One thousand demand urgent safety work on major Hampshire road (From Daily Echo)
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Campaign backing for new safety measures on A31 after fatal crash
6:05am Tuesday 23rd October 2012 in News
By Chris Yandell, Chief Reporter, New Forest
Scene of A31 fatal crash last week
URGENT action is needed before someone else loses their life on the A31 through the New Forest, it was claimed last night.
District councillors debated the safety record of the busy commuter route and urged the Highways Agency to reduce the carnage.
It follows the death last week of Ross Lipsett, 53, of Ringwood, who was killed when his car crashed into a lorry parked in a lay-by at Poulner Hill.
Ringwood Town Council had already launched a campaign for improvements to the A31 between Picket Post and the Ashley Heath junction.
More than 1,000 people have signed a council-led petition supporting calls for a wide range of measures.
These include cutting the speed limit from 70mph to 50mph, creating a crawler lane for eastbound lorries and installing signs advising drivers to get into the correct lane earlier.
A motion supporting the campaign gained crossparty support at last night’s meeting of the district council.
Councillor Michael Thierry, who represents Ringwood, claimed that the Highways Agency had “neglected” the A31.
“For some reason unbeknown to me the agency thinks it’s quite safe to drive down Poulner Hill at 70mph plus. That’s manifestly not the case,” he said.
“The A31 has seen accident after accident and some have been fatal. This is a lethal stretch of road.
“We want the Highways Agency to come to Ringwood so we can tell them face to face how we feel about this road.
“There are things they could do if they are minded to do so.
“If the agency were an elected body, something would already have been done.”
Councillor Maureen Robinson, a former leader of the Liberal Democrats opposition group, added: “That particular road is one that everyone uses. In many ways it’s the lifeblood of the Forest and it’s very important that it’s safe.”
Comments(9)
OSPREYSAINT
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8:33am Tue 23 Oct 12
Lone Ranger.
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9:02am Tue 23 Oct 12
OSPREYSAINT wrote:Yes you are correct ...... and i think that the main issue from my experience is the lack of warning signs from the M27 from the airport junction and the lack of warning signs from Rownhams and the two lane approach towards Eastleigh
Judging by the number of recent prangs between Junction 12 and 13 of the M3, there must be something amiss with that stretch?
toxteth o'grady
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9:11am Tue 23 Oct 12
huckit P
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1:17pm Tue 23 Oct 12
ohec
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3:38pm Tue 23 Oct 12
Ginger_cyclist
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7:29pm Tue 23 Oct 12
ohec wrote:Exactly, this is why cyclists are getting helmet cameras and car drivers are starting to get dash cams like the police use.
The problem is the general standard of driving, no time to get into the right lane when exiting a motorway why slow down behind all those others when you can just cut across from the outside lane,. and the same applies when joining the motorway don't bother about adjusting your speed so you can safely merge into the flow just stick your foot down and shoot right across to the outside lane. When you look around at the standard of driving its nothing short of a miracle that we don't have a lot more accidents.
bazzeroz
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10:14pm Tue 23 Oct 12
sotonbusdriver
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3:39am Wed 24 Oct 12
The biggest change being that you no longer have to demonstrate being about to use your gears to slow. No you are taught in most cases to stay in the gear you are in, depressing the clutch only when the engine is straining, and coming to rest on brakes alone.
I was taught the old way, of changing down while slowing or stopping...
Also too many people get behind the wheel when they are tired, this has less to do with lower driving standards, adn more to do with the competitive world and trying to keep your job..... As they are frightened to take a day off, or be late... So drive tired, too fast, and in a rushed state...
Maybe Society itself needs to change rather than the roads....
It's like saying guns kill people,,, but in reality guns don't kill, its the people that pull the trigger of the gun, that does the killing......
SotonNorth says...
7:21am Tue 23 Oct 12
Campaigners should also ask themselves the question. Who was it who prevented this road from being upgraded into a higher standard motorway road in the first place? NIMBYs and environmentalists perhaps? How many people died on the substandard Winchester Bypass during the years when motorway construction was blocked by NIMBYs and environmentalists? The answer is lots. The A31 is too busy for the type of road that it is.