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[Varche]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-manchester-34301982

My response is it depends. If directed or if you have been waiting and no traffic has come up the slip road for ages then yes. About 20 years ago we had bad snow in the Midlands and hundreds maybe thousands of vehicles were stranded on the M6 (in sight of houses) overnight. We were in that stationary traffic and our driver said. "This isn't going anywhere, nothing had come up the slip road for over an hour" and so off we went. Over the country roads to Nuneaton and on to Hinckley.

The exit off the motorway had been signed closed with signs placed on the tarmac. No one had thought to go up to the motorway and get people off "the wrong way" instead being quite happy to leave them stuck overnight in a nice orderly jam.

I don't think our roads and road policing is flexible enough and those in charge just see people stuck as collateral damage. i.e. tough for those stuck but we diverted people at the previous junction.

If these folk were blocking emergency vehicles then that is not on.

Would you break the rule of the road in exceptional circumstances?

[Nick W]

I don't even do that for work; I drive a recovery truck, and we do work for the highways agency.
Personally, I think people are already much too complacent about how dangerous motorways are, without giving them any more opportunities to be stupid/dangerous/kill someone. Especially if it's just to avoid a queue.

[Crazycarzowner]

I don't even do that for work

Neither do I & I'm a traffic cop!!!! Definite no no for us and if we EVER did  we'd never see a traffic car again and probably end up on foot writing parking tickets for the rest of our career.

[Varche]

I am glad you commented Jason.

I agree with the general principle of observing traffic directions BUT I believe that in exceptional circumstances vehicles could and should be convoyed off a motorway that is closed/blocked. True it would require manpower/signage. However this is the 21st century and not the start of the motoring age. I suspect it is mainly because the authorities can't be bothered. Bit like the thousands trapped at Dover/Calais beacause of the actions of a few. Don't the wasted manhours of folk stuck in vehicles count for anything?

[Kevin Wood]

I am glad you commented Jason.

I agree with the general principle of observing traffic directions BUT I believe that in exceptional circumstances vehicles could and should be convoyed off a motorway that is closed/blocked. True it would require manpower/signage. However this is the 21st century and not the start of the motoring age. I suspect it is mainly because the authorities can't be bothered. Bit like the thousands trapped at Dover/Calais beacause of the actions of a few. Don't the wasted manhours of folk stuck in vehicles count for anything?

I agree, but, if you're going to do that, you have to account for the lowest common denominator in terms of driver common sense. That means someone in a high vis. jacket every 50 yards making absolutely sure they have clear instructions to follow and don't do anything daft. I suspect, in such a circumstances, Police resources are, quite rightly, focussed on the bloke at the front of the tailback, who is likely to be having a much worse day than the others delayed behind him.

[Nick W]

This is already done, but it takes a lot of time and manpower to ensure that traffic can only move in one direction(the wrong one!) in the entire area and at all the junctions.
Unless the road is going to be closed for many hours, it is much better for everyone to use those resources to reopen the road.

As for the time required, it can take hours to clear damaged HGVs even when everything goes well. Fatal crashes are investigated which also takes time, and often the road surface is damaged and needs to be repaired

[05omegav6]

I am glad you commented Jason.

I agree with the general principle of observing traffic directions BUT I believe that in exceptional circumstances vehicles could and should be convoyed off a motorway that is closed/blocked. True it would require manpower/signage. However this is the 21st century and not the start of the motoring age. I suspect it is mainly because the authorities can't be bothered. Bit like the thousands trapped at Dover/Calais beacause of the actions of a few. Don't the wasted manhours of folk stuck in vehicles count for anything?

That does happen, but only under very strictly controlled conditions... the queue is always cleared from the back first, and under very tight supervision. The article to which you linked is most definitely a text book example of very clearly uncontrolled conditions...

Every single driver filmed in that incident deserve to be prosecuted to the fullest extent. People nowadays are far too impatient and selfish, and if it takes losing their licence for dangerous driving to bring that home, then so be it. They can spend their time on the bus contemplating the fact that the minor inconvenience of an hour or so delay is nothing compared to the ordeal of the relatives of those who will never be home for supper.

As for the Dover/Calais example, anyone driving anywhere near either place whilst that was going in is quite clearly retarded, and deserves to sit there.

[tunnie]

I remember being on a school trip, on a coach. Something happened on the motorway, the bus has to do a 3 pointer to turn and go wrong way up a slip road.

At the top, the driver was requested to turn on round-about, no could do at that angle, has to go wrong way around that too.

All by police escort though.

Drivers are like sheep out there, once one does it, they all do!

[Crazycarzowner]

someone in a high vis. jacket every 50 yards making absolutely sure they have clear instructions to follow and don't do anything daft

Exactly Kev, and if we're at the front sorting out the carnage, there isn't anyone else to do the above job. perhaps back in the day when there was more of us it was an option and WAS used but it was very very rare. Its unfortunate to say but joe public cannot obey simple instructions. Only yesterday there was a 4 car bump in lane 3 of the motorway, it blocked lane 3. On the over-head gantrys a red X was placed in lane 3 in 3 places before the accident, but several cars chose to ignore it    & got the wrath!!!!

Then as we we'd closed the motorway momentarily to move stranded cars from lane 3 to the hard shoulder, 2 cars & a HGV decided to drive up the hard-shoulder!!!!!  Motorways.....one of the most dangerous places to work  

[Andy H]

When the motorways were built they had regular breaks in the central reservation to permit stationary traffic to be turned round and sent back where it came from on the other carriageway. The continuous concrete central divide that is being built along most motorways now doesn't seem to have that feature

[Nick W]

When the motorways were built they had regular breaks in the central reservation to permit stationary traffic to be turned round and sent back where it came from on the other carriageway.

I wonder just how common that actually was? For instance, there are no places like that on the M2, most of which is the same double carriageway road that was built sixty years ago.

In use such places would still require manpower to turn the traffic around, and stop the traffic on the opposite carriageway. That's if there was one near enough to make such a procedure worthwhile.

[Varche]

Maybe Smart motorways will help when there is a road blockage?

maybe there isn't enough thought put into traffic flow when there is a problem. I bet you would be hard pushed to find a forum member who hasn't spent a minimum of an hour stuck on a motorway. Without new motorways the problem is only going to get worse unless the long term plan is for cars to be controlled by computer on motorways thus eliminating accidents and so we just have to wait five/ten/twenty years till that is in place?

[05omegav6]

Maybe Smart motorways will help when there is a road blockage?

maybe there isn't enough thought put into traffic flow when there is a problem. I bet you would be hard pushed to find a forum member who hasn't spent a minimum of an hour stuck on a motorway. Without new motorways the problem is only going to get worse unless the long term plan is for cars to be controlled by computer on motorways thus eliminating accidents and so we just have to wait five/ten/twenty years till that is in place?

This percieved problem will only dissappear when people stop being selfish and impatient...

[Keith ABS]

As if that is evr going to happen Harris.' They are all more important than all the rest of us

Keith ABS