Wrong way up M4
Discussion
An old age pensioner was killed ( along with some innocent others ) recently after he drove his Nissan Micra the wrong way down the M4.
Re test old people and if they dont drive over 10 mph or cant work out which way to join a motorway then stop them driving.
Roads will be a bit quiter on Sundays and someone in the future will still be alive as an old t**t drives the wrong way onto a motorway at least once every few years
Re test old people and if they dont drive over 10 mph or cant work out which way to join a motorway then stop them driving.
Roads will be a bit quiter on Sundays and someone in the future will still be alive as an old t**t drives the wrong way onto a motorway at least once every few years
I realise this dreadful incident does rather point the finger at OAPs who can no longer drive as their ability to observe properly has decayed with time.
But do old people cause the most accidents? I'll bet they don't. Its young lads - whose car control skills and observation are often excellent - who just overcook it completely from sheer youthful exuberence.
I know its awful but lets put this into perspective. By all means re-test OAPs for safety - but there is no need to persecute blue-rinsers because of the odd incident. Better driver education for the young hoons would make a bigger difference...
But do old people cause the most accidents? I'll bet they don't. Its young lads - whose car control skills and observation are often excellent - who just overcook it completely from sheer youthful exuberence.
I know its awful but lets put this into perspective. By all means re-test OAPs for safety - but there is no need to persecute blue-rinsers because of the odd incident. Better driver education for the young hoons would make a bigger difference...
I'm not saying old people cause the most accidents, but the accidents they do cause are usually totally avoidable as they quite often dont possese the necessary skills to be on the road in this day and age.
My grandad has never passed a test to drive on public roads, his eyesight isnt what it was, his reaction time is in minutes and he struggles to get out of the setee, yet he still insists on going out in his little Rover and submitting us all to his appalling standards of driving. God bless him but he shouldnt be on the road.
I totally agree, there are many bad drivers, both young and old. At least the young could improve where as most older folk will get worse.
Driving on the road today should be a privilege and not a right
My grandad has never passed a test to drive on public roads, his eyesight isnt what it was, his reaction time is in minutes and he struggles to get out of the setee, yet he still insists on going out in his little Rover and submitting us all to his appalling standards of driving. God bless him but he shouldnt be on the road.
I totally agree, there are many bad drivers, both young and old. At least the young could improve where as most older folk will get worse.
Driving on the road today should be a privilege and not a right
quote:Indeed - my wife's grandad ran right over the centre of a large roundabout on the A26/A22 recently, which he put down to being confounded by the lights of an oncoming vehicle...
My grandad has never passed a test to drive on public roads, his eyesight isnt what it was, his reaction time is in minutes and he struggles to get out of the setee, yet he still insists on going out in his little Rover and submitting us all to his appalling standards of driving. God bless him but he shouldnt be on the road.
nice bloke - bloody dangerous on the road.. to quote the mother-in-law "ee finks ee's Sterling Moss"..
Suffice it to say that whilst he was once an enthusiastic and accomplished driver, he's not anymore.. but he is about 90 or something.. he fought in the war for the likes of us and he'll not be removed from the road by some upstart government who say he's not safe anymore.. after all, what do they know???
I agree with the concept of retesting. I think we should have a retest after 10 years, and this gets shorter over 60. I think there are plenty of people, myself included, who have picked up potentially dangerious habits over their driving years and would find a retest a challenge.
Just my 2cents worth.
Just my 2cents worth.
Not wishing to be ageist but...
How does anyone manage to get on to the M4 going the wrong way. From what I heard he had made it out from Membury services and was travelling in Lane 3 at the point of the crash.
Everytime I use the M4 it is packed full of vehicles, how on earth do you fail to notice that all the cars are coming towards you????? How did he get to Lane 3 without hitting any of the traffic coming towards him.
Perhaps he was on the mobile whilst swigging back scotch - would that slow his reaction time down to minutes???
Perhaps his brain wasn't connected to anything.
I feel for the poor sod coming to correct way down the motorway and failed to make his destination (apart from the ultimate destination)
I don't know the solution but somehow these people alway manage to escape prosecution by the police - maybe the guy coming the opposite way was probably SPEEDING and that must be the cause of the accident!!!!
How does anyone manage to get on to the M4 going the wrong way. From what I heard he had made it out from Membury services and was travelling in Lane 3 at the point of the crash.
