UK’s A-Roads Too Dangerous, Report Says

A report made by the Road Safety Foundation and paid for by UK’s Highway Agency shows that two-thirds of the one-lane roads are below acceptable in terms of safety standards. The report which is part of the European Road Assessment Programme rates most of UK’s A-road network with two stars out of the possible four, says pistonheads.com.

"Single carriageways lack most of the safety features that would protect road users and almost two-thirds (62 per cent) get an overall rating of two stars," says Dr Joanne Hill, director of the Road Safety Foundation. "Some 91 per cent fail to reach high standards for run-off. Head-on collisions are prevented only by road markings. Where road sections have junctions, few layouts rate well."

"A quarter of all British rural road deaths involve hitting roadside objects," says Dr Hill. "It is common to see unprotected steep embankments, poles or trees that have grown far too close to the road. A quarter die at junctions and there are simply too many junctions that do not provide protection to turning vehicles."

As usual, not everybody agrees. "Britain's A roads must not be upgraded to be pseudo-motorways with wider lanes, crash barriers or other measures that encourage faster speeds, more environment-damaging car use, and encroach into our countryside," says road safety charity Brake. "Many of Britain's A-roads are in rural areas and inevitably bendy, single carriageway and with lots of brows. What these roads need is slower speed limits of 40mph rather than being derestricted and speed cameras to enforce those limits, as has been recognised by many rural local authorities implementing such measures."

Either way, it seems that UK’s officials are determined to eliminate all dangers on the road, which may rise another problem: driving will become so dull that falling asleep behind the steering wheel will be the number one cause of accident.