1 is the junction, where the 3rd lane leads (roundabouts at each end with sliproads up to the M1).

For the past 9999999 years, they have been strengthening the bridge, its a good 3/4 of a mile long, and there WERE plans afoot to carry on the 3rd lane over the top deck of the viaduct, since the road deck is plenty wide enough for another lane and a hard shoulder. However, the idiots announced last year that they weren't going to do this, and it would remain 2 lanes. LUNACY. Anyone who has travelled there at rush hour will know what i'm talking about.

 

[simon_d]

using hard shoulders as an extra lane can work, but only in the right circumstances. they do it in germany, but then they have the roads constantly watched, and large signs warning you when to/not to use the hard shoulder

and if they make an extra 8ft wide strip next to the road, isnt that a hard shoulder?! makes you wonder. all traffic problems could be solved if they actually looked at whats causing the problem and work around it. often, its simply a case of change timing on traffic lights, or bewtter still, remove some

 

[plastered]

and if they make an extra 8ft wide strip next to the road, isnt that a hard shoulder?!

genau! but sshhhhhhhh...dont tell anybody..then they might not notice...and we can use it to plant pansies instead.

 

[hermes]

. all traffic problems could be solved if they actually looked at whats causing the problem

What's causing the problems is the amount of vehicles on the roads. If they stuck another couple of quid tax on fuel I reckon this would go some way towards solving it.

 

[plastered]

hmmm...I wonder....surely Uk is already the most expensive place in Europe to buy fuel.

 

[Steve]

. all traffic problems could be solved if they actually looked at whats causing the problem

What's causing the problems is the amount of vehicles on the roads. If they stuck another couple of quid tax on fuel I reckon this would go some way towards solving it.

OI! GET BENT!

 

[hermes]

hmmm...I wonder....surely Uk is already the most expensive place in Europe to buy fuel.

Also one of the most crowded places in Europe.

 

[hermes]

. all traffic problems could be solved if they actually looked at whats causing the problem

What's causing the problems is the amount of vehicles on the roads. If they stuck another couple of quid tax on fuel I reckon this would go some way towards solving it.

OI! GET BENT!

If you had to pay £12/gallon would you use the motorway so often on your own? If you had to pay for the extra tax on fuel on all the goods you buy that you don't really need and that have been transported all over the place, would you buy so much stuff?

 

[BOB.DOLE]

GHHHH