Everytime I use the M4 it is packed full of vehicles, how on earth do you fail to notice that all the cars are coming towards you????? How did he get to Lane 3 without hitting any of the traffic coming towards him.
Perhaps he was on the mobile whilst swigging back scotch - would that slow his reaction time down to minutes???
Perhaps his brain wasn't connected to anything.
I feel for the poor sod coming to correct way down the motorway and failed to make his destination (apart from the ultimate destination)
I don't know the solution but somehow these people alway manage to escape prosecution by the police - maybe the guy coming the opposite way was probably SPEEDING and that must be the cause of the accident!!!!
This was an appaling accident and however you may feel someone lost his life. The motorway was closed for seven hours as a result of this which is my main problem.Why? I can understand where there is doubt as to blame but this was a man who came out of Membury services and managed to drive for over four Miles without hitting any one in the wrong direction , can there be any doubt as to the blame. So why keep this main route closed? This caused jams around the whole area for miles inconvenianced thousands for what?
I drive from Bristol to Southampton daily to work and age is not a problem niether is speed it is numpty drivers who are just crap. If we are going to retest lets all do it not just on age, at either ends of the scale. The problem of closing Motorways is growing in the last three years I have spent 5 hours 4.5, 3 and several other odd hours due to closures where a death has occured or is likly to happen. This is unacceptable in my view no matter how sorry we may feel for the victims life goes on.
I drive from Bristol to Southampton daily to work and age is not a problem niether is speed it is numpty drivers who are just crap. If we are going to retest lets all do it not just on age, at either ends of the scale. The problem of closing Motorways is growing in the last three years I have spent 5 hours 4.5, 3 and several other odd hours due to closures where a death has occured or is likly to happen. This is unacceptable in my view no matter how sorry we may feel for the victims life goes on.
On the one hand, my car needs an annual test to make
sure it is safe, on the other hand I've got a bit of
paper which says I'm ok to drive for decades yet.
I support mandatory re-tests every year for all drivers.
I know this would cost money, but then I don't imagine
it would take too much effort for the government
to think up a new tax, let's say fifty quid a year,
for us all to pay, to fund the cost of all the annual
testing.
To say nothing of the new jobs created by such new rules.
sure it is safe, on the other hand I've got a bit of
paper which says I'm ok to drive for decades yet.
I support mandatory re-tests every year for all drivers.
I know this would cost money, but then I don't imagine
it would take too much effort for the government
to think up a new tax, let's say fifty quid a year,
for us all to pay, to fund the cost of all the annual
testing.
To say nothing of the new jobs created by such new rules.
quote:
An old age pensioner was killed ( along with some innocent others ) recently after he drove his Nissan Micra the wrong way down the M4.
Re test old people and if they dont drive over 10 mph or cant work out which way to join a motorway then stop them driving.
Working in an optician, you should see some off the people we get in. Eg. On tuesday a lady of 84 comes in on crutches, having real difficulty walking. She has vision in one eye only, and is on the legal driving limit which is a p#ss take anyway in the good eye. We have to let her go "legal" to drive!! but bloody dangerous. THAT is not right, if a kid runs out she probably won't see it let alone have the reactions to stop/take avoiding action.
As I understand it, at the moment at the age of 75 a driver has to sign a form to say that they are safe to drive on the road. Who is going to say "I'm unsafe, sell the Micra". Re-testing is the only safe way, some of the O.A.P.'s on the road learnt to drive when there were only 6 cars in the world!
quote:
On the one hand, my car needs an annual test to make
sure it is safe, on the other hand I've got a bit of
paper which says I'm ok to drive for decades yet.
I support mandatory re-tests every year for all drivers.
I know this would cost money, but then I don't imagine
it would take too much effort for the government
to think up a new tax, let's say fifty quid a year,
for us all to pay, to fund the cost of all the annual
testing.
To say nothing of the new jobs created by such new rules.
I dont disagree with this as an aproach, however if Tony and the happy clappy band of green tw@ts run the testing, it will cost about 1500 quid a test, just because of all the civil service admin costs
quote:
I agree with the concept of retesting. I think we should have a retest after 10 years, and this gets shorter over 60
This has been debated in the news recently, and on a few TV shows, as Quentin Wilson (sp) has been campaining for this recently. All the old people questioned said they'd be 'insulted' to be retested.. Well, thats all right then, don't want to upset the grey brigade, we'd better leave them alone to crash and kill everyone else. Scary, ain't it.
