1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
32
33
34
35
36
37
38
39
40
41
42
43
44
45
46
47
48
49
50
51
52
53
54
55
56
57
58
59
60
61
62
63
64
65
66
67
68
69
70
71
72
73
74
75
76
77
78
79
80
81
82
83
84
85
86
87
88
89
90
91
92
93
94
95
96
97
98
99
100
101
102
103
104
105
106
107
108
109
110
111
112
113
114
115
116
117
118
119
120
121
122
123
124
125
126
127
128
129
130
131
132
133
134
135
136
137
138
139
140
141
142
143
144
145
146
147
148
149
150
151
152
153
154
155
156
157
158
159
160
161
162
163
164
165
166
167
168
169
170
171
172
173
174
175
176
177
178
179
180
181
182
183
184
185
186
187
188
189
190
191
192
193
194
195
196
197
198
199
200
201
202
203
204
205
206
207
208
209
210
211
212
213
214
215
216
217
218
219
220
221
222
223
224
225
226
227
228 
We !come break
Page 36
If you've noticed an error in this article please click here to report it so we can fix it.
Tucked away within the Road Safety Bill is a proposal to introduce motorway rest areas where tired drivers can take a free break. The move is warmly welcomed by CM'S operators' panel.
Pat Hagan reports.
The government, it seems. may be about to get something right. Its plan to introduce a network of 'French-style' motorway rest areas to help drivers combat fatigue has been greeted with almost universal approval. Last week the Highways Agency announced a 12-week consultation period. So far the initial proposals. unveiled as part of the Road Safety Bill due to come into force next year. have been warmly welcomed.
It's not hard to see why. According to some members of CM's operator panel, the conditions that drivers endure at the moment are shock ing.The main gripes include lay-bys where the stench of urine is overpowering, cramped motorway iv ice areas that are bursting at the seams by mid-afternoon and a lack of secure facilities.
Hard to stay legal
Even more seriously, the dearth of accessible rest areas in some parts of the country is making it difficult to comply with the drivers' hours regs -especially when roads are severely congested.
So how does the problem affect driven; and is the government proposal a good thing?
We asked our operators' panel for their views. II