By the way, stats show that accidents increase as you get over 50 now, almost in line with 17/18 yr olds I think..
Don't see why it has to cost all that much, or involve taxes at all. Just pay the same test fee for the retest as the original test - which I was about to say is £27 odd but I've just remembered that was getting on for 15 years ago .. but even so, it must be, what, £60 now?
And incidentally my Grandfather, who is 87, never sat adriving test, and still drives his Rover - and he's not too bad. Still makes OK progress at 50-60 mph, reactions aren't lightning fast but there are lots of people worse especially when they've a mobile glued to their ear ... he knows his reactions aren't those of a 17 year old nutcase, but he can see fine and leaves a decent amount of space. He too fought in the war for the likes of us ...
So retests should be for everyone, not just based on age. And they should be tougher than the standard test as you should have learned from experience.
John.
And incidentally my Grandfather, who is 87, never sat adriving test, and still drives his Rover - and he's not too bad. Still makes OK progress at 50-60 mph, reactions aren't lightning fast but there are lots of people worse especially when they've a mobile glued to their ear ... he knows his reactions aren't those of a 17 year old nutcase, but he can see fine and leaves a decent amount of space. He too fought in the war for the likes of us ...
So retests should be for everyone, not just based on age. And they should be tougher than the standard test as you should have learned from experience.
John.
quote:
As I understand it, at the moment at the age of 75 a driver has to sign a form to say that they are safe to drive on the road. Who is going to say "I'm unsafe, sell the Micra". Re-testing is the only safe way, some of the O.A.P.'s on the road learnt to drive when there were only 6 cars in the world!
Actually quite a few of them (like my gran, who holds an all classes license - HGV, tanker, you name it) never even sat a test - license given out during WW2 when there weren't any instructors about to do the testing!!! (BTW my gran had the sense to stop driving when she realised she was no longer safe to do so - even though she was still legal!)
quote:
This was an appaling accident and however you may feel someone lost his life. The motorway was closed for seven hours as a result of this which is my main problem.Why? I can understand where there is doubt as to blame but this was a man who came out of Membury services and managed to drive for over four Miles without hitting any one in the wrong direction , can there be any doubt as to the blame. So why keep this main route closed? This caused jams around the whole area for miles inconvenianced thousands for what?
I drive from Bristol to Southampton daily to work and age is not a problem niether is speed it is numpty drivers who are just crap. If we are going to retest lets all do it not just on age, at either ends of the scale. The problem of closing Motorways is growing in the last three years I have spent 5 hours 4.5, 3 and several other odd hours due to closures where a death has occured or is likly to happen. This is unacceptable in my view no matter how sorry we may feel for the victims life goes on.
There is new thing called the Road death manual. Its lays out specific instructions on how the Police deal with Fatal RTA's and brings into line the practices of all forces, which we up until this point a dictated by there own policy.
Basically, a Fatal RTA is now treated as a crime scene, or for want of a better expression a murder scene until it has been established otherwise. Therefore, detailed accident investigation and scenes of crime examinations have to be carried out. These can only start after all the injured parties have been removed from the vehicles and the fire service can make the area safe.
All this takes time, but it ensures the investigation is carried out correctly. Believe me when I say a multiple pile up can be extremely stressful and complicated to deal with.
It constantly amazes me the impatient of some drivers waiting at the scene of an accident. Whilst I appreciate that everybody has something they need to be doing and any hold up is a pain, I would ask you to put the shoe on the other foot...If you were involved or had a relative involved in a serious RTA would like half a job done, or a proper job done?
>> Edited by relaxitscool on Friday 29th March 20:36
quote:Sometimes I find myself taking the attitude that the accident was likely caused by someone's stupidity, the like of which we frequently discuss here.
It constantly amazes me the impatient of some drivers waiting at the scene of an accident.
Being stranded on a motorway for several hours when you're due at a client, at the airport, collecting wife etc can be extremely stressful and we can't always sit there stoically and see another evening/day/holiday ruined on account of some fcukwit who's monumental ineptitude has caused all this. Especially when it happens so frequently - I thank my lucky stars everyday that I don't have to use the M4. Venting of anger is inevitable whether it's right or wrong.
Still.. count the number of vehicles involved and you'll be that many cars up in traffic tomorrow ... and the genepool's looking cleaner too...
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